[Sca-cooks] Oatcakes-- was Midrealm Coronation Lunch

[johnna holloway]

Olive Geddes points out that the documents surviving for Scotland are 
few and far between. We have all these incomplete household accounts and 
records and no recipes. In terms of food history and records, the 
country lags the rest of Europe. I have this feeling that she found it 
easily to do her book on golf than to research the food history of 
Scotland for The Laird's Kitchen Three Hundred Years of Food in Scotland 
which she did for the National Library of Scotland and the HMSO.

I would think that the Froissart oatcakes are just meal and water and 
baked by the fireside. But around a hearth and with access to yeast from 
ale barm, there probably also grew up the "raised" or leavened cakes. 
There seems to be a variance of opinion as to what quality of meal to 
use as well as how thick to make the cakes.

Johnnae llyn Lewis


david friedman wrote:

>> david friedman wrote:
>>
>>>>  Oatcakes and  Barley Cakes, Assorted Breads and Manchets,
>>>
>>>   >> Johnnae llyn Lewis
>>>  >
>>>  Do you have a period recipe for oatcakes? I have a conjectural one,
>>>  based on Froissart's brief mention of their use by scottish troopers,
>>>  and would be interested to compare.
>>
>> --------------------------
>>
>> I actually turned up more descriptions than just the Froissart mention.
> 
> snipped> ...
> 
>> Hope this helps.
> 
> 
> Thanks. Lots of interesting stuff.
> 
> My guess is that Froissart's oat cakes aren't raised, given the 
> constraints of what they are being used for. Just oatmeal, water and 
> salt gives a reasonably good result. But it would be nice if we could 
> find something more extensive earlier than the 17th c.