[Sca-cooks] on topic: Healthy Feasts - was OT: diet, was sugar problems
Phil Troy / G. Tacitus Adamantius
adamantius.magister at verizon.net
Sun Aug 6 15:00:55 PDT 2006
On Aug 6, 2006, at 4:55 PM, Tom Vincent wrote:
>> Do our health-conscious fighters acknowledge the potential hazards in
>> striking each other with a three-pound rattan whip, and say, "I could
>> have hit you there, so you should just acknowledge the blow. And by
>> the way, I'm Crown Prince now" ?
>>
> D: I don't see the connection, sarcastic or not. My question was
> about
> providing and promoting healthier feasts to a group that is more or
> less
> as obese as the general public, not about D&D-type calls in stick-
> fighting.
My response, which was more metaphorical than sarcastic, was to
question how far we should be going to protect members of our group
from hazards we should already be protected from by our preparation
for everyday life.
Yes, we can certainly work harder to expose people to healthier feast
menus and dishes, just as we could have a contact-free, and
presumably injury-proof, Crown Tourney, but at what cost to our
primary objective? What does this type of cooking have to do with
medieval and renaissance history? Would period folk recognize it? Not
recognizing it would be bad enough, but having it recognized as
Lenten food or food for the poor, but certainly not for the gentry on
a feast day, might be regarded as worse.
>> Our goal is to contribute to the period ambiance, and, ideally, to
>> directly educate about period food. If diners don't already have some
>> basic idea of nutrition, serving them healthy food one day a week
>> isn't going to reverse the damage they're probably doing the rest of
>> the time.
>>
> D: Every little bit helps, I suppose. Maybe being exposed to a
> healthier feast would encourage people as well as show them that the
> chef(s) cared about their health.
It might, but I have to wonder what makes anyone feel we don't. I'm
inclined to agree with the people who spoke of offering a balance of
healthy and richer foods, which both offsets the effect of the
extremely rich food that's there, but also provides options for those
who really want to pursue a healthier regimen. I'm also a believer in
portion control, and let's just say that I've come to realize that
sources of saturated fats frequently tend to be the most expensive
items on our menus, while things like whole grains and greens tend
not to be.
By any chance were you on this list when I posted the menu for the
last feast I cooked? It was designed to be as opulent as I could come
up with, within certain space and equipment limitations. The event
was kind of a big deal, my budget was pretty high, and I certainly
didn't want a menu that screamed "Lean!" Nonetheless, I spent the
money on good olive oil, whole grains, vegetables, and lean meats,
and not on a huge amount of butter or cheese. My one concession to
the "So-much-saturated-fat-it-makes-you-queasy-to-look-at-it" foods
was that my beef was strip loin roasts, cooked over charcoal. It was
well-appreciated, but the thing to do, for those looking to seriously
limit their fat intake, was to eat a small amount of the stuff.
In other words, I tried to give people the choice, not make it for
them. It would have been equally bad form for me to make the choice
impossible by filling my menu with nothing but cheese, eggs, butter
and bacon, as it would by imposing my well-intended dietary views on
the masses.
>> Yes, it could be a problem if partaking of an SCA feast becomes the
>> equivalent of a Thanksgiving or other holiday pig-out once (or twice)
>> a week, every week, but this is a matter for personal responsibility,
>> IMO.
>>
> D: As everything is, but I also believe that "It Takes A
> Village": We
> help each other.
Indeed we do, but not everyone wants to be helped, and for those that
do, help can take different forms.
Adamantius
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