SC - trenchers

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Master Cariadoc said:
> What we used to do for trenchers long ago was to get a baker to make us
> small, flat, round loaves and then cut them in half, giving two circular
> bread "plates."

However, do you have any evidence to trenchers ever being round? The pictures
I've seen all show the trenchers to be almost square, with the crust cut
off on all sides. I believe there are some period instructions on cutting
trenchers that also support this.

However, round with crust, or square with the crusts cut off, trenchers are
still a very period thing that I don't think has been done much in the SCA.

Also, there is evidence that trenchers were not made of the best bread.
A denser bread may have lessened the chance of juices seeping through the
trencher as well as being cheaper to produce.

Perhaps a whole-wheat bread produced in a bread-machine, which often
produce square loaves would be a reasonable substitution and be more
economical than cutting off large sections of a round loaf. You
could get about half-a-dozen trenchers from one loaf I would expect,
perhaps more with the bigger machines. I've not priced modern grains.
I wonder if using a substatial amount of rye or oats would be both
more accurate still and even cheaper.

- -- 
Lord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
Mark S. Harris             Austin, Texas           stefan at texas.net
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