SC - Unhistoric things we serve OT

[Bethany Public Library]

Blathazar wrote:
*I also, sometimes, omit the baking
*powder in my biscuits, and instead beat the dough with a leather mallet for
*about 30 minutes.  This works well, also, and if I am not mistaken (and if
I
*am I will certainly hear about it) this is the way folks in the southern US
*made biscuits before Baking Powder came into practical use.  It doesn't
puff
*up quite as much as with chemical leavening, but does produce a biscuit
with
*a very good texture, IMO.

This is interesting. I was speaking to Ras the other day at an event and we
talked about doing things exactly as they would have been done in period, as
opposed to doing things according to the recipe but using modern appliances.
When I'm in my manic phase I feel that you can carry this authenticity to
the nth degree, but if you're cooking all the right ingredients in a modern
kitchen, it still isn't going to be perfectly period (tm). Usually I come to
my senses, but that theory's siren call is hard to resist, to me. I want to
use the right ingredients in the right manner in the appropriate kitchen.
You can learn a great deal about technique and about texture by reverting to
the exact methods described in the recipes, or by detecting by clever means
(paintings, descriptions, wood cuts, household management books) how an item
may have been cooked or processed. I'm talking about the difference between
a Jen-aire range and a clay oven, for instance.  It's not possible for all
of us to be able to do this, but I still recall the period kitchen I ran
where I was shocked to find that people were coming in, not to help, but to
take photographs.

I was especially intrigued to know more about the paddles Platina says to
beat items with---I want one. I want to experiment with the difference in
beating eggs or batters with such an item, for instance. I want to compare
that to beating with a plain wooden spoon, and then compare it to beating
with an electrical appliance. You all will know what I mean if you have ever
tried to make emergency beaten egg whites in a blender, for instance. Sure,
it says "whip" on the controls, but can it really do what you want it to do?
I think not. Does anyone have access to images of Italian Kitchens, or any
other kitchen that might show a paddle hanging not he wall or being used?

If anyone knows what the dimensions of such a paddle might be, I could have
hubby whip one up on the old jigsaw, and then round off the corners with the
dremel (talk about using modern equipment).

And then, I'll beat it ;).


Aoife

*Complacency Breeds Contempt

An apple pie without some cheese is like a kiss without a squeeze.