[Sca-cooks] Cracked Barley

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

Guess i just don't look in the "hot cereal" aisle carefully enough.
I've got to make a trip to the natural food store today anyway, so
i'll check among the various packaged grain thingies for cracked
barley... barley... barley...

If they don't have it there...

I'll be back...

...to the list for help, that is...

I don't fancy pounding barley for 80 people in a mortar with a pestle.

BTW, has anyone actually seen a "period" recipe for barley polenta? I
thought the historical original was with semolina... However, there's
a wheat allergy issue at the feast (i think it's the Bard of the
Mists own lady), so i'm trying to find a historically plausible
substitute, and he suggested barley...

As for barley couscous, there's evidence to suggest that barley
couscous was eaten by Berbers for quite a long time well within "SCA
period", although they certainly grew wheat in the Maghrib - it was,
after all, the "bread basket" of the Roman Empire. My daughter did
have traditional barley couscous in Morocco, but she remembers little
about it except its colors (white, cream, beige). The family, which
is proud of its Berber heritage, was very excited, as barley couscous
was special. Normally they eat wheat couscous.

Anahita