SC - Diet Blues

[Christine A Seelye-King]

Stefan li Rous wrote:

> Selene commented:
> > I cooked Rosettes at a tourney out in a
> > city park last Saturday, and told curious local onlookers that they were
> > Medieval Churros.  It seemed to work as a referent familiar to the most modern
> > person.
>
> Uh, well, not to me. But then I'm not your average modern person. :-)
> I don't seem to get most of Adamantius' movie referances, either. :-(

I usually do, but I was a teen-aged film major. ;-)

> So what is a "Churro"? Or a "Rosette"? Recipe and redaction? Perhaps
> "Churro" is more of a Californian term?

We had a discussion on this list in October, before the holiday rush, about rosettes
and pizzelli, recall?  The modern Swedish/Norwegian holiday treat, Nanna recommended
a photo and recipe of rosettes/struvor, try this link:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Oaks/7866/scandanavia.html

Valoise offered a period recipe from Sabina Welserin, which I find highly similar:

88 A molded and fried pastry

Take eight eggs and beat them well and pour them in a sieve and strain
them, put a little wine in with it, so that it goes through easily, the chicken
embryo remaining behind. Afterwards stir flour into it, until you think
that it is right. Do not make the batter too thick. Dip the mold in with proper
skill and let them fry, then it is well done.

 As for Churros:  it's more of a Mexican term, I thought they had these in Texas?
Maybe not, maybe its more Cal-Mex than Tex-Mex.  Anyway.  The batter I made was
simple  3 eggs, 1 cup milk, 1/4 cup sugar and unbleached flour 'enough.'  For
rosettes, I made it thin as pancake batter.  For churros, it would be stiffer and
put through a pastry bag with a wide flower nozzle to make foot-long fluted
cylinders of dough, which then is deep-fried.  You can get them frozen, but much of
the charm and mouth-feel are gone, like any other fresh vs. defrosted pastry.  They
are ubiquitous in Los Angeles, and the comparison is apt.    I got really peevish
about the churros stand at the local Renaissance Faire, not because of non-period
food [for once] but for the non-period nomenclature.  Even a calligraphed sign
reading something like "Spanish Cryspes" would have been an improvement.

Damn, this is a BAD time to be back on the low carbohydrate diet.  <grummmp>

Selene
selene at earthlink.net