SC - Frumenty - ANOTHER question!
Gerekr at aol.com
Gerekr at aol.com
Sat Mar 13 13:56:18 PST 1999
We got 4 versions of (wheat) frumenty thru cooking night successfully,
and a decision made for the 12N course ... except for the philosophical
debate that arose over whether wheat berries, cracked wheat or bulgur
would have been a closer texture match to what period diners would have
gotten/expected.
That is, chewey whole grain kernels in sauce, or flavored mush.
The issue came up partly because of all the hulling and breaking
instructions in almost all the recipes. I was assuming that those are
there because whole-grains got stored in a less-refined state than the
wheat berries you can get at the grocery store... that there actually
- -were- hulls to break up and remove (comments in some recipes about
"doing away the chaff" (sic)). Personally I (Chimene) prefer the chewier
texture of even completely cooked wheat berries (and kept derisively
referring to the cracked wheat result as "peasant pap", 8-0!), but I'm
the beneficiary of 20thC dentistry. Others (Gerek) preferred the mush
form.
We prepared 4 versions, 3 with wheat berries, and one with cracked wheat,
which may have turned out mushier than if we'd used "bulgur" -- cracked
wheat and bulgur -are- two different things, yes? We're assuming bulgur
is to cracked wheat sort of like steel-cut oats oatmeal is to rolled oats
oatmeal, and are going to check by doing a set for next meeting.
And someone raised the side issue that the common commercial wheat
berries that we used were probably a hard wheat, where most of the period
European stuff was a soft variety. Whether this is a distinction we can
expect to impose on hotel cooks (Double Tree) may make this a moot point,
but it was raised. Although in -this- town, we probably have a
reasonably good chance of their finding it if they look for it, at least.
So, there's another couple of questions! Who woulda thunk it!
Thanks, & looking forward to erudition, enlightenment, etc., 8-),
Chimene & Gerek
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