SC - German potato soup recipe???

[Valoise Armstrong]

In my first parusal of The Medieval Kitchen I remember seeing an
Italian dish of some sort similar to Fondue served with Crostini of
wheat bread.  I cannot, for the life of me find it again!  It may have
been another book altogether.  I do know that it was a melted cheese
dipping sauce with a toasted bread dipper served in small dishes
rather than a largish communal pot.  I'll keep looking.

niccolo difrancesco



Robyn.Hodgkin at affa.gov.au wrote:
> 
> Has anyone got any information on whether fondue are period?
> 
> Kiriel

The oldest reference to fondue (cheese, I assume you mean) under  that
name that I have seen and can document is in Jean-Anthelme
Brillat-Savarin's "Physiologie du Gout" [Anatomy of Taste], sometime
in
the very early 19th century, maybe 1810 or so. His recipe is really
for
cheese scrambled with eggs and wine until the cheese is melted and the
eggs slightly thickened, just creamy.

And now, in our unsubstantiated rumor department (this is the night
for
that, isn't it?) I recall reading somewhere a story concerning
Landsknechts involved in some kind of peace talks, sharing a communal
meal of wine, wine and cheese pottage, and bread. Seems one side
brought
the bread and wine, the other side brought the cheese (or you can make
up another combination, I guess) and each side was issued bread and
wine, with the pot of cheese melted in hot wine in the middle, on the
line of political demarcation, for dipping in the bread. My source is
probably James Beard, which makes it somewhat suspect without
additional
information, rather like anything along similar lines that Jeff Smith
ever wrote or said.

Then again, the story about Franz Joseph and the potato is eerily
similar to the one about Jefferson and the tomato, and while Jefferson
probably did eat tomatoes at one time or another, the story as told
appears to be basically untrue, and I'd be somewhat surprised to see
documentation for the potato version. The French potato story, about
the
botanist Parmentier, though, is well documented in contemporary
accounts.
  
Adamantius
- -- 
Phil & Susan Troy

troy at asan.com
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                                      
                                                     
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