[Sca-cooks] cooking as art or service

[Katja]

>but I can't really think of too many Pelicans who got 
their feathers primarily for putting on feasts. 

Coming in on this conversation very late, but...

I was birded for putting on lots of on-time, on-budget yummy feasts (that happened to be well researched) and for teaching lots of classes about how to research food and prepare on-time, on-budget yummy feasts. 
(I was also recognized for serving in some officer positions and other service, but cooking was pretty much the focus of the accolade.)

I was leafed two years later for ... teaching lots of classes and in many kitchens. You get the picture.

This is in AEthelmearc, btw.

There is a wonderful lady to moved here from the West a few years ago who was birded for her cooking, then leafed recently in this kingdom for her excellent period food knowledge.

A good friend of mine is being birded in two weeks for cooking effectively in about a third of the kingdoms of the Known World, although, again she knows a heck of a lot about medieval food.

I can think of at least two or three other gentles in this kingdom who certainly are period food research wonks, but were elevated to the Pelican rather than the Laurel. Why? Some of them happened before I joined the orders, so I don't know.

OTOH, several of them are like me: they eventually were recognized with both peerages for primarily cooking with some various other skills/service.

Katja