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Medieval foods:

RAPES IN POTTAGE
(boiled turnip or carrot or parsnip)

In medieval English, this is the recipe:

Take rapus and make hem clene, and waissh hem clene; quarter hem; perboile hem, take hem up. Cast hem in a gode broth and see hem; mynce oynouns and cast to safroun and salt, and messe it forth with powdour douce. In the self wise make of pastunakes and skyrwittes.

Rapes are turnips; pasternakes are either parsnips or carrots;
skirrets are "a species of water parsnip, formerly much cultivated in Europe for its esculent tubers." Apparently they are no longer grown or eaten.

I made this recipe, because I have been looking for a recipe for vegetables with a bit of spice ever since I had some at the Rose and Crown English restaurant at Disney's Epcot Center. I used both turnips and carrots together. I would not cook them anywhere near as long as the recipe calls for. Makes the vegetables too soft. I followed the recipe to the letter, just to test it. But medievals are known to have cooked their vegetables to a mush. They boiled their greens forever, reducing them to almost a slurry. Our tastes are different. I would skip the parboiling altogether, and just cook them in the sauce for 15 minutes or until you think they're done. I found the results a bit sweet, and would cut the sugar in half. Otherwise, the dish was delicious. With a bit of personal adjustment to taste, it's a keeper.

Here is the modern translation of the recipe:

1 lb turnips, carrots, or parsnips
6 threads saffron
2 t sugar
2 c chicken broth (canned, diluted)
3/4 t salt
3/8 t cinnamon
1/2 lb onions
3/8 t ginger

Wash, peel, and quarter turnips (or cut into eighths if they are large), cover with boiling water and parboil for 15 minutes. If you are using carrots or parsnips, clean them and cut them up into large bite-sized pieces and parboil 10 minutes. Mince onions. Drain turnips, carrots, or parsnips, and put them with onions and chicken broth in a pot and bring to a boil. Crush saffron into about 1 t of the broth and add seasonings to potage. Cook another 15-20 minutes, until turnips or carrots are soft to a fork and some of the liquid is boiled down.

Curye on Inglysch p. 99 (Forme of Cury no. 7)

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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.

fen: (Anglo-Saxon) swampy, boggy area

firth (frith): (Old Norse) an estuary or narrow arm of the sea

flannel: (Welsh) a soft, woolen, cloth

flask: (Vulgar Latin) bottle-shaped metal containers (dim> flasket)

flax: plant from which linen cloth is made

flush (Middle English) work: flint (small, round stones, gray, or the same stones cut in half giving a glassy black surface) fill, usually inside stone tracery

fold: (Anglo-Saxon) enclosure for sheep or cattle

foretell: (fore-Old English, plus the verb tell) to tell of what will happen in the future, to presage, to divine, to portend

foreteller: one who can see the future, or gets prophecies

fornent: (Scottish) (prep) facing, opposite, in the direction of, in regard to




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Literary Notes

IODHA

There was a very ancient Irish alphabet, called the Ogham alphabet. Letters were slashes in groups on one side or the other of a center line. It was most frequently carved into wood or stone, with a corner of the wood or stone serving as the center line. There were 20 letters in the alphabet, and each one was named for a tree. Iodha is the yew tree letter, the fifth letter in the alphabet. Historically, the yew has figured prominently in Celtic religions and mythology. It has been most often used as a symbol of long life or immortality.

The yew is an evergreen that is extremely long-lived; I'm talking hundreds of years. Thus the symbol for immortality. This seemed an appropriate name for the island city that ruled ancient Kildonan, a city that would, hopefully, rule again and forever. Yew wood was a favorite for bows and staffs, both war weapons. In the time of Kildonan, expertise at defense and making war were essential to survival. So Iódha, the yew, is also symbol of a supremacy that cannot be conquered. And, the yew is very poisonous— power that extends into the spirit world, into eternity. Iódha!

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DID YOU KNOW?

* That the Celts were an ancient race that spread over present-day Europe? It wasn't for hundreds of years after the Greeks wrote of the "keltoi," primitive peoples who lived beyond the confines of the classic world, that people in Britain were defined as Celts. The strongest identifying element of the Celts was/is a common language. Archaeological research has in recent years has discovered that rather than being primitive, the Celts were a highly developed society skillful at crafts, music and art, commerce, and government, as well as war—for which they're best known.

The colorful image we have of the Celts of Britain and Ireland was fostered by the Romantic movement in art and literature during the 17th century. The writings of Sir Walter Scott were particularly instrumental in drawing the "noble Highlander" we think of today. The word "Celt" today brings visions of misty green hills; kings and castles; haunting music; tales and legends of magic; witches, druids, and leprechauns; singing bards and swinging swords.

Celt is a popular word right now. The romance still lives. Clovenstone is a fictional adventure tale laid in an imaginary land. It has the ambiance that people now assign to "Celtic." So I have used Celtic Adventure in describing my book—but only for the feel of the idealized setting and romantic culture. I make no claim to any attempt to recreate the history of any period in the Celtic race's long life. That's fact. I deal in fiction, fiction purely imaginative.

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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.

clover: We all know the fluffy white and pink clover blossoms — and who didn't chew on them when we were kids for their sweet taste? The pink blossoms certainly do perk up a salad, too. And then there's sweet clover wine— ! I had a friend who could make wine from anything, and did. Her clover and her dandelion wines were wonderful. Fiona helps Olwen gather clover for wine in Clovenstone.

Clover has been used medicinally for years and years. Clover tea was said to improve liver and gall bladder action and digestion. It also was taken for skin rashes and complaints. Externally, clover poultices were applied for easing inflammations and healing wounds or sores. Clover tea has been used more recently as a cancer fighter in herbal medicine, and research indicates that some chemicals in the plant do inhibit tumors in the laboratory.

rosemary: Ah, rosemary, the all around herb. Rosemary is pretty. It is an evergreen bush with drooping branches. I have seen it in nurseries trimmed in the shape of a little Christmas tree. On its own, it just sort of sprawls. Rosemary smells nice, real nice. I have it planted next to my porch so visitors get treated to the spicy odor. Rosemary tastes good. It can be used to flavor such diverse foods as mead wine, roast beef, Italian foccacia bread, and jam. As a strewing herb, it freshens a room; in the closet, it discourages moths and insects. It was, and is, a symbol of friendship and love. It is used in colognes and shampoos.

Medicinally, it stimulates digestion and improves circulation which relieves joint pain. It also stimulates the central nervous system which relieves joint pain. In medieval times, it was a favorite remedy for colds. One caution: too much taken internally can be fatal. I don't know how one could take that much of rosemary. The flavor is very strong. A very few dried needles gives a lot of flavor to a dish.

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)


Words are fascinating little things. When you get into playing with them, as a writer does, you can hardly keep your hands off the dictionary. After we got married, the first time my husband called a "washcloth" a "flannel," I didn't know what he meant. After that, I thought that "flannel" was just some sort of family idiom his family had made up. While I was researching Clovenstone, I discovered that in fact, the use of "flannel" for any kind of washing cloth was common in England. The word first showed up in Wales where they wove woolen "flannel." It traveled along as a word for anything made of soft woolen cloth. Then, by derivation, flannel cloth being soft and absorbent, rags of it used for washing things came to be called "flannels." In the mid-1800s, Charles Dickens wrote in one of his novels that: "The children had been yellow-soaped and flannelled." Ever notice that when you install some computer software, it wants to know if you will be working in "English" English, or "American" English? Two countries separated by a common language. "Washcloth?" or "Flannel?"

The Celts had a common language. That didn't mean they all spoke to each other. It was the same family, or type of language. But the local variations were so different that they probably didn't understand each other from one place to the next. Have you ever tried to talk to a person who speaks Cockney English? It's like a foreign language. And what about trying to buy a haggis in small town Scotland? Can't understand a word they say. And what about that dude from Brooklyn? What did he just say? Another language.

Local variations here in the U.S can make you wonder what a person just said to you. I'm from Michigan, originally. We drink pop. I moved to Maine. People doubled up with laughter when I wanted a pop. They drink soda out there. They also drink frappes. I thought a frappe was something you got in French restaurants. (I've also been offered a "frap" on the nose, but that's something different.) You get frappes in Maine at the corner drugstore. It's a milk shake. Then there's submarines, hoagies, and heroes...

Foods are just an example of the great diversity in the words we use even though we all think we talk the same language. Is it a mouth organ, a harmonica, or a French harp? There is a set of dictionaries full of maps that show where Americans say what for the same thing, called the Dictionary of American Regional English (DARE). You can go to the web page for these dictionaries and check out some of the words and maps. There's a list of words they're researching. Check it. What did you call these things? Do you say ploye for pancake? Or roller sweeper for carpet sweeper? What did you call that big oblong sandwich? Go to:

http://polyglot.lss.wisc.edu/dare/dare.html

Tell them what you say. Personally, I call it a submarine sandwich. Make mine veggie with Swiss cheese and vinegar and oil—and don't forget the black olives.

R

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WEBSITES TO EXPLORE

Do you want to really get into Medieval times? I mean, REALLY into the world of kings and castles! This site is for you. You get to see and hear a sword fight right off, and then you can go into the castle - lots of fun. It's a site that offers medieval educational history, medieval newsletters, medieval talks online, on and on.

http://www.medievalonline.com

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And while you are playing at Medieval On Line, you can dress up in your sword and cloak, ordered from Medieval Menagerie. It's fun just to wander through their online catalog. You can buy swords, cloaks, even medieval style furniture from this website. Take a look!

http://www.extremezone.com/~medieval/

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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