[Sca-cooks] Re: Hais report

[K C Francis]

The original recipe gives you the choice of sesame oil OR butter.  So many 
people just seem to miss this fact.  I entered this recipe in my first 
Silver Spoon competition (snack foods to be judged with the brewing 
competition).  I explained in my documentation that I had tried it with the 
sesame oil and didn't like it (neither the flavor nor the oily texture).  My 
second batch had butter, WAAAAY better on both counts.  YET, a judge asked 
on my judging form "why did you use butter?" as if I had made a substitution 
for an original ingredient and hadn't mentioned it.  Go figure.....

As for the dates, I didn't realize there were variations on the moistness of 
the dates until I got some really DRY ones and had the problems noted here 
on the list.  For some reason, I used fresh bread crumbs the first time and 
ever since.  I do think that this one variation from the original really 
makes a vast improvement on the 'eating it now' version.  If I wanted it to 
last a really long time as the original was intended, I would use dry bread 
crumbs and work like heck to bind it into little kabobs.

Cariodoc served this at a feast and I heard one of the kitchen staff remark 
how difficult it was to get his version of the mixture to stick together.  
People who have eaten his version and mine have commented that I "got it 
right".  And I know that means for eating now as opposed to  a perfect 
version of the original recipe which I am perfectly willing to live with.

As the various "Spoon" ministers keep pointing out, 'taste' is worth twice 
the points and fyi, my hais won me my first Silver Spoon.

Since this was my first attempt at period cooking, I really appreciate the 
discussion here on the list.  Always ready to learn something new.

Katira


>From: "Phil Troy / G. Tacitus Adamantius" <adamantius.magister at verizon.net>
>Reply-To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
>To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
>Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Re: Hais report
>Date: Wed, 09 Nov 2005 06:47:45 -0500
>
>
>On Nov 8, 2005, at 11:34 PM, CLdyroz at aol.com wrote:
>
>>I really do not like the oil. I do agree that the next batch should  use
>>butter.
>
>If/when you used sesame oil, was it the toasted or untoasted-seed  variety? 
>This would make a pretty dramatic difference in the flavor.
>
>I assume that, if the original calls for sesame oil, there's a good  chance 
>they liked the flavor that way. It only remains to be explored  why your 
>experience was different. Which, I of course realize, is  what you're 
>doing...
>
>Adamantius

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