[Sca-cooks] Le Confiturier Francois

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

Gorgeous Muiredach <muiredach at bmee.net> wrote:
>The list has been so quiet today, I guess it's due to 12th night, eh?

Yeah, just got back about 2 PM. Still tired, maybe even a bit sleepy.
I was up until 3:30 AM Friday making spice powders to give as gifts
(Specia Forte e Negre, my Hypocras blend, and a modern Ras el-Hanout
for coffee - and i weighed each bag and labeled each with ingredients
and suggestions for use), then got up at 6:30 AM to get everything
into the car. Didn't leave until 10 AM 'cuz it took a while to find
stuff... The site was about 1-1/2 hours away according to an on-line
map service - i got there in an hour part of which time was spent
driving a bit more cautiously in a real downpour and then crawling
for a while as lookie-loos slowed unnecessarily to look at a car that
had skidded off the road and down a very slight  embankment. Looked
to me like the driver was basically ok and the car was basically ok,
but would not have been able to get out of the mud unaided (there
were emergency vehicles there).

Then i was up last night after the event, in a nearby hotel where
many SCA folks were staying, until around 2:30 AM hanging out with
friends and acquaintances, listening to a former Army MP, a former
Marine officer, and a someone who was formerly a computer and tech
instructor in the Air Force share stories. Up this AM around 7:30...
I could use another hour of sleep, i think.

It was my first 12th Night - last year i was in Morocco and the year
before (the first i could have gone to) my daughter got sick. We
don't have a feast here. Everyone brings there own food. Some shires
or households plan potlucks.

I was busy shopping, socializing, and displaying some stuff in a
"Laurels Prize Tourney". Around 8 PM i realized i hadn't eaten or
drunk anything since 7 AM. So i had a rather limp Spanakopita i'd
brought (it was pouring walls of water on the drive up and all day
and much of the evening) and someone's homemade dolmas with lamb and
rice and i had a couple bowls of Lemon-Quince syrup with water and
fresh "sweet lemon" juice (anyone know what these are? They look like
lemons only rounder, and they are not the least bit sour, with a
slightly musky-resiny smell that reminded me of Thai Kafir limes.

NOW TO THE TOPIC IN MY SUBJECT LINE

>Here I am, working on Le Confiturier Francois, and finding all kinds of
>ideas for drinks to be served at feasts, much better than just iced
>tea.  Well, perhaps not better, but at least more interesting!  Apricot
>water, or corriander water for example.  Ohhh yum!

So how does one obtain a copy of this interesting sounding book? I
remember someone (you?) mentioning it on the list previously - IIRC,
it's a bit OOP, but what the heck, i cooked a recipe from mid-17th c.
La Varenne (turnips in mustard sauce) for a feast last year - oops, i
mean in 2000.

I'd certainly like to see those beverage recipes. I've made minted
sekanjabin, lemon-quince syrup, pomegranate syrup, and cold faulx
ypocras. I'm not a big fan of sweet drinks and all these are also
either sour or spicy as well as sweet, and i add less sugar than many
worked-up recipes suggest.

And after cooking at least half a case of quinces to make the
aforementioned syrup, i think i'm ready for confiture.

Anahita