[Sca-cooks] some recipes and questions

[Lonnie D. Harvel]

Greetings All,

I was plundering through my copy of "A Mediterranean Feast" by Clifford 
Wright, looking for some things to take to a local "12th" night event 
being held here in Bryn Madoc on the 16th. (So I guess it is a 22nd 
night feast.) I stumbled upon a few things, and was interested in 
comment and corrections from y'all.
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First, is a recipe for Pate di Fegato. The book claims it to be a 
favorite of Doge Nicolo Tron (d. 1473). There is no reference for this. 
The recipe is:

Pate di Fegato (Venice)

1 recipe fegato di vitello alla veneziana
1/4 poud whipped unsalted butter, at room temperature

1. Place all of the cooked, and cooled, liver in a food processor and 
run until pastelike. Add the whipped butter and continue to process 
until it is all blended.

2. Remove, form with your hands into a sausage shape, and place on a 
sheet of aluminum foil. Roll it up and place in the refrigerator. Serve 
at room temperature.

- Fegato di Vitello alla Veneziana

1 pound of veal liver, arteries removed
1 cup milk
1/4 cup extra virgin oliver or grapeseed oil
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
salt to taste
juice from 1 lemon
2 tablespoons very finely chopped fresh parsely leaves
freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Cut the liver into thin strips, place in a medium size bowl, marinate 
for 1-hour in the milk, and drain.

2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat, then cook the 
onion until translucent, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occaisionally. 
Increase the heat to high, add the liver, and cook for 2 minutes, 
tossing often.

3. Season with salt and stir in the lemon juice. Remove the skillet from 
the heat, sprinkle on the parsley and black pepper. (Serve with hot 
polenta.)

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The second is Salatat al-Malfuf. In the preface to the recipe, the book 
briefly talks about the prevalence of cabbage in the middle ages, and 
its use by both European and Arab cooks. However, it does not tell me if 
this recipe is Medieval or not.

Salatat al-Malfuf

1 small Savoy cabbage (about 1 pound), damaged outer leaves removed, 
cored, and shredded
1/4 cup sea salt, or more to taste
6 gloves garlic, very finely chopped
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
6 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon dried mint

1. Toss the shredded cabbage in a large bowl with the salt and let sit 
for 1 hour.

2. Throrougly wash the salt from the cabbage by unking it in water. 
Taste a piece of the raw cabbage to make sure the salt  is washed off. 
Return to the cleaned bowl. Toss well with the garlic, lemon juice, 
olive oil, and mint. Check the seasoning, although it should not need 
any more salt, and serve at room temperature within the hour.

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The third (and final, at least for now) is Cassata. The book spends a 
page and a half telling me all about its history and cultural 
significance, and then does not provide a recipe. The description is 
good enough for me to make one, and I have found several modern recipes, 
since it is a major Sicilian food item.  Do any of you have a reference 
for a period recipe? (It is a cake filled with a sweetened Ricotta 
cheese filling.) It is supposed to be an adaptation of an Arabic dish, 
and the cake is based on the "pan de Spagna" and/or the Spanish "bizcocho".

Pax,
Aoghann