SC - Cider Sauce Experiments

[harper at idt.net]

And it came to pass on 6 Dec 00, , that lilinah at earthlink.net wrote:

> Robin Carroll-Mann shared her recipe for Spanish cider sauce with the list:
> 
> CIDER SAUCE
> Source: Diego Granado, Libro del Arte de Cozina, 1599
> Translation & Redaction: Lady Brighid ni Chiarain


> What i did:
> 
> 1.) Being an American without a kitchen scale, i consulted "The Joy 
> of Cooking" which said that 1 pound of sugar equaled approx. 2 cups.

I suppose I should have provided volume measurements, too.  
Sorry about that.  I have a kitchen scale, which I got for baking.  It 
really is an essential tool for redacting the kind of recipes I've been 
working with, since almost all the measurments are based on 
weight.
 
> 2.) Although apples grow here in northern California, i do not live 
> in a fresh cider area. Yes, they sell it around here, and i found it 
> for around 8 dollars a gallon.

Around here a half gallon of cider is about $2.  Not having had a 
need to make it in quantity, I didn't have to pay as much attention 
to prices.

> 3.) Where i was shopping the white wine vinegar was only in little 
> bottles, so it was mongo expensive, but there was a big bottle of 
> champagne vinegar that was reasonable, so i got that. More suitable 
> than red wine vinegar, i reasoned.

Yes.  Although the recipe doesn't specify white vinegar, red vinegar 
would change the color noticeably.  Also, one of the related recipes 
("and cook it as above") does call for white vinegar.

> 4.) As for wine, i am an ignoramus. But i found a 2 liter bottle of 
> white Chardonnay for $8, so what the hey... I tasted it before using 
> it and it was definitely drinkable, not bad even.

I am ignorant of wine, too, but I don't think there's enough wine in 
the recipe for the precise type to make much difference, except to 
the most sensitive palate.  I mean, I wouldn't use Chateau Rotgut, 
but this is not a job for the finest vintage in the store, either.
 
> EXPERIMENT ONE
> 1 oz cassia sticks - yes i know they taste different than true 
> cinnamon, which is much more delicious
[snip]

I have been known to use cassia at times.

> I put them all together in a pan, brought to a simmer and cooked 
> until reduced by half. I think i was cooking on too low a fire, so 
> for the last, uh, i don't know, maybe 1/2 hour or 45 min, i brought 
> the heat up to a faster simmer, but not a rolling boil. I don't own a 
> candy thermometer, so i gauged by feel - the liquid was definitely 
> thickened, and i measured it until it was reduced to 2 cups. This 
> took about two hours. I didn't stand over the pot, just went in and 
> stirred every 15 min. or so until near the end, when i checked every 
> five minutes or so, then stood there for the last 10 minutes of 
> cooking. 

This is pretty much what I did.  The first time I made the sauce, I 
brought a stool to the stove and stirred constantly for 45 minutes.

> I removed the spices, but did not strain, as the sauce is 
> clear. Then I cooled it, 2 cups worth.

I found that I had bits of spice residue.  Also, Ceylon cinnamon is 
more brittle, and more likely to leave little fragments in your sauce 
than cassia.  Someone suggested to me that it might work to tie 
the spices into a cheescloth bundle, which could then be easily 
removed.

> It is the color of cherry amber. 

I found the double batches were darker than the single batches, 
though they tasted the same.

> It never jelled, not even in the 
> fridge - probably pectin was removed in the commercial processing - 
> but it is a VERY thick syrup. 

I'm not sure that mine has ever jelled, but it comes out the 
thickness of honey.

> The flavor is interesting - the wine 
> and wine vinegar help cut the sweetness of the juice and sugar and 
> add a nice fruity tang. There is a clear flavor of spices, although 
> i'd like them stronger, and of apple.

I was also pleasantly surprised the first time I tasted this.  I thought 
that with the large quantity of sugar in the recipe, it would be 
terribly sweet.  But the vinegar provides a good balance.  Master 
Basilicus Phocas, who is translating a late-period Italian cookbook, 
made an observation  at a class he taught at Pennsic one year.  
He pointed out that sweet-and-sour is the signature flavor of Italian 
Renaissance cuisine.  I have found the same to be true of 
Spanish/Catalan cuisine.  In recipe after recipe, there are  
instructions like these:
"and sample the taste, which must be between sour and sweet"
"the sauce should be a little between sour and sweet"


> EXPERIMENT TWO
> Same ingredients as Experiment One, except i fully reconstituted the 
> juice and kept the fire higher during the process. It took only a 
> little longer, because i had the heat higher. But even though i 
> reduced it by half, it was more liquid than the first batch. It is a 
> moderately thick syrup. It seems sweeter than the first, although 
> with a slightly stronger spice flavor.
> 
> Although this is probably not what the Spanish made and may not be as 
> delicious as sauce made from fresh cider, it is very good. I think it 
> will be a success.

I should point out that I don't know if my redaction with fresh cider 
is exactly what the Spanish made.  Granado says to start out with 
whole unpeeled apples and crush them.  Then let the juice stand 
and take the clearer part.  I don't know if apples treated this way 
would result in something closer to cider or to filtered apple juice -- 
perhaps something in the middle.

> Well, just 4 more potsful to go. This time i'll have two pots going 
> at once in two sessions. Gee, this is easy :-)

Glad it's working out for you.


Lady Brighid ni Chiarain
Settmour Swamp, East (NJ)
mka Robin Carroll-Mann
harper at idt.net