[Sca-cooks] Millet Polenta & "Maize" frumenty was "anchient grains"

[Raphaella DiContini]

Here's the "millet polenta with verjuice" recipe from the anon. Venetian: 

LV. Panicata con agresta.
Se tu voy fare panichata con agresta, toy lo panico pesto e ben lavata la schorza e ben monda, e toy do libre de mandole ben monde e ben macenate e distemperate con aqua chiara, e toy tre oche e mitile a rosto, e miti a fogo lo late de le mandole, le do parte e 'l panizo ben mondo, e fay coxere, e quando è ben cocto, toy lo grasso de l' ocha e mitillo entro lo panizo ed altro grasso frescho de struto che sia de porcho e una quantitade de zucharo e sale tanto che basta. Questa vivanda vuole essere biancha al piú che tu poi, e volse dare per scudelle e zucharo de sopra e le oche per taiere con uno altro savore, e vuole essere fatto como disse. Chi tolle lo figato de l' ocha e rossi d' ova lessali insieme e quando sono cocti, pestali in mortaro con bone specie fine [e] distempera cum l' alessaúra e con un pocho d' aceto e d' agresta e falo coxere a questo savore vole essere camelino. 
LV Millet polenta with verjuice 
If you want to make a millet polenta with verjuice.  Take millet, which has been washed free of the husk, peeled and ground.  Take two pounds of peeled ground almonds which have been tempered/mixed with clear water (and the almond milk strained off).  Take three geese and put them to roast.  Put (one half of) the almond milk on the fire, mix the remainder with the ground millet, then add to the pan and allow to cook.  When it is well cooked take the goose grease and mix it into the polenta, or use any other fresh fat that you have from pork, and add a quantity of sugar and sufficient salt (to season to taste).  This dish should be as white as possible.  It should be served in a dish with sugar dusted on top, and the sliced geese served carved with another sauce.  And it (the sauce) should be made as is said (here).  Take the liver of the geese and egg yolks and boil them together, and when they are cooked grind them in a mortar with fine, good spices,
 temper/mix them with the cooking water and with a little bit of vinegar and verjuice, and cook, this sauce should be a camel/beige color.

There is another interesting grain recipe in this source that is currently translated in the title as "Maize" but then calls for wheat in the body of the recipe itself: 

XXIV.	Formentra bona e utille perfetta.
Se tu voy fare formentra, toy lo formento, e pestelo ben fin sí che lieva la scorza; poy lavalo ben, poy lo meti a bolire non tropo, poy getta via l’ aqua, poy lo meti entro quello grasso de la carne che tu cosi, e volo essere spesso non tropo, e mitili spesie dolze e forte, e zaferano, e se tu non avesse formento, toy rixo; sarà bono.

XXIV Maize dish (Frumenty) good and very useful. 
If you want to make frumenty, take the wheat berries, and grind/beat it well until the husk lifts, then wash it well.  Put it to boil in water, but don’t boil it too much, then pour away the water.  Then add inside the fat of whichever animal you wish, and you want to make sure that you don’t add too much.  Add sweet and strong spices, and saffron, and if you don’t have wheat then you can take rice, and it will be good.

In joyous service, 
Raffaella 

--- On Tue, 4/6/10, Terry Decker <t.d.decker at att.net> wrote:

> From: Terry Decker <t.d.decker at att.net>
> Subject: [Sca-cooks] Polenta was Pre-1600 recipes for "anchient grains"
> To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>
> Date: Tuesday, April 6, 2010, 5:54 AM
> Polenta is a reference to pearl
> barley which was the primary grain of the Roman Republic and
> to the porridge made from barley (IIRC, the Florilegium has
> a recipe for barley polenta from Cato).  The wheat
> polenta comes from Apicius.  Maize polenta pops up in
> the 16th Century after maize was introduced into Northern
> Italy.  In its general usage, polenta is meal or flour
> cooked in liquid until thickened.  As near as I can
> tell, the consistency can be from porridge to solid, molded
> loaf.
> 
> The use of chestnut meal to make polenta is believed to
> date to Antiquity. If so, it would also be a medieval dish.
> 
> I know of no period recipes for millet polenta, but the
> grain was available and the method of preparation is so
> simple and common that it was almost certainly done.
> 
> BTW, lightly toasting grain meals in the oven before making
> polenta improves the flavor.
> 
> Bear
> 
> 
> > --- On Mon, 4/5/10, Stefan li Rous <StefanliRous at austin.rr.com>
> wrote:
> > (much snippage)
> > Is your info on millet polenta medieval? I think I
> only have info on wheat and maize polenta, so I'd like to
> see your info on millet polenta.
> > 
> > Stefan
> > 
> > I encountered, years ago, a book in which much was
> made of the cutting down of chestnut trees in Italy, and the
> consequent complaints of the poor that they could no longer
> make polenta. That led to my finding these recipes:
> > 
> > http://bendaniel.org/?p=45#more-45
> > 
> > http://www.academiabarilla.com/recipes/toscana/pattona-chestnut-cake.aspx
> > 
> > As you can see, the techniques are very different. But
> the common factor is the use of chestnuts before the
> introduction of maize. The latter produced so much more
> salable product, with so much less labor, that the vast
> chestnut groves were not long for this world once Italy had
> maize.
> > There are several other recipes using chestnuts from
> Italy, but I don't know how old they are.
> > 
> > Yours in service to both the Societies of which I am a
> member-
> > 
> > (Friend) Honour Horne-Jaruk, R.S.F.
> > 
> > Alizaundre de Brebeuf, C.O.L. S.C.A.- AKA Una the
> wisewoman, or That Pict
> 
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