[Sca-cooks] Math time for feast Prep

[David Friedman]

>OK-feast is in 2 1/2 weeks, and only a mild panic has set in...(yeah, right)
>Shopping trip this weekend for the nonperishable items, and I would 
>like to get the recipes firm in my mind-and written down <G>
>
>Luckily, this is only one course-number 3 of 4.
>
>Grilled Lamb on a stick, with bacon and mushrooms
>Rice (with broth and almond milk)
>Asparagus (fried lightly with onions)
>Candied Orange peel.
>
>I figure that 30 lbs of lamb will feed 120 people at 1/4 lb a 
>person. (Sam's has a sale)


If this is only one course out of four, and some of the others have 
meat as well, I think your quarter pound per person is too much. I 
generally add up total meat for the feast, boneless weight, and 
figure at about 1/3 lb per person.

>
>15 cups of uncooked rice will yield 60 cups cooked....roughly 120 
>ounces of uncooked rice, right?
>
>And I would need roughly 240 ounces (30 cups) of broth to cook said 
>rice, or 480 ozs (60 cups)?


About two cups of liquid per cup of rice. Of course, broth sometimes 
comes in the concentrated form, in which case you buy half as much 
because it will be diluted two to one.

You are expecting an expansion of four to one, which looks high to 
me. Checking around the web, I find 4:1 for brown rice or "par-boiled 
or reconstituted" rice, 3:1 for "regular." You might want to cook 
some rice for your own use shortly and measure the expansion yourself.

Vitha asks:

>Ok, is it just me or is there something really wrong with expecting 
>to get an amazing meal (even one course) for a food cost of 
>$1/person.

I don't see anything wrong--with four courses that's four dollars a 
person, which is better than most SCA feasts but not, I think, 
unworkable.  Is there any reason to expect period food to be more 
expensive than home cooking?

Christianna suggests

>  I know it is late and you are down to the wire, but how
>about a nice spinach and currants dish?

Or Caboges--cabbage, marrow bones, beef broth, bread crumbs, and a 
little saffron and salt. Good, period, easy to make, and different. 
The only cost problem is the marrow bones, which should be very cheap 
if you have the right butcher contacts, might be hard to get in 
quantity otherwise.
-- 
David/Cariadoc
www.daviddfriedman.com