[Sca-cooks] Period Flour Query and shortbread

[Stefan li Rous]

Kiri commented:
<<< I'm about to do/say what we're all told not to do...but I do  
believe that
shortbread is such an ubiquitous dish in Scotland that there are no  
really
period recipes for it. >>>

Ubiquitous when? Sometime prior to 1600 CE? or now?

<<< To be truthful, I've never really even seen a period
Scottish cookery book at all! >>>

Correct. From previous discussions here, none exist.

<<< But I do have a book from the Rural Home
Women's organization in Scotland that has a section on "traditional"
recipes, two of which are versions of shortbread...neither of which  
contain
rice flour!  >>>

There are two or three period recipes (all late 15th C) which are  
very similar to what most people think of as shortbread. The ones I  
know of are all, I believe, English.

I'm not sure that wheat was grown in Scotland in period, much less  
rice. Yes, it could have been imported, but I don't remember that  
much grain/flour trade going on over long distances in medieval times  
or even the 16th century. Certainly not on the level that was  
apparently being done in Classical times. However, I'm willing to  
listen to contrary info.  Wool out and wheat in?

However, the period recipes that I was referring to, don't specify  
the type of flour. See:

shortbread-msg    (33K)  3/29/05    Period shortbread. Recipes and  
directions.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-SWEETS/shortbread-msg.html

Stefan
--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas           
StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****