SC - Book review

[Robyn.Hodgkin at affa.gov.au]

Interested? I was blown away!  Wanda works in the next wing to me, and I
never knew she was into medieval cooking.  I, in fact used to work in the
same section as her, when I was in AQIS.  The world is a small place.  I
gave her a call and had a quick chat about it.   She didn't know that it had
been released, and was rapt.  I told her that next time I am catering a
feast, I might just have to give her a call!

Kiriel


> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Margo Hablutzel [SMTP:margolh at nortelnetworks.com]
> Sent:	Friday, March 26, 1999 4:14 AM
> To:	sca-cooks at Ansteorra.ORG
> Subject:	SC - Book review
> 
> 	From:	Historical Recreation in the Kingdom of Calontir,
> 	From:	Finnvarr de Taahe <finnvarr at EALDORMERE.SCA.ORG
> <mailto:finnvarr at EALDORMERE.SCA.ORG> >
> 	Subject:	The Medieval Review on  "The Medieval Kitchen"
> 
> 	I thought a lot of people might be interested in this.
> 	Finnvarr
> 
> 	Subject: BMR: Redon, et al., The Medieval Kitchen (Oram-Miles)
> 	Date:  Wed, 24 Mar 1999 16:48:04 -0500 (EST)
> 	From: owner-bmr-l at brynmawr.edu <mailto:owner-bmr-l at brynmawr.edu>
> Reply-To: bmr-l at brynmawr.edu <mailto:bmr-l at brynmawr.edu> 
> 
> 
> 	(TMR 99.03.17)
> 	Odile Redon, Francoise Sabban, and Silvano Serventi.  <I>The
> Medieval Kitchen: Recipes from France and Italy</I>.  Chicago:
> 	University of Chicago Press, 1998.  Pp. xvii, 285.  $32.50 (hb)
> 	ISBN: 0-226-70684-2.
> 	Reviewed by Wanda Oram-Miles
> 			Principal Food Scientist
> 			Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service
> 			wanda.oram-miles at aqis.gov.au
> <mailto:wanda.oram-miles at aqis.gov.au> 
> 	Food is important for life, but few historical works explore the
> preparation of food in a particular historical period.  In most historical
> work food is mentioned only in the context of the setting or the action of
> eating, rather than the joy and technicalities of preparation and
> consumption.  Redon, Sabban and Serventi provide not only a recipe book
> but a historical guide to all aspects of cooking and culinary arts in
> medieval
> France and Italy.
> 	I heartily enjoyed reading and working from this book, so much so
> that my analysis cannot be objective.  The work unashamedly encourages the
> reader to indulge in the practice of medieval food preparation as it is
> discussed and presented in the text.
> 	The authors' love of food and approach to the topic inspires readers
> to gorge themselves on reading about the delights of the kitchen.  The
> translation by Edward Schneider is sensitive and conveys the vivacity of
> the
> writing style.  This is a book designed to be used, rather than placed on
> a
> bookshelf; the recipes are adapted to suit four or six people, and the
> style
> makes for easy use by novices or by those experienced in the medieval
> style of food preparation.
> 	The quality of the document is astounding-one becomes immersed in a
> detailed account of all things culinary from medieval France and Italy;
> from
> the advice of a husband to his inexperienced wife, to the intricate
> recipes
> of a master chef to the king of France.
> 	The foreword by Georges Duby gives a warning of the treats to come,
> his first sentence "To open this book is to set your mouth watering" is
> proven very true.  He then tempts us forward into the book by setting the
> medieval scene, calling up visual and auditory imagery.
> 	Modern readers with access to a wide variety of ingredients, many
> introduced to Europe only within the last four hundred years, are reminded
> in the Preface of the ingredients available to a medieval cook and the
> spices used to impart different, if subtle, flavours.  The second person
> grammatical style of the Preface immerses the reader within the sensual
> aspects of cooking from the beginning of the book.  Further descriptions
> of
> "clouded in the scent of rose water" and "showering a chicken with sugar"
> assist in evoking a very real atmosphere for the work.
> 	The first quarter of the book is presented as an easy to read
> historical text.  Use of contemporary anecdote, gleaned by the authors
> from
> manuscripts and recipe books of the period, serves to make this section
> enlightening and entertaining.
> 	The first chapter, "Histories and Tales from the Kitchen," acquaints
> the reader with a background to medieval cooking gleaned from 17
> manuscripts.  Setting out the cultural landmarks invoked in the text to
> understand the recipes, the chapter delves into the society of the middle
> ages; cooking being a cultural activity, the chapter compares the
> differences between dishes served on normal days and feast days, the table
> of a peasant and a lord, of clergy and laity.  The manners of a medieval
> meal are made clear in the discussion of a determination of seating
> position, order of the meal, sharing a "taillor" and eating delicately
> with
> the fingers.
> 	The technicalities of some preparation practices similarly need the
> detailed explanation given.  Although chopping, grinding, filtering,
> straining and cooking are all common practices in the modern kitchen, in
> the medieval kitchen multiple practices were often used for one dish; the
> reason
> for using such practices in medieval cooking is discussed in such a way
> that the reader gains from the first-hand experience of the authors.
> 	The aesthetics of cooking are combined with evocative descriptions,
> further tempting the reader to try out the recipes.
> 	The chapter, "Medieval Cooking Today" is reassuring to the modern
> novice without being at all patronizing.  The language is that of the
> modern
> cookbook; the medieval terminology which litters other such cookbooks is
> missing here, replaced by solid practical advice on use of modern kitchen
> equipment and available ingredients.
> 	The technicalities of reading and using the recipes selected by the
> authors is discussed, however specifics are confined to the recipe section
> itself.  This chapter is a direct communication from the authors to the
> reader about the use of the book and the recipes contained in it.  The
> chapter goes on to give detailed advice about selection of ingredients and
> brief advice on menu planning for a medieval meal with example menus.
> 	The book is well cross-referenced throughout and moving from section
> to section, dipping into or hopping about in the book is not problematic,
> although the authors recommend reading the first chapters before embarking
> on the recipes.
> 	The 153 recipes, some with variations, take up two thirds of the
> book.  Each recipe is presented as a translation of the medieval text,
> followed by the authors' comments, which are very detailed and helpful,
> then
> by a rendering of the recipe for the modern cook.  A separate chapter
> presents the numbered medieval texts in their original language at the
> back
> of the book.  This format is very user friendly.
> 	The recipes retain the detail of advice laid down by the original
> authors of the medieval versions.  Some of the most entertaining are those
> containing advice and instructions to the medieval cook on purchasing
> ingredients or on alternative cooking practices.  These anecdotes within
> the
> recipes maintain the cultural context of the recipes and keep what could
> be
> a banal recipe book as a lively guide to the period.
> 	Colour plates in the centre of the book add to the context of the
> historical work, and line drawings throughout complete the feel, but as a
> cook I would have liked some colour plates of the dishes themselves as in
> a
> modern cook book, especially some of the more spectacular ones such as
> baked
> rabbit in pastry or the various blancs-mangers.
> 	The recipes I have tried from this book not only work but are
> acceptable to the modern palate.  The authors' comments on delicacy of
> flavours and interpretations make the recipes easy to choose and prepare.
> 	The appendices include the medieval texts of the recipes, a list of
> recipes by manuscript source and a list of mailorder addresses.  These
> last,
> although in France and the USA, included web sites, indicating that
> worldwide advice is available for those of us in the antipodes who are
> interested in medieval cooking.
> 	This book is a delight.  It is not often that one has the privilege
> of working from a text this detailed and easy to use.  It is living
> history,
> able to be practiced by novice and master alike, practical history which
> can
> be carried out in our own homes by those of us living in modern times.
> The
> grammatical style of this book and recipe formatting would lend itself to
> publication in the format of a modern recipe book for the masses.
> 
> 
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