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KILDONAN TIMES BIRTHDAY!

THIS ISSUE begins the third year of Kildonan Times. At this moment, 232 people subscribe to the ezine, and more are signing up at the rate of one or two a week. Thanks to all of you for being interested in the things that interest me! .

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MEDIEVAL FOODS

One of my neighbors made this for the Holiday Dinner. It was wonderful. I had two pieces, myself. It is an adaptation of the Crustade of Chicken and Pigeon that was in an earlier issue.

CRUSTADE OF CHICKEN

Pastry for one or two 9 inch pie crusts, depending whether you want a one or two crust crustade. (Or do as I do, and go out and buy Pillsbury's pie crusts from your grocer's cooler. They're as good as home made.)

4 chicken breasts
150mL (2/3 cup) dry white wine
several grinds of black pepper
4 cloves
15 g (1/2 oz) butter
50g (2oz) mushrooms, roughly chopped
25g (1oz) raisins
3 large eggs
salt, pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1. Put the chicken in a pot with the stock, wine, pepper and cloves and cook
very slowly until the meat is very tender.
2. Meanwhile cook the mushrooms lightly in the butter.
3. Cut the chicken into quite small pieces, mix it with the mushrooms and the raisins.
4. Roll out 225g (8 oz) of the pastry and line a 20cm (8 inch) pie plate.
5. Spread the bird, mushroom and raisin mix over the pie crust.
6. Beat the eggs with a fork and season with the salt, pepper, and ginger.
7. Mix in 240mL (8 floz, 1 cup) of the cooking juices, and pour over the meat in the pie crust.
8. If you want to have a lid, roll out the rest of the pastry and cover the pie.
9. Bake it in moderate oven(180C, 350F, Gas Mark4) for 25 minutes if uncovered, 35 minutes if covered.

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GLOSSARY

I have had requests for definitions of some of the words I use in the text. The identification behind each word in parentheses indicates either the word is derived from a similar word in an older language, or that the word is used today in that language. Also, there are some words in the book that I just plain made up out of my head- (identified as "mine.") If you want to know about a certain word, please email me at clovenstone@aol.com, or look it up in your dictionary.

torque: (Latin) gold neck piece. often twisted, worn by warriors (Celtic) or nobles (Saxon/Norse)

trews: (Scottish) tight knee-length Celtic trousers

tuaithiuil: (Scottish Witan) counter clockwise, wrong, left, enemy

tunic: (Latin) short or long overshirt

turf, turves: (Anglo-Saxon) blocks of peat used for fuel

understory: small growth under forest canopy

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NOTES

WOAD BLUE

Surely you've heard of "woad blue," especially if you've read tales from early times in Europe, Britain, and even here in America. Woad is a plant of the mustard family whose leaves yield a dark blue dye. It was and is used as a blue dye for fabrics—and was used to paint designs on people.

Some tribes of the early Celts were called "Picts." A Caesar, when in Britain, wrote of the painted people of the North, and named them "Picti." These people decorated themselves with woad blue paint, which earned them their name. They painted highly imaginative and abstracted animals, swirls, and knots. Their designs were the forerunners of what we now think of as "Celtic" art. I saw some Pict stone carved art in a museum in Inverness, Scotland. The intricacy of the designs were amazing for such a primitive society. They also created jewelry and weapons with great skill.

Though the body painting may have been used for rituals or decoration, it is reported historically as battle paint on the warriors. The Picts and other early Celts went into battle naked, save for a torque (see glossary) around their necks. Their weapons were often just a sword and a shield. Sometimes they not only painted their bodies, but they bleached their hair and rubbed water and clay into to so it would stand up in spikes. All of this was the intimidate the enemy. The sight of these creatures streaming down a mountainside at you would be pretty scary, especially since they were strong and vicious warriors that gave no quarter. The Romans finally built a wall across Britain to keep the Celts in the North, rather than try to defeat them.

We still body paint, but we call it "tattooing," and it's much more permanent. Tough characters decorate themselves with snakes and skulls to intimidate others, much in the Pict psyche. Did you ever notice how many tattoos are blue??? Tattoos are also used simply for body decoration, and maybe the Picts did that, too.

I've mentioned before the SCA, the Society for Creative Anachronisms, a large organization whose members study and recreate medieval and renaissance times. At meetings, members take a name (persona) and dress like a person from their chosen medieval period and country. Many of the recipes in Kildonan Times are from SCA websites. Some SCA members have researched or tried to paint themselves with Celtic woad-blue designs in attempts to discover just how the Picts might have done it.

Here is a quote from one website about creating a "persona":

Eachna's Grooming Page
Eachna's Celtic Persona Index

http://www.celticgarb.org/persona/index.html

"Always experiment first...never leave woad-painting until ten minutes before the big event you want to show off in! You need a chance to see how the woad dye shows up against your skin, how long it lasts, and possible changes to affect these two characteristics. Mix the woad powder with alcohol until it is a consistency you are comfortable painting on your skin (it should be thick while still somewhat runny - think the consistency of heavy cream). Then, use a paintbrush to paint and decorate to your heart's content (or, ask a friend to). Let it dry completely. Blot off any flaky residue. It should stain your skin for at least several days to weeks (if you have a job with a strict dress code, I wouldn't suggest applying it where the Boss will see it Monday :( ). You could also try adding a few drops of refined ammonia to see if it darkens the color (be careful, too much ammonia is dangerous when applied to the skin). Woad paint will stain your clothes, so be careful what you wear when being painted."

And I end with the address (URL) to an amusing web page where a woman describes how she grew a woad plant, made the dye from the plant, experimented with making the dye into a paint, and destroyed her kitchen in the process:

Make Your Own Woad
Make your own woad

http://www.hippy.com/albion/make_your_own_woad.htm

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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.

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chicory: Chicory grew along the roadsides where I walked in Michigan. Chicory grows practically everywhere. It was brought to the US from Europe and India by colonists and is now spread across the nation. I knew that chicory roots could be dried, roasted, and used as an additive to, or a substitute for, coffee. But I never tried to make any chicory coffee. You can occasionally find chicory coffee in specialty and health food stores. Before decaf, chicory was added to coffee to lessen the effects of the caffeine.

I didn't make chicory coffee, but I use the greens. They are similar in appearance and taste as dandelion greens, and are sometimes available in grocery stores. Chicory is one of the bitter greens of Passover. As with any greens, chicory leaves can be cooked and used any way you would use spinach or other greens. I use them most in salads. They have a stronger flavor than lettuce, and spruce up the color and taste of a salad considerably. Thomas Jefferson grew chicory and wrote that it "...made a tolerable sallad for the table...". Your expensive radicchio is just forced chicory leaves. Better you should gather the fresh and new chicory along the country road or meadow edge. Or grow your own; chicory seed is commonly available.

Chicory was known and used in Egyptian times. Charlemagne listed it among the 75 herbs to be grown in his gardens. Medicinally, chicory, mostly the root, has been used through the ages for digestive problems of all kinds. The bruised leaves are recommended as a poultice for external bruises, abrasions, and rashes.

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blackthorn: Blackthorn is a bushy tree that can grow 12 feet high or so. It makes good hedges because it is dense and thorny. The dark blue berries of the blackthorn are actually plums. The berries are often called "sloes." Ever had sloe gin? It was a big thing when I was in college. Actually, gin was a big thing when I was in college. Throw in some blackthorn sloes for color and flavor and there you had it, gin with class.

The berries are rather bitter and astringent, with a lot of flavor. The flavor mellows if the berries are picked after a couple of frosts. They are used in jams, syrups, wines, liqueurs, and—gin.

Blackthorn flowers and leaves, made into a tea, are a laxative. They are also soothing to the stomach.

The hard wood of the blackthorn was/is used for clubs and staffs. I can remember reading in various books things like, "He strode down the road, blackthorn staff in hand." There's something romantic and old-worldly about blackthorn. Makes you think of thatched cottages and toast and jam in front of the fireplace.

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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)

Admit it. You have written at least one poem in your life. You have read poems, and you have even recited poems. Even if you think you don't like poetry, you have recited poems.

How about "The frost is on the pumpkin, The fodder's in the shock..." I'll bet you said that on a clear October morning at some time. And " 'Twas the night before Christmas...," how about that one?

We all have some poetry in our souls, no matter how deeply hidden. Many writers publish books of their poetry, but it's a hard sell. We have poetry in our souls and we love to create our own, but have a lot less interest in reading other folks' rhymes. For a while poetry was definitely out of style. You hardly heard of it except in literary circles.

But there is a renaissance on the horizon. Sharpen your pencil and get ready to let loose some of those hidden rhymes. One of our area papers, on Sundays, publishes a page of work by local writers, and it's mostly poetry. You'd be surprised how many magazines and newspapers invite contributions of reader poetry. Start looking for it. Now, I'm not talking about making money. I'm talking about getting your creation out for people to read and enjoy. You wrote a poem. You'd like to have someone else read it besides your mother. It would be nice to know that others will share your thoughts and feelings. People do read these contributed poems. I hear talk about the ones in the paper. I've occasionally received poems that friends have clipped out of a paper or magazine.

So write a poem, or dig out the one that has lain in the dresser drawer for years. Offer it to your church or club newsletter, the local paper, or the free area ad-supported paper. When you make a greeting card on your computer, write your own verse on it. There are scads of ezines (internet magazines) that welcome, even beg for contributions, including poetry. Get on the net and type "poetry" into a search engine. That will get you started.

Maybe you'd rather read poems than write them. I receive periodically a poem, usually appropriate to a holiday or season, in my email. I have no idea who they are from. A friend found out about them from a friend, and she sent me the email address. I wrote to the address and asked to get the poems. I get the poems. So here's a project for you. Gather and send out poetry on the net. You can start with a few interested friends, and the word will spread. If you write your own poems, send them of course. But you can send poems by other writers, too (be sure to give copyright credits). Some pleasant poetry would sure beat some of the bad jokes I get in my email box.

Support the renaissance of poetic interest. Read poems, write poems, send poems to your friends. Recite poetry to your children and grandchildren. Give them rhythm and rhyme.

R

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WEBSITES TO EXPLORE

This website is a potpourri of things medieval and related to medieval. It is a monthly ezine with articles and a bookstore. There are hot links to other sites where you can buy Scottish and English foods, gourmet teas and coffees, and find out-of-print books.

medieval days and knights - European History

http://www.medievaldaysandknights.com

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Sir Clisto is a website offering all kinds of resources and information on medievalism, and a bit of tongue-in-cheek. The site is introduced by "Sir Clisto Seversword," a knight of 1100. Sir Clisto guides the viewer through the offerings of the site in a candid manner. The whole site is presented as a "Tome," which is a large book or set of books.

The Tome

http://www.sirclisto.com

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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 © copyrighted by Ruth McIntyre-Williams.