[Sca-cooks] Bread baking in December

wheezul at canby.com wheezul at canby.com
Thu Dec 22 14:05:37 PST 2011


1592 is the date of the work.  It can be found at the Bavarian State
Library site:

Coler, Johann: Calendarium Oeconomicum & perpetuum, Das ist Ein
stetswerender Calender, darzu ein sehr nützliches & nötiges Haußbuch, vor
die Haußwirt ..., Jetzund zum andern mahl in Druck geben, und an vielen
Orthen verb., Wittenberg, [1592]

http://daten.digitale-sammlungen.de/0003/bsb00033969/images/index.html?fip=193.174.98.30&id=00033969&seite=1

I haven't read the whole work yet, so I don't have a sense of what grain
would be used, but it may be implied from other months.  One of my friends
suggested that if rivers froze that perhaps there may be issues with
grinding the grain?  It may be easier to keep bugs out of the bread?

Based on a contemporary recipe for zweiback, it may very well be rye.

Katherine

>
> From when does this date?  I can better speculate on trencher use if I
> know when
> this was written.
>
> Wheat bread goes stale in about four days and it isn't much use (other
> than
> breadcrumbs)after that.  Rye bread holds moisture better and lasts a long
> time
> uncut.  I would say they are talking about rye breads, which makes some
> sense if
> talking about bread for the servants.
>
> Ale was produced year round and drunk fresh, so I doubt that leaven was an
> issue.
>
> Bakeries are heated areas.  I can't see the exterior temperature being
> much of
> an issue, especially as I have done field baking at minus 25 F.
>
> I can't say I've seen any of this information elsewhere.
>
> Bear
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> .I've been reading about the month of December in Coler's Calendarium
> Oeconomicum & perpetuum... and ran across this interesting tidbit about
> baking in the month of December.  I'm curious if this might be localized
> advice or was this an actual practice?  I'm wondering if anyone knows more
> about this, and can help me think about why they might bake 5 to 6 months
> worth of bread?
>
> In particular:
> Is this in sync with beer brewing so that leaven was available in
> quantity?
> Would it become to cold to brew/raise bread during the upcoming months?
> Would the dry bread serve better for trenchers, especially since Coler
> mentions servants?
>
> Here's my translation -
>
> Von Backen.
> In dem Monat pflegen etlich vleissige hauswirt viel Brods zu backen /
> etliche hitzen oder gebecke nach einander.  Denn dz brot so diese zeit
> gebacken wrd/ weret bis um Pfingsten hinaus/ vnnd is im hause sehr
> nützlich / denn es treuget wol aus / vnd settiget sehr.  Mancher becker
> diesen Monat so viel / das er Brods in seinem hause biss auff Pfingsten
> genug hat.  Wer viel gesindes hat / den ist dis ein nützliche Regel.
>
> On Baking
> During the month [December] some diligent heads of house attend to baking
> much bread / heated together or baked one after another.  Because the
> bread is so baked at this time / it would be available up until Pentecost
> / and is for the household very useful / when it is well dried out / and
> very satisfying.  Many baker in this month so many [make] / that they have
> bread in their house enough until Pentecost.  Where there are many
> servants / then this is a useful policy.
>
> Thank you for your consideration,
>
> Katherine
> .
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