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medieval foods:

MANCHET


Manchet is a type of bread. The name is listed in dictionaries as an archaic or obsolete word of indefinite origin. There are a number of dialectal variations of the word. Manchet was an often mentioned bread in histories from the Middle Ages. It was considered the finest kind of bread, and was shaped usually into round or ring-shaped loaves.

Manchet was made entirely of fine-ground wheat, producing a white flour, as compared to the common breads of coarse flours and mixed grains. The leavening agent in manchet was barm. Olwen, at the Grafton-under-Wood market, traded some of her wool roving to a brewer for barm, which is the froth that forms on the top of fermenting malt liquors. It is used for leavening bread, and for fermenting other liquors.

A basic "recipe" for making bread was:

1. "Bolt" (sift) the flour through a cloth (called a "bolting cloth.")
2. Pile the flour in a large kettle and make a hollow in the middle of the flour.
3. For a bushel of meal (which would produce less than a bushel of flour after grinding and sifting), pour 3 pints of ale barm into the hollow in the flour.
4. Add enough "liquor" (meat broth, melted grease, milk or cream) reasonably warm, with some salt, and mix to make a dough.
5. Knead well.
6. Wrap in cloth and allow to "swell" (rise).
7. Form into round loaves, prick the top, bake in an oven with gentle heat.

For coarser breads, "sour" leavening was used, a home made type of fermented liquid (still popular today for "sourdough" breads), though barm might be used if it were at hand. Unleavened breads were also made, usually for the under servants and by/for the poor.

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AUTHORPAGE

In addition to the author page that I have on the Clovenstone website, I have up on the internet at another site an extended version authorpage. This page contains a brief autobiography, and more about the process of writing Clovenstone. Check it out at:

http://www.angelfire.com/ky/ruthplace/authorsite/authorbio.html

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GLOSSARY

I have had requests for definitions of some of the Scottish, Gaelic, and Middle English words I use in the text. Also, there are some words in the book that I just plain made up out of my head- (identified as "mine.") So here are a few of the words for starters. I will put more in each issue of Kildonan Times. If you want to know about a certain word, please email me at clovenstone@aol.com

braw (Scottish): bravely dressed, handsome, fine

breck: rough, sandy, rolling ground, usually with trees

byrnie: shirt or coat of mail, a hauberk

cadgy (Scottish): merry, cheerful, glad

conjurer: one who does magical tricks, creates things from air

collop: a piece/slice of meat

coombe: a small valley or depression. Good meeting and hiding places. Maeve's sod hut near Olwen was in a coombe.

coppice (also copse): a grove of trees managed for continual cutting

coppe (Middle English): a large cup

cote: (Old English cot) (1) a shelter for animals (2) a small cottage

craichy (Scottish): to be cranky, illish, irritable

cromlech: Used somewhat interchangeably with dolmen. These are arrangements of primitive standing stones, either a slab on top of upright stones, or a circle of stones. Often thought to have magic or ancient religious properties.

deal: pine or fir planks 7 to 9 inches wide, and long enough to make a bench or table.

deisel: to walk clockwise. A term used in religious/magick rituals.

drammach (Scottish): a beverage of oatmeal and water, seasoned with salt and pepper, and thin enough to drink.

dreye (Middle English): (modern dray) a horse-drawn wagon

tor: (from Cornish and Welsh gaelic twr) a rocky mountain, a heap of rocks, a rocky mountain summit. (The rocky summit of Corraig Tor is Vidar's special thinking, meeting, and communications spot.)

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Literary Notes

REALMS

In the times and space of Kildonan, the land of Clovenstone, there are three parallel "realms." Certain beings can move among them, but not the average mortal. He/she is harnessed to the tangible world of Kildonan as long as alive.

Erthe: This is the homeplace of the gods and goddesses that rule the physical lands, skies, and seas. The supreme being is Gwyan, a sort of a Mother Nature. Her son is Gwydion. These beings watch, and have occasional contact with, mortals—rather like the beings in the mythical Irish realm of the Sídh (Shee). Depending on their whim, these gods and goddesses can affect the lives of mortals directly or by manipulating nature.

Arvon: This is the realm where mortal spirits go when the flesh dies. For the most part, the spirits dwell happily in Arvon, and only contact the mortal world when inspired by events there. Rather like our "heaven" and "ghosts."

Heyfedd: The realm of evil. Not just of wicked spirits, though spirits may elect to go there, if they wish. Heyfedd is the fearsome realm of horrible creatures of all kinds who constantly try to escape their firey hole to spread evil and conquer the mortal lands.

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HERBS

In my discussions of herbs in all the issues of Kildonan Times, I present only general information. It is not intended to be a guide for the use of the herbs. If you wish to use any of the herbs described in Kildonan Times, consult an herbalist or a definitive guide book to using herbs.

In the wild meadows and along the shaded woods edges near Olwen's cote, Fiona gathered betony, mullein, and pennyroyal.

betony: Betony is one of your basic, cure-everything herbs. Through the ages, it has been used for almost any medical complaint. The most common use, though, is as a healer of wounds. The bruised or boiled leaves and flowers were used as a poultice or plaster on wounds. It was also used in healing creams and salves. Anglo-Saxons thought it magical, and wore it as a charm. As a food, it was/is used in teas. Fresh betony was also used for a yellow dye.

mullein: Mullein (leaf tea) is a good remedy for coughs, bronchitis, and related illnesses. Mullein flowers (tea) are a pain reliever and sleep inducer.

pennyroyal: Pennyroyal has been a popular herb down through the ages. It was widely used in this country during the 19th century. It is a relaxant, good for nervous conditions, headaches, and cramps. It is taken as a tea. The tea is also supposed to be good for skin itching and eruptions when rubbed on the skin.

All of these herbs would have been good basic medicines for Fiona to have in her pack.


My basic herb reference books for the herbs I use either for food or medicine in Clovenstone and Stones Seven are: The Herb Book by John Lust (Bantam Books), Brother Cadfael's Herb Garden by Robin Whitman (Bullfinch Press) and Herbs by Lesley Bremness (DK Publishing).

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A FEW THOUGHTS FROM THE EDITOR (me, Ruth)

It's early summer here in Florida now; voluptuous blossoms and greenery spill over courtyard walls and out of garden beds onto walks and lawns. The blazing sun fires the intense colors of the landscape to almost unbearable brightness. And I do mean blazing. It's in the mid-90s or higher every day now, and humidity hangs as mist in the air every day until mid-morning.

It's time to migrate to the cool North woods and surf-carved coasts. I wander from window to window in my house, admiring the colors and the flowers outside, reveling in the beauty of the subtropic flora. In the damp of early morning I pick off the dead gardenias and trim the rampaging jasmine vine, wrapped in their heady perfume. I really don't want to leave, and yet... the open road calls.

There's places to go and people to see. There's new mountains to climb, and old beaches to walk again. Scarred fishing boats rock against battered wharves; faint trails lead into shadowed forests. It's out there waiting. Time for a change. Time to go.

It's fine to smell the flowers along the way, but too easy to fall into the flower bed. Keep moving. Seek experiences. Constantly open new windows onto the world. Even if your body doesn't travel far from home, your mind can. Take a course in calligraphy, visit every park in your city. Seek what life has to offer, and live it to the fullest.

Our way is to travel, my husband and I. This time it's to Michigan and then across to the far northeast, to Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, Maine, and any other port that seems interesting, for four months. My Powerbook goes with me, so you'll be seeing changes in the website, and receiving more issues of Kildonan Times as the summer drifts along.

R
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WEBSITES TO EXPLORE

If you like things Celtic, go to Chrys' Celtic Page. This is an index of websites related to the Celtic culture, then and now, with occasional comments from Chrys. It's a fun site to rummage around in. Copy and paste into your browser window the following URL:

http://chrys.addr.com/

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Here's something new - a dimestore on the web. It's on a website named Dimestore.com. (www.dmcstore.com) They have one product page devoted to items of Medieval Folklore and Fantasy. Take a look at it, and then explore their other offerings while you're there. Go to:

http://www.dmcstore.com/prod121b.htm

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And, as always, tell your aunts, uncles, cousins and friends about Clovenstone. Give them an adventure!

Good Fate Be Yours —
Ruth

All art work and text © copyright by Ruth McIntyre-Williams.