[Sca-cooks] Cooking Guild: opinions

[Stefan li Rous]

Cariadoc warned:
<<< I think one important question is whether the guild exists to help  
its
members learn about period cooking or to cook feasts for your barony.
They are quite different purposes. >>>

Yes. Early on after I joined the SCA, I started attending the local  
baronial cooking guild because I wanted to learn about medieval food  
and cooking. It turned out that the main purpose of the guild was to  
help produce the feasts at the baronial events. It wasn't necessarily  
bad, but it wasn't what I was expecting. I learned some things about  
cooking on an institutional scale, like how to mix up shrimp and rice  
in an ice chest, because we were farming out the pre-cooking to  
various houses and teams or how difficult it is to put on a feast when  
the headcook freaks out under the pressure and is frantically running  
around the kitchen.

Unfortunately, I don't remember learning much about medieval cooking.

Even in later versions of the baronial cook's guild, which was  
primarily aimed at studying medieval recipes and cooking example  
recipes, I've seen problems. While probably not intended, I always got  
the feeling as a newbie cook, that my questions were tolerated, but  
not appreciated. But then I ask similar questions here, so you might  
see where they might be considered interruptions.

So be aware of the different skill levels in your guild as well as the  
different interests. Interests can change. I seem to remember Sir  
Gunthar, now a Laurel in cooking, who started this list with an  
interest in doing feasts and less in specifically doing medieval  
cooking. :-)

<<< If it's taken for granted that
joining the guild means volunteering to help with feasts, that will
discourage people interested in learning about the cooking but not
willing to commit to helping with feasts. Also, if the purpose of the
guild is putting on feasts, then some of what it is teaching members
will have nothing to do with medieval cooking. >>>

I don't think one style of cooking guild has to be the enemy of the  
other, but try to make it clear what are the main goals of the guild  
are, while allowing for flexibility as conditions, interests or  
requirements change

Stefan

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