SC - Re: Elizabeth I - Masque at Hatfield

[Oughton, Karin (GEIS, Tirlan)]

><< Cooking not an art??? >>
>
>Cooking is both an art and a science although I tend to lean more 
>heavily toward it being a science. It would not be too much of a
>stretch to place it alongside engineering, architecture and the other
>sciences that use basic rules and concepts to produce an unlimited
>number of beautiful things.
>Ras

	The common thought from working in kitchens is that Cooking is an
Art, and Baking is a Science.  Cooking involves using meats, vegetables,
spices, liquids and other ingredients and flavorings that may need
adjustment or 'tweaking' depending on size, flavor, freshness, etc. 
Many, many recipies use the phrase "season to taste" at the end of them,
allowing the cook the liberty of using their best judgment to finish the
dish.  This is an art of balance and perception.  
	Baking (and all 'Pastry Sciences', to borrow a phrase from Homer
Simpson) is a Science.  Chemical reactions needed to take place need
accurate measurement and temperatures to insure a consistant product. 
"That looks like enough baking powder (yeast, salt, egg, soda, etc.)" 
would not do for recipies dependent on the right proportions of said
ingredients to react correctly.  
	I think this also explains why there is such a traditional
division of labor within kitchens, you tend to have Cooks, and Pastry
Cooks.  I have always leaned toward the Cooks side, as the measuring and
exact results were never as fascinating to me as the freedom of
experimentation and the diversity of working with perishible ingredients
that comes with Cooking.  (Yes, I can and do bake, but it was never my
first love.)  
	I think this also carries over into the SCA parlance of ART and
SCIENCE.  (Unless there are so few categories in an Art/Sci contest that
it doesn't matter).  
	More grist for the mill, 
	Mistress Christianna



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