[Sca-cooks] honeyed milk- quote from Milham's Platina

[Phlip]

Platina, Book II, 16.

< Much not directly pertinent snipped>

"(Milk) is better in spring than in summer, and better in in summer than in
autumn or winter. It ought to be drunk on an empty stomach, warm as it comes
from the udder, and one ought to abstain from other food until it has
settled in the stomach. It is least harmful drunk as curds at the first
course of spring and summer, for taken after the meal, as we are generally
accustomed to do, it either spoils immediately or draws other undigested
food with it to the bottom. One should also be quiet after taking it so that
it will not sour in the stomach from shaking. Drunk with either sugar or
honey it is kept from spoiling. I have said it should be drunk on a cleared
and empty stomach because it is easily converted to those humors which it
first seizes upon in the stomach. One must, however, avoid too much use of
milk, for it makes the keeness of the eyes duller and generates stones in
kidneys and bladder. We use the whey, which results when the cheese is
removed from the milk, as a medicine because it cools the liver and blood
and makes a way to purge the body of poisons."

Phlip



----- Original Message -----
From: "Pixel, Goddess and Queen" <pixel at hundred-acre-wood.com>
To: "SCA-Cooks maillist (E-mail)" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Sent: Tuesday, August 27, 2002 4:31 PM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] honeyed milk


> On Mon, 26 Aug 2002, Harris Mark.S-rsve60 wrote:
>
> > Phlip commented:
> > I did scan Platina, since I've noticed a fair amount
> > of similarities between Platina and Anthimus, but
> > there was no honey butter mentioned, although honey
> > was mixed with milk to prevent the milk from spoiling.
> > ------------
> >
> > Interesting. Has anyone tried this? Did it keep the
> > milk from spoiling? Honey has some anti-bacterial
> > properties but it also has to do with its density
> > where through osmosis it draws the water out of the
> > bacteria and thus kills it. But that depends upon
> > having a fairly high concentration of honey. That is
> > why you have to dilute honey to make mead. But to
> > preserve the milk, it seems like you would have to
> > have a very high proportion of honey.
>
> I have noticed that skim milk lasts longer than "whole" milk or 2%, but
> I've never tried mixing honey. I'd want to get my hands on raw milk,
> though, rather than pasteurized, to minimize variables. That probably
> makes somewhat of a difference. Also, we don't know how long he's
> expecting the milk to last if unpreserved. It depends on the
> climate--northern Italy uses/used butter, while southern Italy uses/used
> oil, because in warmer climes uncultured milk products have a very short
> lifespan.
>
> If my aunt still had her two milk cows, I'd give it a try.
>
> So, skimmed vs. whole, raw vs. pasteurized, climate and seasonal
> variables.
>
>  >
> > I wonder how you would have used such milk? Or how
> > you could use it today. Since honey was so much more
> > expensive than milk, like using imported spices to
> > cover the taste of bad meat, the use of this sounds
> > unlikely. I think I will just stick to keeping my
> > milk in a cool ice chest or in those sealed boxes
> > for events.
> >
> > Stefan li Rous
>
> Do we know the prices of honey and milk in Italy? And does Platina say
> anything about *when* it is useful to preserve milk with honey--better in
> the winter than in summer, that sort of thing? Hmmm. Reading to do when I
> get home, I suppose.
>
> Margaret
>
>
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