[Sca-cooks] 12th-century bread (was Re: Favorite Frugal Pennsic Meals)

Sydney Walker Freedman freedmas at stolaf.edu
Tue Jun 6 01:28:06 PDT 2006


What is this 12th-century "bread cooked in water," and from what source is
this reference taken?  I'm in the process of collecting 12th-13th century
European recipes and redacting them, so I would really like to know. 
Thanks!  :)

Pax Christi,
Lady Cecilia de Cambrige

>> On 6/5/06, Sharon Gordon <gordonse at one.net> wrote:
>> >  Thanks for the ideas for a more frugal Pennsic kitchen.  My friends
>> > thank you immensely.  Next they would love to know what one of your
>> > favorite frugal meals is.
>
> I like to go with pottage-type dishes and, if doable, breads. Flour, rice,
> bulghur, oats, peas, lentils and wheatberries are fairly cheap, and if you
> have time in advance you can also make your own bases tio substitute the
> more
> expensive stuff - milli fanti (breadcrumbs, flour and egg mixed into a
> crumbly mass and dried, then quickly boiled in water to make a rich, tasty
> goo), Kishk of the Turcomans (coarse wheat flour with yoghurt, dried in
> crumbs), or just plain homemade pasta.
>
> I don't recall the specific recipes for the simple 'all-in-one-meal'
> versions,
> but that has never stopped me whewn working on a budget. I can attest to
> the
> fact that they work from back when i was on a $25/week general expenses
> budget. Some of my favourite things to do are:
>
> Brown onions at the bottom of the pot with a dollop of oil (or some bacon,
> iof
> you want meat in it), add bulghur, then water, cook till done, and add
> yoghurt or curd cheese if desired. Spices ad lib (salt and pepper do
> nicely,
> all manbner of herbs go well with this). You vary the proportions of
> bulghur
> to cheese and meat depending on financial state. This one also works with
> rice, and simply changing the spices can make a lot of difference. I used
> to
> live on this stuff for weeks on end at times. Goes well with dried
> veggies,
> too, just add them with the water.
>
> Pulses lend themselves to fire and forget cookery.You soak lentils the
> evening
> before, then in the morning you top up the water, add whatever veggies you
> want (lentils are great with mushrooms and onions, we just had that a
> legion
> camp this Saturday) and place the pot in the low-banked firepit NOT
> touching
> the burning wood. Come back every few hours to add a chunk of wood, turn
> the
> pot, stir, and top up water. In the evening, season to taste and eat.
>
> Refried pasta is very good, and a time-saver. Pasta for lunch with
> whatever
> you eat with it, then in the evening, a bit of oil or bacon in the pan,
> leftiover noodles added, slightly fried,  with cheese, herbs, spices, some
> kind of sauce.
>
> If you can do it, baking your own bread can help keep costs down, but it's
> work. Oatmeal with salt and water makes nice unleavened flatbreads cooked
> on
> hot stones. leavened flatbread with just flour and water is also good. If
> you
> are as worried about timing as I am - I always keep bread in reserve in
> case
> I screw up -  you could also make a pudding-style levened dumpling. I
> believe
> that is what the twelfth-century 'bread cooked in water' may describe,
> though
> steamed or parboiled are also possible explanations.  Flatbread cooked in
> a
> pan with a little oil is also very tasty, and much easier to keep from
> burning, but it adds the expense of decent cooking oil. You don't want the
> cheap and nasty for this.
>
> You'll probably want to forgo period-ness for a more liberal use of sugar.
> it's lots cheaper than honey, reduced fruit juices or dried fruit even
> here
> in Europe, and it improves the flavour of many dishes, especially
> breakfast
> ones. Plus, it gives you a spurt of energy. Sweet hot tea is lovely on
> chill
> mornings, and you can prepare very lovely syrupos fairly inexpensively to
> put
> variety into your soft drinks (mint, ginger or lemon are all often
> available
> quite cheaply, and you get gallons of drink out of one bottle).
>
> Don't look sat me this way. I used to be seriously poor.
>
> Giano
>
>
>
>
>
>
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Pax Christi,
Sydney




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