jalabs-msg - 4/22/08 Jalabs are period drinks based on a honey and water or sugar and water syrup base. The often mentioned Sekanjabin drink is a jalab using mint and vinegar as flavorings. NOTE: See also the files: herbs-msg, root-veg-msg, sugar-msg, beverages-msg, beer-msg, wine-msg, brewing-msg, cider-msg, mead-msg. ************************************************************************ NOTICE - This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday. This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter. The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors. Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s). Thank you, Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous Stefan at florilegium.org ************************************************************************ From: rhe6 at tank.uchicago.edu (mindy miriam rheingold) Date: 17 Feb 90 04:17:00 GMT Organization: University of Chicago In a recent posting, Cariodoc mentions several Islamic drink recipes made by boiling fruit juice with sugar or honey and mixing the resulting syrup with water. One of these recipes uses lemon juice and sugar and is the closest thing to a "modern" tasting drink that we have, though it does not taste exactly like modern lemonade. It is a good recipe to use if you want to be in period but are feeding folk who are hesitant about trying new (or in this case, old) or different foods. It is quite refreshing, especially when served cold, though some people prefer it hot. Madeleine des MillesRoses Grey Gargoyles (Mindy M. Rheingold) From: justin at INMET.INMET.COM (Justin du Coeur MKA Mark Waks) Date: 22 Aug 90 22:08:43 GMT Re: Drinks to try Those interested in something a little different (debatably period -- someone who knows the sources better than I might be able to give a better opinion of how much so) should try experimenting with some relatively normal spices in sekanjabin. One local favorite (introduced by Mussttafa) is to make Cariadoc's standard recipe, but substitute a large handful of minced or crushed ginger for the mint. Very tangy, and quite tasty. My personal favorite is to toss in one or two dozen cinnamon sticks, and let it steep overnight. The sweetness of the sekanjabin goes very well with the cinnamon flavor... -- Justin du Coeur From: ddfr at quads.uchicago.edu (david director friedman) Date: 23 Aug 90 03:37:26 GMT Organization: University of Chicago Sekanjabin is not a generic term for flavored syrups diluted in water to be used as drinks--it is the name of one such. The Manuscrito Anonimo translated into Spanish by Ambrosio Huici-Miranda (13th century Andalusian) contains a whole chapter of such drinks, with a wide range of flavoring. David Friedman DDFR at Midway.UChicago.Edu From: bloch at thor.ucsd.edu (Steve Bloch) Date: 4 Jan 91 01:53:52 GMT sinister at ac.dal.ca (Corman) writes: > At the last event which I had the opertunity to attend, I was treated to a >delightful drink called sekanjabin (sp?).... >I was hoping someone could post here-on how its recipe. Several recipes appear in Cariadoc's _Miscellany_, which I have not before me. One is taken from Claudia Roden's book of Middle-Eastern cookery (in print, not too hard to find), and calls for water, vinegar, sugar, and mint. There are also one or two 13th-century Andalusian recipes quoted there, omitting the mint (which is so essential to the flavor as most of us are accustomed to it that leaving it out borders on heresy. And the mint IS documentable to the 10th century or so, just not with enough specificity to make a recipe.) I have tried these recipes, fiddled with them, and much prefer the following, which uses honey rather than sugar: Dissolve 1-1/2 cups of honey in 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil, then add 1/2 cup of vinegar and simmer for half an hour or more. After removing from the heat, add a good-sized handful of mint leaves. Let stand until you want to drink it (I have no idea how long it takes for the mint to express!), at which time the mint should be strained out and the syrup diluted by about 7 times as much water (10 is for wimps). Delicious either hot (while shivering around a campfire) or cool (at a feast, or coming off the battlefield). And the syrup keeps unrefrigerated for months, because of the vinegar. The honey should have some flavor (clover is for wimps) but not too much (desert sage honey completely overwhelms the mint, and the drinker). Likewise the vinegar: white vinegar will simply be sour, balsamic would be weird, and either cider or wine is ideal. You can use dried mint, but fresh is much better, and you probably have some growing as a weed in your back yard. Note: I used to add the mint at the same time as the vinegar, before simmering, and was chastised for this insensitivity by an Iraqi gentleman to whom I served it ("Very good, but the spices aren't right. He burned the mint.") Note also: various people of this Barony have discovered sekanjabin syrup (a sugar version) for sale in 24-ounce bottles in Middle- Eastern grocery stores. As Cariadoc will no doubt point out, sekanjabin is merely the most popular (in the SCA) of dozens or hundreds of similar drinks from al-Andalus. Others call for lemon, or pomegranate, or a variety of roots and herbs, and I have made an excellent drink syrup from rhubarb (but cannot document it). -- Stephen Bloch Joshua ibn-Eleazar ha-Shalib >sca>Caid>Calafia>St.Artemas bloch at cs.ucsd.edu Date: 14 May 92 From: ddfr at quads.uchicago.edu (david director friedman) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations Sekanjabin Dissolve 4 cups sugar in 2 1/2 cups of water; when it comes to a boil add 1 cup wine vinegar. Simmer 1/2 hour. Add a handful of mint, remove from fire, let cool. Dilute the resulting syrup to taste with ice water (5 to 10 parts water to 1 part syrup). The syrup stores without refrigeration. This recipe is based on a modern source: A Book of Middle Eastern Food, by Claudia Roden. Sekanjabin is a period drink; it is mentioned in the Fihrist of al-Nadim, which was written in the tenth century. The only period recipe I have found for it (in the Andalusian cookbook) is called "Sekanjabin Simple" and omits the mint. It is one of a large variety of similar drinks described in that cookbook of flavored syrups intended to be diluted in either hot or cold water before drinking. This is the period recipe--it appears to be two recipes with some bits missing: Syrup of Simple Sakanyabin Take a pound of strong vinegar and mix it with two pounds of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an ounce of this with three of hot water when fasting: it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sakanyabin syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers: make it with six ounce of sour vinegar for a pound of honey and it is admirable ... and a pound of sugar; cook all this until it takes the form of a drink. Its benefit is to relax the bowels and cut the thirst and vomit, and it is beneficial in yellow fevers. Cariadoc/David From: jtn at nutter.cs.vt.edu (Terry Nutter) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Sekanjabin Date: 5 Dec 1993 22:48:20 GMT Greetings, all, from Angharad ver' Rhuawn. Cara asks, >Could someone please either post or e-mail me a recipe using >fresh mint leaves? I have been planting mint in various corners >of my garden and expect to have enough to harvest next summer. 4 cups sugar 2 1/2 cups water 1 cup vinegar handfull of fresh mint Dissolve the sugar in the water. (Yes, four cups of sugar _will_ dissolve in two and a half cups of water.) Bring to a boil. Add vinegar. Turn down to a simmer; let simmer for about twenty to thirty minutes. Remover from heat. Toss in mint leaves. Let cool. When it is completely cool, remove the mint leaves and bottle the syrup. To drink, mix syrup with water to taste (for most people, one part of syrup to anywhere between five and ten parts of water). You can use either white or red wine vinegar or cider vinegar; I prefer red wine, but that's purely personal. I've never seen much success with flavored vinegars. _Don't_ use distilled (white) vinegar; it's nasty. The amount of mint does not greatly matter. I usually go out to the mint patch and cut off sprigs until I'm bored, which happens quickly B^}. This recipe originated in Claudia Rodin's Middle Eastern cookbook, and appears in Cariadoc's miscellany. Cheers, -- Angharad/Terry From: jtn at nutter.cs.vt.edu (Terry Nutter) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Mint/vinegar tea? Date: 8 Jan 1994 21:07:10 GMT Organization: The Rialto Greetings, all, from Angharad ver' Rhuawn. Godfrey asks, >A friend of mine encountered a mint and vinegar tea at one of the taverns >at Pennsic one year. Does anyone know where I could find the recipe for >such a tea? (She's throwing a party at the end of January and would like >to serve this tea there.) What you are referring to is probably sekanjabin. The recipe in general use is from Claudia Rodin's Middle Eastern cookbook (and can be found in Cariadoc's Miscellany). Directions follow. 4 cups sugar 2 1/2 cups water 1 cup vinegar handfull of fresh mint Dissolve sugar in water (yes, four cups of sugar _will_ dissolve in 2.5 cups of water). Bring to a boil. Add vinegar. Reduce heat and simmer about 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat. Add mint and let stand. When cool, discard mint and bottle. The resulting syrup keeps pretty much indefinitely at room temperature. To serve, dilute with water to taste. Most people like between five and ten parts of water to one part of syrup. You can use just about any vinegar except white distilled vinegar; I prefer red or white wine vinegar. You can use just about any fresh mint. If fresh mint is not available, you can use mint tea bags, but be sure that you use the 100% mint kind, not mint-flavored tea. When I use the tea bags, I usually throw in a handful (anywhere up to a dozen). You can also use loose dried mint, of course, but it's harder to filter out of the syrup, and doesn't particularly improve with again. Some people use honey instead of sugar. I'm less fond of that. It's good hot as well as cold (hot sekanjabin is particularly wonderful for people with head colds). Enjoy! -- Angharad/Terry From: salley at niktow.canisius.edu (David Salley) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: Mint/vinegar tea? Date: 18 Jan 94 00:07:32 GMT Organization: Canisius College, Buffalo NY. 14208 Just to give you an idea how long Sekanjaben "keeps", I was cleaning out the cupboards and came across a bottle a quarter full of Sekanjaben that Cariadoc had given me ... eight years ago! Naturally, I tried it out. Still delicious! - Dagonell SCA Persona : Lord Dagonell Collingwood of Emerald Lake, CSC, CK, CTr Habitat : East Kingdom, AEthelmearc Principality, Rhydderich Hael Barony Internet : salley at niktow.cs.canisius.edu USnail-net : David P. Salley, 136 Shepard Street, Buffalo, New York 14212-2029 From: DEW at ECL.PSU.EDU (Durr ishJabal Bey alFarengi) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Frequent Complaint heard at Pennsic Date: 1 Sep 1994 02:46:20 GMT Organization: Orluk Oasis Greetings to the Rialto (and all the viking ships in the Fjord)! I serve sekanjabin frequently at Pennsic (just cause), and when someone declines it (which occurrs), I explain what it is. Some still resist, saying that they have tried it before and it "tastes funny" or "vinegary". However, I can usually get them to sample mine, and their opinion is always reversed (at least so far). What may be the problem in many cases is the type or proportion of ingredients that make the difference. May I offer my recipe for your consideration: (This makes a syrup that I cut 1:8 or 1:15 with water, including Pennsic water for those who are still scared by false rumors.) 4 cups sukkar (sugar) and 2.5 cups water Bring these to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes. Then add 1 cup RED WINE VINEGAR (and use the good stuff!). Remove from heat. Crush FRESH LEMON BALM (a mint) and steep in the hot solution until the mint is completely wilted. Remove and replace with more (I use as much as I can, usually a bunch as big as my head). Lemon Balm is a perrenial and may be obtained from most garden stores. It grows like a weed. Like most things, the better grade ingredients produce better results. One other simple suggestion for hospitality: Peel and segment oranges. Sprinkle lightly with ORANGE BLOSSOM WATER (or rose water) and cinnamon. Makes a nice, light snack (and will keep without refrigeration if you just cover it with cheesecloth). I know that dancers just devour these things (loads of fructose, electrolytes, and other goodies). Your Servant, Durr ishJabal Dale E. Walter |(Smokey) Baron Dur of Hidden Mountain |Durr ishJabal min al-Maqfi Jabal abu Neefa Sultan ilorluk dew at ecl.psu.edu |Orluk Oasis on the War Road (of Aethelmarc) |Member # 02933 Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: ddfr at quads.uchicago.edu (david director friedman) Subject: Re: Pomegranate Wine? Organization: University of Chicago Date: Sat, 12 Nov 1994 20:16:10 GMT I don't know about wine, but a 13th c. Andalusian cookbook has a recipe for a pomegranate drink: --- Syrup of Pomegranates Take a ratl of sour pomegranates and another of sweet pomegranates, and add their juice to two ratls of sugar, cook all this until it takes the consistency of syrup, and keep until needed. Its benefits: it is useful for fevers, and cuts the thirst, it benefits bilious fevers and lightens the body gently. --- I presume that this syrup, like others in the chapter, is intended to be diluted with hot or cold water when needed. We dilute it with hot water to make a nice sweet, hot drink. David/Cariadoc Newsgroups: rec.org.sca From: chris at aquasoft.com.au (Chris Robertson) Subject: Re: Question about period food Organization: Griffon Consulting (c/- Aquasoft P/L) Date: Thu, 9 Feb 1995 09:16:53 GMT Suze.Hammond at f56.n105.z1.fidonet.org (Suze Hammond) writes: >BTW, could somebody please post a decent recipe for senkjabin? > >A friend in Meridies tells me it's practically unknown there, and he >misses it. > >... Moreach This is an article posted by Countess Arastorm the Golden several years ago, which I carefully saved. The cordials are all good; I find I personally don't like the switchel, but some of you well may. At the end I have added a recipe for rose cordial which is from a modern cookbook (I can find out which if anyone really wants to know), but is probably essentially unchanged from medieval times, as it's very simple. (Rose cordial is great if you like the rose taste. It's sweeter than sekanjabin.) Both rose and sekanjabin are good hot as well as cold, and the concentrated syrup keeps for months unrefrigerated. The rose cordial will get "fluffy bits" in it which look as though it's growing mould -- this is just sugar crystalising around the flecks of lemon flesh. Don't worry about it, it's still good to use. Refrigerate diluted cordial, though, and use it within a week or so. > From: storm at hlafdig.stonemarche.ORG (Arastorm the Golden) > Newsgroups: rec.org.sca > Subject: Sekanjabin Recipes > Date: 18 Jul 91 00:04:31 GMT > > SEKANJABIN -- (this is probably almost, if not exactly, > what Cariadoc gives for a mint drink recipe) > This first version is scaled for feasts, or for making a lot > to take to the war. Once mixed it makes about 120 cups. I made > this particular adaptation because the common brand of red wine > vinegar near us comes in 40 oz bottles. > Simmer: about 5 cups of red wine vinegar > 10 pounds of sugar > 3 quarts of water for 20 minutes > Let cool and steep 1/2 oz of mint leaves in it while it cools. > Strain and serve diluted with 12 parts water to one part syrup. > > It is a beautiful pale red and makes a pale pink drink. In some > shires it is traditionally flecked with the ground mint leaves, > in others they are careful that there is no hint of leaves in it. > I have also tasted it with white wine vinegar, and cider vinegar. > I prefer the original. > > (A more normal size batch requires 1/2 cup of red wine vinegar, > 2 cups of sugar, 1 1/4 water, and a few sprigs of mint.) > > Now for the alternatives I told you about. > > My favorite: Lime Ginger > Simmer 2 cups of water > 2 cups of sugar > 1 pint of lime juice for 20 minutes > Steep several slices of fresh Ginger in the syrup while it > cools. It will be a lovely very pale green which can be enhanced > by storing a curl of the lime skin in each bottle. The flavor > can be increased by leaving a slice of ginger in each bottle too. > > I suggest that you either use a drop or two of food coloring > or the inclusion of a token to show the flavor if you are going > to stock several syrups. Green for lime, yellow for Lemon, and Orange > for Orange. > > Clove Lemon: ( a scadian variant of lemonade) > 2 cups of water > 4 cups of sugar > 1 pint of lemon juice simmer as above > Steep a half dozen cloves in the syrup. If you leave any in > the bottle, you may have to pour it through a strainer. > > Orange Cinnamon: > 2 cups water > 4 cups sugar > 1 can orange juice concentrate > 2-3 sticks of cinnamon. > Note this is less sugar than in the others because of > the sweetness of oranges. This will be cloudy. I haven't figured > out how to get rid of it, if anyone else knows how -- please post. > > Switchel > This is not a syrup -- the honey IS a syrup. You just > make it up as you need it. I suggest the traditional unglazed > pottery jug to serve it from. It keeps it cooler. > 1 gallon water > 1 cup honey > 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt (to taste) > 1 cup cider vinegar > Note, it will take some effort to mix it properly if > you are using cold water. try mixing the honey and vinegar first > and gradually adding the water, mixing all the while. > You can also make it with lemon juice instead of the > cider vinegar -- it has more vitamin C, but less potassium, I > wouldn't use it as a gatorade substitute except with the cider > vinegar. > > I can't give you the recipe, but I will remind you of the > absoloutely luscious drinks one gentle was selling at the war last > year -- he made syrups by boiling sugar syrups -- probably not so > different from the above -- but with strawberries and blueberries in > them. As he said, after he strained the fruit out, resulting in > the syrups, he had no trouble finding volunteers to eat the sweetened > pulp. I can imagine it would make a *great* topping for ice cream or > sherbet. Then these syrups were mixed with ice water as above. It > would result in a blue alternative in your line of syrup bottles. > We have had some fun allowing our butler to offer the assortment to > the guests. I guess strawberry season is gone, but the wild blueberries > are just coming ripe.... > > Good luck > Arastorm And from Her Excellency Mistress Rowan's cookbooks, Rose Cordial: 500 g sugar 300 ml water 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1/4 teaspoon red food colouring (or better: cochineal) 60 ml rosewater (from health food stores) Make a syrup with the sugar, water, and lemon juice; simmer till it coats the back of a spoon (20-30 minutes). Add rosewater, simmer a couple more minutes. -- Yseult de Lacy (Chris Robertson) chris at aquasoft.com.au From: bronwynmgn at aol.com (Bronwynmgn) Newsgroups: rec.org.sca Subject: Re: drinks, pennsic Date: 20 Jul 1995 20:05:28 -0400 You asked about sekanjabin... The other name you may have heard is Persian Mint Drink. The only way I know to make it is to make it up as a concentrated syrup and then ilute it to taste. Basically, it contains water, sugar, and vinegar, and has mint steeped in it. Here's my recipe: Put 2 1/2 cups of water in a saucepan. Add 4 cups (yes, 4 cups!) of sugar and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. The solution will miraculously clear a few seconds after it boils as all the sugar is dissolved in the water. At that point, add 1 cup of red wine vinegar and allow to simmer for 20 minutes. Take it off the heat and add 6 sprigs of fresh mint or 6 teabags of _pure_ mint tea (Not regular tea with mint added, just mint leaves. Celestial Seasonings sells both spearmint and peppermint). Let it steep for about 6 hours, then strain if needed and bottle. It keeps for months in the refrigerator. This recipe is supposed to be diluted 1:12 with water, but I dilute it to what tastes good. This recipe makes about a pint of syrup. Bronwyn Morgan o Aberystwyth Shire of Silver Rylle, EK From: ansteorra at eden.com (10/30/95) To: ansteorra at eden.com RE>Persian Mint Drink <Moriel<C11Hartel at aol.com>> >A long time Ansteorran friend has moved out of our fair kingdom and recently >was asking for a recipe which I thought I had, but alas do not. Does anyone >have the recipe for the Persian Mint Drink that the Two/Three Sisters Tavern >used to make? Not only would I love to have it for my files, Lady Marsali >Fox would be most thankful as well. I'm afraid I have no such recipe. On the other hand, I *do* have a recipe for a related drink, called Oxymel, which comes to us from the Romans, via the Anglo-Saxons. It is also related to a Scandinavian drink called "Switchel". In it, essentially, one blends one part "Acetum", or a wine vinegar, with one (or more) parts honey to 4-40 parts water (and, if desired, a bit of salt). Undistilled wine vinegar has, according to sources cited in "the History of Military Medicine" (by Richard Gabriel and Karen Metz), all sorts of good minerals and electrolytes that are removed in the distillation process that make it extremely healthy, particularly after hot sweaty work. It is for this reason that the Roman military carried it in their canteens (and some what changes the whole essence of the whole "giving Vinegar to Jesus while he was on the Cross" bit). I also suspect that it's the reason that the "mushroom tea" that is becoming to popular is supposed to be good for you. As it ferments, the fungus produces a type of vinegar. As with mixing "Gatoraid" drinks, there is a balance of Vinegar to water that really depends on personal tastes, and how dehydrated one is. In any case, I understand that if you like vinegar, these things are pretty good, and if you don't (and I don't) all I can say is that they don't taste as bad as you think they are going to. "Mihi Satis Apparet Propter Diarmuit Ui Dhuinn Se Ipsum Appetenda Sapientia" University of Northkeep/Company of St. Jude -- St. Dunstan Northkeepshire, Ansteorra (I. Marc Carlson/IMC at vax2.utulsa.edu) From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com> Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 23:43:53 -0700 (PDT) Subject: SC - Various Derdriu writes, re beverages: >If anyone else has ideas, I'm all ears. Manuscrito Anonimo (13th c. Andalusian) has a whole chapter of drinks--flavored syrups that you dilute with hot or cold water to drink. Three of them, including sekanjabin, are in the _Miscellany_, webbed at: http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/cariadoc/miscellany.html David/Cariadoc http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 10:09:07 -0800 From: "Crystal A. Isaac" <crystal at pdr-is.com> Subject: Re: SC - rose sekanjabin/was coffee and tea david friedman (Master Sir Cariadoc) wrote: > Both Crystal and Kat seem to be using "sekanjabin" at least part of the > time as a generic term for a family of syrup drinks. ... I use the term "sekanjabin" to mean favored syrups with vinegar. I use the term "syrup" or sometimes by the translated name, for example, "syrup of carrots" to denote drinks with NO vinegar. This seems consistent with the majority usage in the translated arabic cookbooks and health manuals I have read. I will stick with my previously stated agreement with Professor Martin Levey, [Sakanjubin is Arabicized from Pers. sirka-anjubin, "vinegar and honey."] and continue to refer to drinks containg vinegar as sekanjabins. I think refering to something as "the sekanjabin of dishes" might have ment that is was tasty and well liked by everyone. In spite of the expensive sugar, references to the drink are frequent (although not as frequent as wine <smile>) enough to make me belive it was a very common drink among the upper-class people we are trying to emulate. I made an error in last night's post in not explaining why I included the Syrup of roses and Syrup of mint recipes in with the sekanjabins. I was merely trying to show that those ingredients were included in the same cookbook, in another beverage recipe. This is not the best documentation to show only that "they could have done it" but it seems reasonable they would have used other beverage ingredients in the "simple sekanjabins." I did not intend to confuse anyone into thinking that all syrups are sekanjabins. Incidentatly, the syrup of carrots is quite tasty and documents the use of ginger in beverages. I should have included it last night, I apologise for the oversight. Syrup of carrots is also from the Andelthusian Cookbook. <quote>Syrup of Carrots Take four ratls of carrots, after removing the fibers [lit. "nerves"] that are in the centers, and cook them in water until their substance comes out. Then take the clear part of it and add it to three ratls of honey, cleaned of its foam. The bag: ...[about three words missing]... an uqiya of cubebs, two uqiyas each of ginger and long pepper, and half an uqiya of cinnamon and flower of cloves. Cook until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an uqiya of this with three of hot water....<end quote> Crystal of the Westermark Date: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 14:50:24 -0800 From: "Crystal A. Isaac" <crystal at pdr-is.com> Subject: Re: SC - rose sekanjabin/wa I've made the current sekanjabin two ways. One method is to get regular ole dried currants, wash and soak them. When the currants are fully hydrated, dump them into the cooling sekannjabin mixture. When straining through many layers of cheesecloth or a sturdy fine-mesh grain bag, squeeze the currents to get all the flavor out. This method works ok, but the color is not great. For better color and flavor, buy Hero brand Black currant syrup. Most stores that carry it have it near the jams&stuff. It's expensive, about $14 for a 16oz(?) bottle last I looked. Use a quarter to half a cup. Mix the Hero Syrup in at the very last minute before bottling, so's not to lose any of the good smells. Works great. If you have any sources for fresh black currants, I'd love to know about it. I don't know anybody who grows them. Crystal of the Westermark Date: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 01:24:03 -0800 From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com> Subject: SC - currant sekanjabin (was rose sekanjabin/wa) At 2:50 PM -0800 1/30/98, Crystal A. Isaac wrote: >I've made the current sekanjabin two ways. One method is to get regular >ole dried currants,... >For better color and flavor, buy Hero brand Black currant syrup. It is not clear from this whether Crystal realizes that she is talking about two entirely different fruits. "Regular old dried currants," aka (in period cookbooks) "raisins of Corinth," are a small raisin. Black currants and red currants are a different fruit--the botanical name is "ribes." I don't know which the period source she has referred to is talking about--looking at it in the original might help. My dictionary believes the ribes fruits got called currants because they looked like the other kind of currants, and the name of the original currant derives from "Corinth." David/Cariadoc http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Wed, 4 Feb 1998 16:28:57 -0800 From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com> Subject: Lemon syrup (was SC - oxymel/hydromel/etc) Syrup of Lemon Andalusian p. A-74 Take lemon, after peeling its outer skin, press it and take a ratl* of juice, and add as much of sugar. Cook it until it takes the form of a syrup. Its advantages are for the heat of bile; it cuts the thirst and binds the bowels. [end of original] A ratl is a weight measure, about a pound. Given that sugar and lemon juice are both roughly 2 c = a pound, that means equal volumes or equal weights. We often serve this diluted about one part in three or four of hot water as a strong, hot drink. Alternatively, dilute it more in cold water and you have thirteenth century lemonade. It doen't taste quite like modern lemonade because of the cooking. Elizabeth/Betty Cook Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:53:40 -0400 From: Marilyn Traber <margali at 99main.com> Subject: Re: SC - Questions on Sekainjabin Congrats, you made a 'jalab', where we get the term julip. Anything can be done as a jalab, pomegranit, citrus and honey/spice are the main ones. technically, sekanjabin is a jalab. > Allison, > I know that this will cause a few folks to have kittens, but... > Last spring I started a batch of sekanjabin syrup, set the sugar > and vinegar to boil, and went rooting in the refrigerator, and discovered > the mint was gone (daughter Rotrude later confessed to having eaten it). > The only other green things in the drawer were basil and rosemary, neither > of which would be good in the syrup. It was late and I didn't fancy a > trip tot eh all-night grocery. So I got to thinking- my hypocras > powder was in the storage locker across town. But I had cinnamon sticks, > cloves, and there were oranges in the fruit basket, so instead of the mint > I used the spices and citrus peels. I let it sit for a day or two before > straining, but the syrup was delicious and especially good hot. Has anyone > else ever tried this? > 'Lainie Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 22:53:59 -0700 From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com> Subject: Re: SC - Questions on Sekainjabin At 8:55 PM -0700 4/22/99, Laura C Minnick wrote: ,,, > Last spring I started a batch of sekanjabin syrup, set the sugar >and vinegar to boil, and went rooting in the refrigerator, and discovered >the mint was gone (daughter Rotrude later confessed to having eaten it). >The only other green things in the drawer were basil and rosemary, neither >of which would be good in the syrup. It was late and I didn't fancy a >trip tot eh all-night grocery. So I got to thinking- my hypocras >powder was in the storage locker across town. But I had cinnamon sticks, >cloves, and there were oranges in the fruit basket, so instead of the mint >I used the spices and citrus peels. I let it sit for a day or two before >straining, but the syrup was delicious and especially good hot. Has anyone >else ever tried this? It isn't the same as the stuff with the mint, but >since I started with the Sekanjabin Simple I dubbed it 'Spiced Sekanjabin' >(original, huh?). Has anyone else had an 'oops' like that turn out? The 13th c. Andalusian cookbook has a whole chapter of drinks based on flavored syrups, of which sekanjabin is one. They include a basil drink, a carrot and spice drink (throw out the carrots, use the water they were boiled in!), and much more. I'm not sure just what defines the limits of "sekanjabin," but it seems clear that most such drinks have other names. David/Cariadoc http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 07:02:55 -0400 From: Philip & Susan Troy <troy at asan.com> Subject: Re: SC - Questions on Sekainjabin david friedman wrote: > a carrot and spice drink (throw out the carrots, use the water they were > boiled in!) Given that carrots in period seem to have been a little closer to parsnips than to modern carrots, I'll point out that when you boil parsnips in the right mass proportion to water, you end up with quite a respectable light syrup (fermentable and the basis of an alternative stout in Britain). The above doesn't sound very surprising, but I agree, it might not be the first thing a typical modern person would think of. Adamantius Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 23:04:33 -0700 From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com> Subject: Re: SC - Questions on Sekainjabin At 9:01 PM -0500 4/23/99, Heitman wrote: >> a carrot and spice drink (throw out the carrots, use the water they were >> boiled in!) > >Cariadoc, you mentioned a number of drink syrups. Where would I find the >receipes for these? In the 13th c. Andalusian cookbook that Charles Perry translated for me. It is included in Volume II of the collection of source material I sell. I plan to web it at some point, but when I asked Charles about it he said he had some corrections he wanted to make first, and he hasn't sent them yet (it was a while ago). Here are some of them: - --- Chapter One: on Drinks The Great Drink of Roots Take the skin of the stems of fennel, the skin of the stems of celery, the skin of the roots of carrot and ...[three words missing]... chicory and Mecca fig, half a ratl each; three handfuls each of halhl (lavender?), cilantro of the spring [i.e., water source], dawmirn, tamarisk, pennyroyal, ghfit, chicory, mint, clove basil and citron basil; two qiyas each of the seeds of celery, carrot and roses, fennel, and habba hulwa and nnkha [two names for, or perhaps two varieties of, nigella seed], and half an qiya of dodder seed. The bag: half an qiya each of cinnamon, flowers of cloves, ginger, Chinese rhubarb, Indian spikenard, mastic, nutmeg and aloe stems, a mithql of saffron, six ratls of honey, cleansed of its foam. Cook the herbs and seeds in water that covers them until their force comes out; then take the clean part of it [strain it] and throw it in honey. Put this on the fire, and leave the spices in the bag after they have become mushy, throw them into the drink and macerate them time after time, until their force passes into the drink. Lay it aside and take it from the fire, let it cool, and keep until needed. Drink one qiya of this with three of water on arising, and see that the water is hot. Benefits: fortifies the stomach and the liver, opens blockages of the liver and spleen, cleans the stomach, and is beneficial for the rest of the phlegmatic ailments of the body. The Little Drink of Roots: Way of Making It Take the skin of the stems of caper bush, the skin of the stems of celery, the skin of fennel root and the skin of wild carrots, two qiyas of each; two handfuls each of halhl (lavender?), cilantro of the spring, dawmirn, ghfit, chicory, pennyroyal and euphorbia. The bag: cinnamon, and flower of cloves and ginger, an qiya of each; half a mithql of saffron; three ratls of honey, cleaned of its foam. Cook the seeds and herbs, covered with water, until their strength comes out. Then take the clean part, add to the honey, and take it to the fire, and put the bag in a kettle until it forms a well-made syrup. Take it from the fire and pour it into an earthenware vessel. The drink is made with two qiyas of syrup to three qiyas of hot water. Its benefits: it benefits the liver and opens occlusions of it, it is useful for the spleen and cleanses the stomach of its extra phlegm wherever it is found in the body, and it is of profit in diseases of dropsy, God willing. Syrup of Aloe Wood [Stem?]: Way of Making It Take half an qiya of aloe, a quarter qiya each of cinnamon, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Indian lavender, nutmeg, mastic and saffron, a ratl of sugar and the same of rosewater. Close the roots in a bag and place them in the sugar and rosewater. Bring all this to the fire until it takes the consistency of syrups; then remove it from the fire, grind eight grams of musk, and throw it in an earthenware vessel. The drink is an qiya with two of hot water. Its benefits: it fortifies the stomach, the liver, and the other parts, cheers the heart, tempers the constitution a bit, and helps in the beginning of dropsy. Syrup of Citron Leaves: Way of Making It Take fifty leaves and remove the dust on them with a cloth, then cover them all with water in a pot and cook it until the strength comes out. Then take the clean part of it and add a ratl of sugar. The bag: half an qiya each of aloe stems, Chinese cinnamon, and cloves. Cook all this until it becomes good to drink. Drink one qiya with three of water. Its benefits: it cheers the heart with much gaiety, fortifies the internal organs, and softens the bowels gently; it is extraordinary. The Great Cheering Syrup: Way of Making It Take half a ratl each of borage, mint, and citron leaves, cook them in water to cover until their strength comes out, then take the clean part and add it to a ratl of sugar. Then put in the bag: a spoonful each of aloe stems, Chinese rhubarb, Chinese cinnamon, cinnamon and clove flowers; pound all these coarsely, place them in a cloth, tie it well, and place it in the kettle, macerate it again and again until its substance passes out, and cook until [the liquid] takes the consistency of syrups. Take one qiya with three of hot water. Benefits: It profits [preceding two words apparently supplied; in parentheses in printed Arabic text] weak stomachs, fortifies the liver and cheers the heart, digests foods, and lightens the constitution gently, God willing. A Syrup of Honey Take a quarter qiya each of cinnamon, flower of cloves and ginger, mastic, nutmeg, Chinese cinnamon, Sindi laurel, Indian lavender, Roman spikenard, elder twigs, elder seeds, oil of nutmeg, bitter and sweet nuts, large and small cardamom, wild spikenard, galingale, aloe stems, saffron, and sedge. Pound all this coarsely, tie it in a cloth, and put it in the kettle with fifteen ratls of water and five of honey, cleaned of its foam. Cook all this until it is at the point of drinking. Drink an qiya and a half, and up to two, with hot water. Its benefit is for weak livers; it fortifies the stomach and benefits dropsy among other ailments; it dissolves phlegm from all parts of the body and heats it a great deal, gives gaiety, lightens the body, and it was used by the ancients like wine for weariness. Recipe for Honey-Water Take a ratl of honey and add five ratls of water, cook until the water departs and the honey remains, and clean off the foam little by little. Pound half an qiya of pellitory and place it in a cloth, put it in the kettle and bruise it once and again until its substance comes out. Remove it to an earthenware vessel, and take it from it at the necessary time, for it makes up for all that which detracts from this notable quality. The Recipe for Making a Syrup of Julep Take five ratls of aromatic rosewater, and two and a half of sugar, cook all this until it takes the consistency of syrups. Drink two qiyas of this with three of hot water. Its benefits: in phlegmatic fever; it fortifies the stomach and the liver, profits at the onset of dropsy, purifies and lightens the body, and in this it is most extraordinary, God willing. Syrup of Sandalwood: Way of Making It Take two qiyas each of red and white sandalwood, and an qiya of white manna of sugarcane. Then pound the sandalwood and cook it in rosewater until its substance comes out, and let there be five ratls of the rosewater. Then take the clean part of it and add it to two ratls of sugar, take the tabshr and put it in a bag, and cook all this until it forms a well-made syrup. Its benefits are to calm the heat of jaundice, to cut thirst, and to profit in the other ailments and fevers of jaundice. It leaves the nature as it is, without causing retention or thinness of urine. It fortifies the stomach, the liver, and the other organs, and in this it is most extraordinary. Formula for Making a Syrup of Mastic Take three qiyas of mastic, powder it and put it in a bag, then take a ratl of mint and cook it, covered with water, until its substance comes out. Take the clean part of it and mix it with three ratls of sugar and honey, and cook all this until it takes the form of a drink. Drink two qiyas of this with three of hot water. Its profits: for the stomach and for digesting food; it cuts vomiting and binds the bowels, and fortifies the liver: it is the utmost in this. Syrup of Harir: Way of Making It Take the almonds of silk and extract from them the small seeds, after removing their hearts, four ratls. Then divide almonds and clean the dirt from them, wash them very well in cold water until softened, and drain the water. Then take water out of a river oriented Eastward; heat polished steel and cool it in this water until the water is reduced by half and changes color. Cook the harir in this water until its substance comes out; press it, and add to the water three ratls of honey, cleaned of its foam. The bag: half an qiya each of cinnamon and cloves, an qiya of ginger, an qiya each of cubebs, long pepper and galingale. Then pound roots and put them in a bag, which is then tied with a strong thread and added to the honey and the clean part. Put it on the fire and cook it until a syrup is made. Drink two qiyas of this with three of hot water. It profits in the lack of urine, and increases desire well; it dissolves the fat from all parts of the body and heats it well, God willing, by its generosity and virtue. Syrup of Mint: Way of Making It Take mint and basil, citron and cloves, a handful of each, and cook all this in water to cover, until its substance comes out, and add the clear part of it to a ratl of sugar. The bag: an qiya of flower of cloves, and cook all this until a syrup is made. Its benefits: it frees bodies that suffer from phlegm, and cuts phlegmatic urine, fortifies the liver and the stomach and cheers it a great deal; in this it is admirable. Syrup of Fresh Roses, and the Recipe for Making It Take a ratl of fresh roses, after removing the dirt from them, and cover them with boiled water for a day and a night, until the water cools and the roses fall apart in the water. Clean it and take the clean part of it and add to a ratl of sugar. Cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an qiya of this with two of hot water; its benefits are at the onset of dropsy, and it fortifies the stomach and the liver and the other internal organs, and lightens the constitution; in this it is admirable. A Recipe for Making It by Repetition Take the same, a ratl of roses or more, and place it in water to cover it, boiling for a day and a night. Then take out the roses that are in the water and throw them away, and go with the same quantity of fresh roses, which are to be covered likewise with this water, after boiling it a second time, and leave this also a day and a night. Throw away these roses likewise, and put in others and treat them as before, and continue doing this for ten days or more. Its benefit and the strength of its making are solely in the manner of repeating. Then clarify the water of roses and add to it as much sugar, and cook it until it takes the form of a syrup. It reaches the limit in thinning and moistening the constitution, God willing. Syrup of Dried Roses Take a ratl of dried roses, and cover with three ratls of boiling water, for a night, and leave it until they fall apart in the water. Press it and clarify it, take the clear part and add it to two ratls of white sugar, and cook all this until it is in the form of a syrup. Drink an qiya and a half of this with three of water. Its benefits: it binds the constitution, and benefits at the start of dropsy, fortifies the other internal organs, and provokes the appetite, God willing. Syrup of Violets Take a ratl of fresh violet flowers, and cover them with three ratls of boiling water, and boil until their substance comes out; then take the clean part of it and mix it with four ratls of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an qiya and a half of this with three of hot water. Its benefits are in the fever of jaundice, it cuts thirst and lightens the body gently, and benefits in dry coughs, but it weakens the stomach. David/Cariadoc http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Tue, 4 May 1999 13:37:09 +1000 From: "HICKS, MELISSA" <HICKS_M at casa.gov.au> Subject: SC - Syrup of Violets Elinor Fettiplace (nouvelle cuisine I know) gives a recipe for Violet Syrup. I have included the recipe and my notes below in case anyone is interested. Please note, that in later times (and in English) these concoctions are referred to as Sirrops or Syrups not Sekanjabins. Meliora. Syrup of Violets Elinor Fettiplace (1602) First make a thicke sirop of sugar and clarifie yt well, then take blew violetts and picke them well from the whights then put them in the sirrop, let them lye in yt 24 howres keepinge it warme in the meane time, then straine these violetts out and put in fresh, so do 4 times then set them on the fire, let them simper a good while but not boyle fast put in some juice of limonds in the boyleinge then straine yt and leepe yt to your use. 1 pint water 1 pound sugar 4 pints (volume) of violet petals 1 tablespoon lemon juice Find a large garden bed covered in purple violets. Pick them for about 2 hours. Spend the rest of the day taking the petals from the rest of the flower head and removing the white part of the petal. Once this is done, you will have approximately one pint in volume of violet petals. Mix the sugar and water and heat until the sugar dissolves. Cool slightly and add the violet petals. Leave in a warm place for 24 hours. Strain these petals out of the mixture, warm briefly and add the next pint of petals. You would have spent most of this second day preparing this next batch. Repeat this twice more. After you have strained the final batch of petals warm the mixture and add one tablespoon of lemon juice. simmer for ten minutes and then let cool and bottle. Date: Tue, 03 Aug 1999 14:10:47 PDT From: "Bonne of Traquair" <oftraquair at hotmail.com> Subject: SC - cherry-vinegar syrup drink I was recently gifted with about 8 lbs of fresh cherries. My first inclination was to make cherry jam. But, a decent enough version of that can be purchased. I'm a fan of pickled fruits which are harder to find in the stores. So, I found a recipe for pickled cherries. After canning the pickled cherries, I had several cups of cherry and clove flavored sweet vinegar. I recalled mention in the Florilegium of a drink syrup along those lines. (Later located under "jalabs"). I experimented, first adding more sugar and cooking it down. Later adding a tablespoon more of red wine vinegar to the finished syrup, evidently I'd cooked all the vinegar out trying to get to the syrup stage. I serve it diluted as for senkajabin, 10:1. Yum! Bonne Date: Sat, 4 Mar 2000 10:32:53 -0600 From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com> Subject: Re: SC - Re: Feast Beverages At 11:08 AM -0500 3/4/00, alysk at ix.netcom.com wrote: >In my local-ish area (Midrealm) sekanjabin is sometimes offered, but the >tastes of the person who made it can often turn off the folk to whom the >beverage is served. Frequently it is so vinegary that it is nearly >undrinkable. Sometimes it is far too strong, even though the sweet and >sour have been balanced. There are two dimensions here--ratio of vinegar to sugar, and ratio of both to water. The individual feaster can't do anything about the former. But if the cook serves both sekanjabin and water, the feaster can always dilute the sekanjabin down to his taste if it is too strong. David Friedman ddfr at best.com http://www.best.com/~ddfr/ Date: Sun, 05 Mar 2000 17:28:37 EST From: allilyn at juno.com Subject: Re: SC - Feast Beverages His Grace writes: >> I introduced sekanjabin to the SCA for the specific purpose of replacing iced tea (Salaamallah, I believe, independently introduced it, probably for the same purpose). Like iced tea it is a cold drink that is very inexpensive and very little trouble. Unlike iced tea, it is a drink that was in common use in period--albeit in the civilized world, not among the Franks.<< Sekanjabin is well received in summer in AEthelmearc, and has the advantage of varying in taste with the type of mint and the type of vinegar. Two summer feasts proved to me and my assorted cooking staff that it is well worth the money to find and buy the imported red wine vinegar from Modena, Italy. It's supposed to be aged in wood casks, as finer liquors are, and has a much smoother taste than the set-your-teeth-on-edge sharpness of many grocery store vinegars. Make it up a week or three in advance, and it's one less thing to worry about. Stretch your cooking staff on the day by assigning the mixing job to a non-cook. If we are going to leave lapses in our authenticity, then a period drink that might have been known to crusaders, even if they didn't go out to the kitchen and make some, is better than something more blatantly modern. Allison, allilyn at juno.com Date: Wed, 19 Apr 2000 16:28:20 -0500 From: Jenn/Yana <jdmiller2 at students.wisc.edu> Subject: SC - modern recipe for sekanjabin This Iranian/Persian recipe page does not suggest that sekanjabin is for drinking. Never would have thought of making it for this purpose, but it does sound like a refreshing thing to do. - --Yana From <http://www.ee.surrey.ac.uk/Personal/F.Mokhtarian/recipes/sekanjebin.html> Sekanjebin Ingredients: (4 servings) sugar, 500 grams white vinegar, 100 grams fresh mint, one small bunch fresh lettuce, one bunch Directions: Dissolve sugar in two glasses of water and bring to a boil. Wash mint and tie it together with a string and drop it in the mix. Allow the mix to thicken. Add vinegar and boil for another minute. Remove mint. Serve cold with fresh lettuce. Lettuce should be dipped in sekanjebin. Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2001 22:03:45 +0100 From: TG <gloning at Mailer.Uni-Marburg.DE> Subject: Re: SC - Oxymel, anyone? E.g., the fourth century medical doctor Philargius has some medical uses mostly for the spleen. Among other uses, he says that one should cook certain plants in oxymel [1]. You could look if there is an article on oxymel in the "Realencyclop 0die der classischen Altertumswissenschaft" (ed. Pauly and Wissowa, 1894ff; about 100 vols.). If there is an article, they have the references ... In the Middle Ages, the Tacuin sanitatis (Taqwim al-sihha) of Ibn-Butlan mentions oxymel in several places to mitigate certain food stuffs, and I seem to remember that this text also deals with secanjabin somewhere (just did not find it now; am somewhat in a hurry). Preparations of different oxymels and secaniabins seem to have belonged to the standard repertoire of apothecaries. The 'Compendium aromatariorum' of Saladin of Asculo (a 15th c. handbook) refers to the chapters of Mesue in which simple and complex secaniabins and oxymel are described. Other texts quote and comment on recipes: e.g. the 'Luminare maius' (1536) gives a recipe for a _Secaniabin de radicibus_ ('a secaniabin of roots'; fol. xxxij), a number of oxymels and syrops ... There should be a vaste body of material in other medical and pharmacological texts of this kind. Thomas [1] "Optima enim sunt his capparis radicis cortices et scolopendrion et myrices cortices et radices aut cymae; coquere autem haec omnia convenit in aceto aut in oxymelle". (Puschmann, Th., ed.: Nachtr 0ge zu Alexander Trallianus. Fragmente aus Philumenus und Philagrius. Berlin 1887, 120. Other places where oxymel is mentioned are in the index.) From: "Elise Fleming" <alysk at ix.netcom.com> To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org> Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 17:01:08 -0500 Subject: [Sca-cooks] Re: Trying New Stuff Stefan wrote: >And I've got first hand stories of Sekanjabin syrup lasting several (five?) >years on the shelf without refrigeration. Yup. Mine's sitting up there and is at least 4 years old. No problem with it. I also have some cordials that I tried five to six years ago. Still sitting there... Alys Katharine From: "Sara Tallarovic" <electricfish at earthlink.net> To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org> Date: Wed, 30 May 2001 11:00:15 -0700 Subject: [Sca-cooks] Re: Dehydration Marian Rosenberg wrote: "Speaking of sekanjabin ... if you really really really hate making sekanjabin (or, have read recipes and listened to friends tell of making it and been scared away) I found a source for commercially made sekanjabin. Ingredients: Sugar, Mint Flavored Vinegar, Water. http://sadaf.com/store/page22.html Sekanjabin Mint Syrup $4.99 The bottle is about the size of a wine bottle, and makes (at my proportions of syrup to water) 10 liters of Sekanjabin. (A quick scan of their site finds saffron, sumac, mango ginger chutney, sesame candies, and other yummies at really good prices)" I can vouch for this syrup made by Sadaf. It is REALLY good and very easy = when camping or whatever. I bought a 24.5 fl. oz. bottle at my local Halal= market for $4.49 and took it to Gulf War. We had a pitcher of Sekanjaban = always sitting on the table for refreshment. A little syrup goes a long wa= y...I still have some left. I add a touch of rosewater to it as well. Eve= n the kids liked it. -Shu'la From: DeeWolff at aol.com Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 13:09:18 EDT To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org Subject: [Sca-cooks] Re: [Sca-cooks]Sekanjabin In a message dated 6/19/01 1:36:27 AM, Etain1263 at aol.com writes: << I'm also experimenting with various mints in sekanjabin. Does anyone use the honey/vinegar method? (rather than the sugar one?) I'm interested in what proportions are used >> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- I use that method. I use 3:1. and I simmer it all day on a low flame. It gets very thick. I then pack up small containers(like ziplocks) and keep them in the freezer so when I need a quick drink, I add it to water to taste (They WILL NOT FREEZE, but they stay nice and cold). With the mint garden slowly spreading into the lawn, sekanjabin is a usual item in my menu in the summer. (PS. I find spearmint is the best. Not too intense. But I also have peppermint as well) Andrea Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2001 17:59:34 -0400 From: johnna holloway <johnna at sitka.engin.umich.edu> To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Lemon Syrup? jenne at fiedlerfamily.net wrote: > Has anyone ever made lemon syrup for drinks from 'reconstituted lemon > juice'? Do you mix it equal parts with sugar, and heat? > > -- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa If you are thinking about using REALLEMON in the glass bottles, I wouldn't. There is something really artificial tasting about the lemonade/lemon syrup made from it. You can use the frozen Minute Maid Juice that's in the freezer case. It makes up fine. REALLEMON works ok in small amounts in recipes like "Italian Beef" or certain desserts that only need 1-2 teaspoons. Johnnae llyn Lewis From: Bronwynmgn at aol.com Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2001 08:36:56 EDT Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Lemon Syrup? To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org jenne at fiedlerfamily.net writes: > Has anyone ever made lemon syrup for drinks from 'reconstituted lemon > juice'? Do you mix it equal parts with sugar, and heat? I do it all the time, and despite Siggy's objections, I find that it tastes reasonably good. I don't own an electric juicer, and the tendonitis in the wrists simply will not take all the hand squeezing required to make it in the quantities I use (lemonade being one of my favorite drinks). I worked it out with Food for Fifty book - if you are going for weight measurement, use 1 1/4 cups of sugar for each cup of lemon juice. A pint is NOT a pound the world around. I bring it to a boil to let the sugar get into solution, and then simmer it for about half an hour or so. I haven't kept any of it with the higher concentration of sugar for long, but with using only 1 cup sugar to one cup juice I would find that even under refrigeration, after a month or two, it would start to get lumps of what looked like cotton in it. I wasn't sure what it was, but I pitched it on general principles. I do tend to keep mine in the fridge or cooler. Brangwayna Morgan From: "Gwynydd Of Culloden" <gwynydd_of_culloden at yahoo.com> To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org> Subject: RE: [Sca-cooks] Lemon Syrup? Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 05:49:06 +1000 > > Has anyone ever made lemon syrup for drinks from 'reconstituted lemon > > juice'? While I have never used the "RealLemon" product being mentioned here, I make huge amounts of Lemon Syrope (as I label it - based on the recipe in the Miscellany except that I use bottled lemon juice not fresh squeezed) using bottled, refrigerate-after-opening lemon juice. I find it to be very good and I have had no adverse comments from consumers. I have only used fresh lemons once and I think they were too young; the syrup was less than successful. One day I might have another go at fresh juice, but the bottled stuff is so convenient and cheap that I have no real reason to do so. I use a variety of brands and this ingredient list is fairly much standard for all of them (I add this simply because it is possible that there are major differences between what I have available here in Tasmania and what is available in the States). "Reconstituted lemon juice, preservative (223), water added, 99.9% lemon juice". When I make it to sell, I always include this information on the label - some brands use 2 preservative numbers, so I alter the labels depending on what I am using. > > Do you mix it equal parts with sugar, and heat? I make it following the instructions in the Miscellany; equal VOLUME juice and sugar (i.e. cup for cup) mixed together and brought to a boil. Boil for 30 minutes. This keeps without refrigeration here for ages (months - at least a year, in my experience). I think that the "cotton" like lumps which someone else mentioned may be something which has happened to my rose and sekanjabin syrups. From a discussion on the List some time back, I think it might have something to do with the specific gravity of the solution (I could be misremembering), however, it doesn't do any harm and simply soaking the bottle of syrup in hot water returns it to its liquid form. I have never had this happen to the lemon. If your syrup does this, I would suggest trying this before ditching it. This stuff, as I said, seems to keep for ages without refrigeration here in Tasmania. I keep a small supply in the 'fridge so that it is cold when one wants to use it, but it does not seem to be necessary. Gwynydd of Culloden From: Bronwynmgn at aol.com Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2001 15:47:44 EDT Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Lemon Syrup? To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org jenne at fiedlerfamily.net writes: > I'll try Brangwayna's recipe this year, and if it sucks, next year they > can go back to the powdered stuff. I'd take my version, even with cheapo reconsitituted juice, over the sugary powdered crap any day. I have made it with lemons once or twice. It's kind of neat having the pulp in it (I sieved some of it out, but not all), and it does taste slightly ...sharper, or something, but the reconstituted stuff works for me. Brangwayna Morgan From: "Avraham haRofeh" <goldberg at bestweb.net> To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org> Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Sugar Free Sakanjabin Date: Mon, 24 Jun 2002 18:23:51 -0400 > I remember once in a blue moon ago (I think it was > 2ish years ago) there was a discussion on this list > about trying to make Sakanjabin with artificial > sweetners. Did anyone ever get around to trying it? > I'm teaching a class on Sakanjabin this weekend and > would like to mention the attempt/results if anyone > did it. I made it with Splenda. It had a faint, odd aftertaste, and wasn't quite as thick as regular sekanjabin, but was quite acceptable. Avraham **************************************** Avraham haRofeh of Northpass (mka Randy Goldberg MD) From: Bronwynmgn at aol.com Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2001 16:42:11 EDT Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] re: Lemon Syrup To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org gwynydd_of_culloden at yahoo.com writes: > I can't answer the question about figuring out the sugar content, but I can > say that I think we make it up much more dilute than 1:5 - closer to 1:8 or > even 1:10. I find that a little of this goes a very long way. Yeah, that's why I said diluted at least 1 part syrup to 5 water - lots of people make it more dilute than that, but that's about the strongest I've seen most people do (that excludes my husband and the lady of my household, who have been known to drink my sekanjabin syrup straight when they think they can get away with it - yeeurgh.) > those who haven't tried it, do try both Syrup of Lemons and > sekanjabin hot - they are wonderful on a cold winter's night this way. I haven't actually tried the sekanjabin, but the first time I made the lemon syrup it was a cold rainy day, so we all drank it hot - yum. I also have a recipe for a non-period spiced lemonaid which makes a wonderful hot drink, especially when you have a sore throat. To one gallon boiling water add: 4 lemons, cut in half and reamed out or squeezed (the juice is what goes in of course); drop the shells in too. 12 whole cloves about 1/8-1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom (I think the original called for 4 pods of cardamom; I have ground on hand, and don't use the pods for anything else, so..) Let simmer for about half an hour, then take off the heat and add honey to taste (after fishing out the lemon shells). This absolutely does need to be refrigerated; it grows really interesting black stuff when it's not.... For those of you in the Bryn Gwlad area who remember the stuff Magdalena used to make, that she called "Bronwyn's spiced lemonaide"? I used to be Bronwyn, and this is the recipe she was using. By the way, if anyone knows where she is, would you pass on my greetings and email address? I haven't heard from her in years... Brangwayna Morgan From: jenne at fiedlerfamily.net Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 12:26:57 -0400 (EDT) To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org> Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Fighter food > >Ginger drink (with sugar) > What kind of Ginger drink? This sounds great! > I want some! Right now, my current favorite ginger syrup is ginger, lemon, sugar and water: 4 c. sugar and 2.5 c. water, bring to a boil, add 1 to 1.25 c. lemon juice. Simmer until reduced by almost half, adding some shavings of ginger and lemon peel. Then add 3-4 inches of ginger root, chopped, and boil a bit longer. Add a little more lemon. Soak over night and bottle. I've also had switchel-style ginger drink made by substituting ginger for mint in the sekanjabin recipe and that was yummy too. -- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 12:48:18 -0400 From: "Christine Seelye-King" <kingstaste at mindspring.com> Subject: [Sca-cooks] period beverages To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org> Here are the recipes from the Miscellany, none of them calls for mint. I have also had syrups of violet (wonderful), rose (ok, but could get cloying), carrot, tamarind, and others. Experiment and have fun! Christianna Syrup of Simple Sikanjabn (Oxymel) Andalusian p. A-74 Take a ratl of strong vinegar and mix it with two ratls of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an qiya of this with three of hot water when fasting: it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sikanjabn syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers: make it with six qiyas of sour vinegar for a ratl of honey and it is admirable. This seems to be at least two different recipes, for two different medical uses. The first, at least, is intended to be drunk hot. In modern Iranian restaurants, sekanjabin is normally served cold, often with grated cucumber. S