[Sca-cooks] A Dizzle of Honey

[Suey]

Susan Lin wrote:
>
> Suey:
> The book "A Drizzle Of Honey" is a compilation of stories of the conversos
> as recipes.  The recipes seem to be extrapolated from inquisition testimony.
>
> It was not uncommon for friends, neighbors and even other family to turn on
> each other and turn each other in to the inquisition.  Some of the stories
> in the book seem to indicate that the inquisitors would have had additional
> "information" provided by informants.
>   
The authors of Drizzle do not explain that.
> I enjoy the book and I used it when I taught Jewish Food Traditions at a
> Hebrew School in Albany, NY where I used to live.
>
> The conversos where the secret Jews of Spain but they also emigrated to
> Mexico and were found throughout Europe.
>
> It is also possible that the combination of foods or the times of year that
> certain foods were eaten could have "tipped off" the inquisitors.  Or, it's
> all fabrication and we don't really know anything except the stories that
> were passed down from generation to generation without any written history
> at all.
>
> I remember hearing a story of a Christian family who would go down to their
> basement and light candles every Friday night.  They didn't know why but
> that is what their family had done for generations.  It is likely that this
> family at one time were Jews trying to keep their religion secret.
>  Somewhere along the way the religion disappeared but the practice
> continued.
>
> As for the almond milk.  A Jew would have not eaten milk and meat together
> so it could be that for a converso to eat "milk" and meat they would make
> almond "milk" that would not break their dietary laws.  An inquisitor might
> have assumed that if an accused  used almond "milk" and not cow or goat milk
> that they were trying to keep the Kashrut (Kosher) laws and therefore that
> is what he based his determination on.
>
> Just some thoughts.
>
> Shoshanna
>   
Thank you trying to explain somethings that are missing in this book. I 
am missing Kosher law. My knowledge is zero!
As far as lighting the candle its a real horror story in Cordoba 
Spain.for me from the 15th Century. My informates from Cordoba told me 
that some Jews came wandering into the city and asked the father of a 
lovely lass if they could sleep that night on his palace porch. He did 
not want to let them but in the end said yes. She, the only and most 
precious daughter of this widower, was curious. She saw them saying 
their prays with their candles lit on the porch.  She copied them 
lighting a candle and like them she disappeared into the earth. The 
explanation today is that there are hollow spaces in Cordoba due to Rome 
ruins below (perfectly logical if you have been seen ruins in  Jerusalem 
or Valencia, Spain etc). Even so the story it is so scary even now I 
tremble when I pass that palace. I went past there every day when 
investigating legends of Cordoba and believe me my knees shock thinking 
the land could collapse and I could fall down into Roman ruins.
Thank you Shoshanna for trying explain why Jews were condemned for their 
recipes.
Ok I think understand almond milk is a cover up thanks so much for 
explaining it but murri and the rest?
Suey