[Sca-cooks] 12th Night Ideas

[Joe Fling]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Laura C. Minnick" <lcm at efn.org>
To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2002 8:44 PM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] 12th Night Ideas



> Uh, gingerbrede made with _wine_? Did I read that right? I've never seen a
> period recipe like that before. Mine (COI) is honey, breadcrumbs, and
> spices. I would think the alcohol would keep it from setting up. Where di
> you find the recipe?
>
> 'Lainie
> -yeah, should be resting my hand, but...

I actually got it from an old copy of the East Kingdom's Arts and Sciences
Supplement to Pikestaff from December, 1992.  It's still available to order,
we only recently acquired this copy.

The article was by Michaele del Vaga/Shelly Stone.  One of the recipes from
Markham starts out "Take claret wine and color it with turnsole, and put in
sugar and set it to the fire;". Towards the end of the article, a ratio of 2
cups of wine and 1/2 cup of sugar can be used in place of 1 cup of honey in
the original redaction.

I had tried the straight honey with no luck (wouldn't set), and the day
before I was supposed to cook a feast, having just finished baking 20 Pies
de Parys, I decided to try the wine variation, hoping to enter it in a
dessert competion.  I treated the wine and sugar just like honey, and heated
it to soft ball on the candy thermometer before adding the bread crumbs.  It
came out great, I took it with me to the feast, set the baking pan down in a
side room, went into the kitchen and completely forgot it until after
dinner.  Never made it into the competition, but everybody really liked it,
so now it's becoming a regular. Some people referred to it last time as
"Ginger fudge".  My lady wife is hosting an A&S exhibition at our next
event, All's Faire, which is to be judged by the populace, and her first
words to me were, "You're making that gingerbread, RIGHT?".  To which I, of
course, replied, "Yes dear".  :)

John M

"I don't know what your problem is, but I bet it's hard to spell!"