[Sca-cooks] moral lentil dilemma

[jenne at fiedlerfamily.net]

Eep! I've tested a recipe that I thought was a redaction of the dish that
is beneficial for tertian fevers in Al-Andalus, but apparently I got mixed
up and cooked it like "A cooked dish of lentils":

This is the recipe I started off with, and I used the ingredients from it:

A Muzawwara
(Vegetarian Dish) Beneficial for Tertian Fevers and Acute Fevers
Take boiled peeled lentils and wash in hot water several times; put in the
pot and add water without covering them; cook and then throw in pieces of
gourd, or the stems [ribs] of Swiss chard, or of lettuce and its tender
sprigs, or the flesh of cucumber or melon, and vinegar, coriander seed, a
little cumin, Chinese cinnamon, saffron and two ûqiyas of fresh oil;
balance with a little salt and cook. Taste, and if its flavor is
pleasingly balanced between sweet and sour, [good;] and if not, reinforce
until it is equalized, according to taste, and leave it to lose its heat
until it is cold and then serve.

And this is the dish it got mixed up with:

"Cooked Dish of Lentils

al-Andalusi p. C-5 (no. 377)

Wash lentils and put them to cook in a pot with sweet water, oil, pepper,
coriander and cut onion. When they are cooked throw in salt, a little
saffron and vinegar; break three eggs, leave for a while on the flame and
later retire the pot. Other times cook without onion. If you wish cook it
with Egyptian beans pricked into which have been given a boil. Or better
with dissolved yeast over a gentle fire. When the lentils begin to thicken
add good butter or sweet oil, bit by bit, alike until it gets absorbed,
until they are sufficiently cooked and have enough oil. Then retire it
from the flame and sprinkle with pepper."

What I actually did is cook lentils, gourds, chard etc. all together, and
serve warm, not cold.

What we then have is a temperate dish, which has cold vegetables in it but
warm spices, oil and moderate vinegar, and is served warm.

The question is, is this recipe morally indefensible as period cooking,
because I don't pre-cook the lentils and because I serve it warm?

-- Pani Jadwiga Zajaczkowa, Knowledge Pika jenne at fiedlerfamily.net
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens
can change the world; indeed it's the only thing that ever has..."
-- Margaret Mead