[Sca-cooks] Castellan Feast, 2003...LONG

[Diana Skaggs]

--
[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
Amanda, I want to add my comments here - Liadan

Amanda Blackwolf <amandablackwolf at cox.net> wrote:
Well, the menu was:

1st course: Sodde Eggs, Olives She served a wonderful mustard sauce with this. It was also tasty on the carrots.

2nd course: Savory Toasted Cheese, Potato Bread (Lady Liadan from
Moonschadowe baked this) I had so many requests for the recipe, I will post it, but it is not an original of mine.  So I have to remember how to properly note it.


3rd course: Roast Pork, Garlic Sauce, Carrots, Sautéed Mushrooms w/ Spices

The roast pork was superb. Not dry at all, and the garlic sauce was a good condiment.  I didn't get a chance to taste the sauteed mushrooms as I was playing with the musicians during feast.


4th course: Roast Chicken, Saffron Rice

The roast chicken was done to perfection, but again, I missed the rice.


5th course: Pear Tart
I missed the pear tart when it was served, but someone scrounged up a piece for me after feast.  I would have cooked the tart longer, as the one I had had a doughy crust and the sugar mixed with the pears was still grainy.  It did taste great, so don't take this as a true complaint.  BTW, the cookies you made for the help were to die for.  I ate way more of them than I should have.


This was a feast that had mostly period or period-like dishes. My aim was to
feed everyone well, and with as close to period food as I could manage.

Job exceptionally well done.


1. Liadan's Potato Bread. I got so many compliments, and I did make sure to
tell everyone that Lady Liadan and Krystal Blackwolf and Lord Ulliacc's
children were completely responsible. (My daughter was still kneading bread
at 1:30 am....and for those of you who don't know her, she's 8.)
Thanks for telling everyone who my help was.  I can't always remember everyone's name.  Please don't leave out Mathias.  He was invaluable at watching over things when it got too hot for me in the kitchen.  He had exactly the right touch with the girls who helped, and was a great breadmaker's keeper. He has a nice, calm aura and helped keep me from getting impatient with the girls.  It was also nice to have someone who could lift the full trays into and out of the oven.  We made 12 batches of Potato bread for the feast.  I'm not familiar with the Hobart, so I used two Kitchenaide Mixers, one mine and one available on site.  I have to say it was an experience making bread in 100+ heat.  I kept getting nauseous from the heat and had to go get some somewhat cooler air out of the kitchen. Batches of bread that usually take 1 1/2 hours for the first rising were ready after 40 to 45 minutes.  The site's Kitchenaide was neurotic and occasionally would take an extra quick turn, splashing out liquids or flour.  We had lovely fans blowing on us, but the fan also blew clouds of flour out all over the kitchen and me.  I felt like the Pillsbury dough-woman and am still scraping wallpaper paste out of my hair. The girls, especially Lord Ulliacc's daughters, did most of the kneading and clean up. God bless them.  I was dropping by 2:30 am and they were still going strong.  Now, if I can just find a way to siphon off some of that energy.  Krystal was ordered to bed by her father around 2 am.  She was a little fireball and had her hand in every area of the breadmaking - from being sure I had added all the ingredients to the dough, to kneading, to forming the loaves.  I did have to tell her to let the older girls do something or they would get bored and go away.  I have not seen the dedication in many adults as the "children" who helped with the bread. I almost cried when I saw the girls had taken it upon themselves to wash up the mixers and dishes before leaving. Mathias took the last tray of bread out at about 2:30 am (brings back memories, doesn't it Bear?) and I stumbled to my tent and passed out until morning.

2. Savory Toasted Cheese. Gee, and I thought people didn't like weird food
around here!
Savory toasted cheese is not wierd - haggis is wierd.