[Sca-cooks] Oranges was *Sigh* That tomato thing - again

morses3 at aol.com morses3 at aol.com
Mon Oct 2 13:50:57 PDT 2006


The point I was making  (perhaps badly) wasn't that oranges were unknown, but that the oranges commonly available in our grocery stores right now probably weren't a commonplace food to the average person during the whole time span the SCA covers. Frankly, I don't know what's on the shelf at Food Lion today, but I doubt that it resembles anything that was seen by a 10th century Dane, and hence, that their use at a demo should have the same background information that would be needed if a tomato were used to provide correct background context. And that we shouldn't say that oranges are "not period"  and preclude their use at a demo just because that same 10th century Dane didn't have a written recipe detailing their use as a common foood source.
 
I'm impressed by the mention of your research regarding the orange, is this information available to the public in some form? I'd be interested in reading it.  
 
Geffrei
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: johnna at sitka.engin.umich.edu
To: sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org
Sent: Mon, 2 Oct 2006 4:07 PM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Oranges was *Sigh* That tomato thing - again


But of course they had oranges.Both a bitter orange,
followed by at least two versions of sweet oranges prior
to 1600. (Navel oranges date from Brazil in the 19th century.)
Normans encountered oranges in the Middle East and quite probably
in Southern Italy and Sicily. Venetians had them of course.
Platina mentions them and his book was published in Venice.
I know because I sat down and did some research on oranges
and candying oranges. I ended up with 211 pages in the last
version with a bibliography that runs from pp 192-208.
So, What sorts of oranges can be found at Food Lion in October?

Johnnae

morses3 at aol.com wrote:
>  I'm not part of the demo in question, but my impression is that it is to show 
an array of foods that were *available* in the period the SCA covers, not 
necessarily for foods that were commonplace (It has been mentioned in another 
place that oranges are being included for the demo in question, I doubt that 
many medieval Normans or renaissance era Venetians ate the typical orange that 
can be bought at Food Lion in October very often).  snipped
> Geffrei
>  
>

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