fd-Jewish-msg

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fd-Jewish-msg – 3/16/08

NOTE: See also the files: Jews-msg, Khazars-msg, Jewsh-Holiday-art, T-H-Dreidel-art, Islamic-Feast-art, Maimonides-msg.

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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

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From: James and/or Nancy Gilly <KatieMorag at worldnet.att.net>

Date: Wed, 23 Apr 1997 22:27:25 +0000

Subject: SC - [fwd] [EK] Jewish Recipes of the Spanish Inquisition

From the Eastrealm's mailing list - thought this might prove of interest:

From: donna amato-salvacion <donna at npsa.com>

To: sca-east at world.std.com

Subject: [EK] Jewish Recipes of the Spanish Inquisition

Date: Wed, 16 Apr 97 14:05:16 +0000

Not that I want to start up the Religious ire of the list again. but

this is a very interesting article.

http://search.nytimes.com/web/docsroot/yr/mo/day/news/style/spanish-passover.html

April 16, 1997

Jewish Recipes of the Spanish Inquisition

By ANDREE BROOKS

It was a few days before Passover in 1503 in northern Spain.

Angelina de Leon was kneading a dough of white flour, eggs and

olive oil, flavored with pepper and honey. She formed walnut-size

balls, flattening them into round cakes and pricking them with a

fork.

Maria Sancho, the family maid, was watching. This was exactly

the sort of recipe that the Inquisition authorities had told

servants to report. Maria had also seen her mistress soaking and

salting meat before placing it into the stew pot.

All of which would provide proof that this was a household of

secret Jews -- Jews who had ostensibly converted to Catholicism

under pressure from the Church but who had clung to their Jewish

rituals.

Maria's detailed account of the preparation and cooking of

meals, along with similar testimony by informants at other

Inquisition trials, has left a rare opportunity for contemporary

cooks to recreate the Jewish cuisine of 16th-century Spain.

The recreations represent the combined labors of Dr. Linda

Davidson, a writer on medieval life and an adjunct professor of

Spanish at the University of Rhode Island, and her husband, Dr.

David M. Gitlitz, a professor of Hispanic studies there and a

specialist in crypto-Jewish culture. They have gathered 85 recipes

from testimony and have tested about 50.

The testimony rarely included measurements and often used

generalized terms, like spices, without specific names. So, they

turned to other sources: the handful of cookbooks still around from

that era, bookkeeping ledgers used in patrician households of the

day, travelers' journals and poems written to raise awareness of

covert Jewish practices.

Consider this poem, from the wedding feast of a nobleman's

daughter:

At this Jewish wedding party

bristly pig was not consumed;

not one single scaleless fish

went down the gullet of the groom;

instead, an eggplant casserole

with saffron and Swiss chard;

and whoever swore by Jesus

from the meatball pot was barred.

Even so, calculating each ingredient took trial and error,

"filling our compost heap with all sorts of stuff we couldn't

eat," Davidson said. Sometimes she removed an ingredient, like

rue, a salad leaf, or pennyroyal, a variety of mint, as both have

toxic properties. Sometimes she substituted a tool, like a food

processor for a wooden hand masher when preparing parsley or

cilantro juice.

There were some surprises. One was discovering the way in which

the secret Jews seemed not to adhere to certain Jewish dietary laws

while meticulously following others. For example, the Biblical ban

against eating meat with milk does not seem to have been followed,

for the prohibition was not found in testimony. Lungs, tripe and

intestines, equally prohibited, were also eaten.

But these Jews eliminated animal blood, another restriction,

Gitlitz said. And ritual slaughter and meat preparation were so

strictly followed that they were high on the Inquisition's list of

clues for Christians to detect hidden Jewish practices.

The couple concluded that lamb and beef were the favorite meats

among the secret Jews and that chickpeas, eggplant and chard were

recognized as Jewish vegetables. These Jews also loved cinnamon and

sugar on almost everything, Dr. Davidson said, even stews and fish.

Vinegar was "very, very important," she added. Two types were

used: a balsamic vinegar and a vinegar made from leftover red wine.

Spices were used in quantities that Davidson could hardly

believe. "Lots and lots of cilantro, lots and lots of saffron,"

she said. Perfumed waters, like rose or orange, were popular flavor

enhancers, too.

Ground almonds served as thickeners. Favorite desserts were

turron, an almond nougat; marzipan, and quince paste. And the cooks

were highly color-conscious, Davidson said, often naming dishes

based on color, like "green stew."

But they rarely did their own baking. Fires were a hazard in the

cramped wooden places where most lived. So, they would take their

prepared foods to a communal oven for baking. Gitlitz speculated

that Angelina probably took her pans of matzohs, hidden under other

foods in a basket, to a more affluent secret Jew who might have had

enough property for an outdoor oven.

A few weeks ago, the couple cooked a typical 16th-century

Spanish meal that might have been served on the first night of

Passover: Angelina's matzohs, with vermilioned eggs; roasted lamb

in a coating of chard, mint, garlic and egg; chickpeas cooked with

honey, onions and spices, and turron for dessert.

Excluded was haroseth, the paste of dates, raisins, honey,

walnuts, orange juice and cinnamon regularly eaten at this ritual

meal nowadays. "It was never mentioned anywhere," Gitlitz said.

"Some of these customs may not have been as widespread as we would

like to think."

Following are recipes gleaned from the testimony, including an

egg recipe of Pedro de la Cavalleria, a finance minister to the

King of Aragon until he was caught repeatedly celebrating the

Jewish Sabbath with foods identified with Jews of the day.

Angelina de Leon's Matzohs

Total time: 30 minutes

4 cups white flour

1 tablespoon black pepper

4 large eggs (beaten)

6 tablespoons honey

4 teaspoons olive oil

8 tablespoons water.

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In large mixing bowl, combine

flour and pepper. Mix well.

2. Combine eggs, honey, olive oil and just enough water to make

a very dry dough. Mix well; do not overmix.

3. Divide into 12 equal portions, and shape into balls. On

lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a thin disk about 8

inches in diameter. Pierce all over with fork.

4. Bake on cookie sheets for 10 minutes, or until matzohs are

puffed and begin to brown. Cool on racks.

Note: For Orthodox Jews conforming to contemporary kosher

standards, matzoh cake meal may be substituted for the flour.

Though it does not roll out as well, it is still acceptable. The

researchers suggest using 1.5 times as much water and cooking for

three minutes longer.

Yield: 12 eight-inch matzohs.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 220 calories, 4

grams fat, 70 milligrams cholesterol, 20 milligrams sodium, 6 grams

protein, 40 grams carbohydrate.

Pedro de la Cavalleria's Vermilioned Eggs

(Huevos Haminados)

Total time: 3 hours 15 minutes

6 cups yellow onion skins

12 large white eggs

1/2 cup white vinegar.

1. In large nonreactive pan, put half the onion skins. Gently

place eggs on top, then top with remaining skins. Add vinegar and

enough water to cover eggs and skins. Cover pan.

2. Slowly bring water to a boil. Then, reduce heat to very low.

Simmer for an hour.

3. Remove eggs from pan. Tap each egg lightly with a spoon to

form cracks in shell (this helps create spidery brown lines in egg

white). Return eggs to water. Simmer for an additional two hours.

4. Remove eggs from water and allow to cool. Peel shells. Rinse

in cold water. Refrigerate until serving.

Yield: 12 eggs.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 80 calories, 5

grams fat, 210 milligrams cholesterol, 60 milligrams sodium, 6

grams protein, 1 gram carbohydrate.

Alasdair mac Iain of Elderslie Argent, a chevron cotised azure

Dun an Leomhainn Bhig surmounted by a sword and in chief

Barony of Marinus two mullets sable

- -----------------------------

James and/or Nancy Gilly

katiemorag at worldnet.att.net

Date: Tue, 16 Dec 1997 01:10:21 -0800

From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com>

Subject: Re: SC - Jewish cuisine

At 1:12 PM +1100 12/16/97, Charles McCathieNevile wrote:

>So if anybody can point me in the

>direction of Jewish Medieval cooking knowledge, I would be very

>appreciative.

So far as I know, there are no surviving medieval Jewish cookbooks--which

seems surprising. There is a 13th c. Andalusian cookbook (_Manuscrito

Anonimo_) which has some recipes described as Jewish.

David/Cariadoc

Date: Tue, 16 Dec 1997 19:04:28 -0600 (CST)

From: alysk at ix.netcom.com (Elise Fleming)

Subject: SC - Jewish Cooking (Poison Pen Press?)

Charles Ragnar wrote:

>I would be interested in serving the 400 or so people a jewish

>meal as one of the lunches or dinners. So if anybody can point me in

>the direction of Jewish Medieval cooking knowledge, I would be very

>appreciative. (This is in 18 months, so I can have a full scale

>attempt at redaction and road-testing plenty of stuff)

You might try a copy of _Eat and Be Satisfied_, A Social History of

Jewish Food by John Cooper, 1993, Jason Aronson, Inc. ISBN is

0-87668-316-2. It does not have recipes but it does list various

foods. Sample chapter headings are "Traditional Jewish Food in the

Middle Ages" (divided into Italy, Germany, France; and the Islamic

World), "Sabbath and Festival Food in the Middle Ages" (including meat

consumption), material on the Spanish Jews, the Dutch and Portuguese

Jews. I think the other chapters deal with later time periods. Seems

to me I got my copy from Poison Pen Press. Devra (I think) frequents

this list.

If you can find a copy of this book I think it will give you some good

documentation even if you need to use a modern recipe of a similar

name.

Alys Katharine

Date: Wed, 17 Dec 1997 16:42:49 -0900

From: Steve & Kerri Geppert <emster at alaska.net>

Subject: Re: SC - Jewish cuisine

Charles McCathieNevile wrote:

> I would be interested in serving the 400 or so people a jewish

> meal as one of the lunches or dinners. So if anybody can point me in the

> direction of Jewish Medieval cooking knowledge, I would be very

> appreciative.

> Charles Ragnar

I have a book by the Frugal Gourmet called "The Frugal Gourment Keeps

the Feast, Past Present, and Future." From the jacket - "Food is always

more than eating and cooking for Jeff Smith. In these pages he sets

Biblical recipes in their evolutionary context, showing how great dishes

came out of desperate times and a reliance on local seasonal bounty."

I've enjoyed reading it from the context of setting, food references in

the Bible and symbolic meanings. The last half of the book has recipes,

however, there is no original recipe with the modern. The selection of

recipes is good and sound very similar to recent discussions on this

list. This might be a good starting point, he does have a good

bibliography which might be of help. I don't know how available this

book is in Australia. ISBN is 0-688-11568-3, published in 1995. Hope

this helps.

Clare

Subject: Fw: kosher laws

Date: Sat, 24 Jan 98 10:54:23 PST

From: "Alderton, Philippa" <phlip at morganco.net>

To: "Stefan" <stefan at texas.net>

----------

: Date: Sunday, January 04, 1998 11:08:41

: From: Seton1355

: To: Me

: Subject: Re: kosher laws

: Dear Lady Philipa,

: May I call you Lady Philipa? (My name is Phillipa too...)

: <I was wondering if he could serve the meat part of the feast early, and later

: serve a milk dish as a dessert.>

: If one is going to eat both meat & dairy in a short time, you eat the dairy

: first and then wash out your mouth, teeth & lips and then eat the meat.

: (don't ask me why you can eat dairy first with out waiting...BTW, there are

: those who would wait 1 hr anyway.)

: <Does fish count as meat?>

: No fish is it's own catagory. But, you serve it before the meat and on

: separate plates & utensils. Eat the fish, remove the fish course & plates &

: utensils and then relay with new utensils for the meat course.

: <but what about frying chicken in egg batter?>

: That is perfectly ok. Eggs are considered "parve" that is, neither meat nor

: dairy. EXCEPT: If you kill a hen & find eggs (or rather the yolks) inside

: they are considered meat. And of course this "egg batter" wouldn't contain

: any milk would it?

: <and one of the things that I admire about Jews, and also amuses me, is that

: you can be so nit-picky and yet so practical.>

: Yes we are a pain in the *** lot aren't we! :) Now, dear lady, you and I

: must be best of friends because I've just spoken to you plain! (big grin on

: my face.)

: Seriously, I don't know why Jews are so nit-picky....My uncle, an ortho-rabbi

: won't eat in my mother's ortho-kosher home....go figure!

: <The other lady I know is VERY Kosher, to the extent that she has two

: separate ovens,>

: My aunt, now deceased, had a full kitchen & a pullman kitchen......

: Well in any case, best of luck on the feast. Please let me know what was

: served & how things turned out. I'm really intrigued (sp?) by now.

: All good wishes, from your cousin Phillipa....(would you believe my persona is

: a Tudor Protestant?)

Subject: Fw: kosher laws- long

Date: Sat, 24 Jan 98 10:56:36 PST

From: "Alderton, Philippa" <phlip at morganco.net>

To: "Stefan" <stefan at texas.net>

----------

: Date: Sunday, January 04, 1998 16:59:30

: From: Seton1355

: To: Me

: Subject: Re: kosher laws- long

: Good Cousin Greetings!! :)

: I am making my annual birthday trip to Lancaaster, Pa tomorrow. When I

: get back on Wed, the 7th. I'll start going through my cook books for you.

: I read & translate modern Hebrew, my husband, bibical Hebrew. Not

: perfectly (hey, we're not Sabras...) If you send me the Hebrew, I'll do my

: very best.

: As to my uncle....He's an ortho rabbi. What can I say. In his mind;

: he's Jewish & we're not!

: "dread-locked orthos" I like that!!! may I quote you??? :)

: In the United States, only the fore-quarter of the cow is considered

: kosher for consuption because a major artery runs through the hind quarter.

: In Israel they go to the trouble to remove this vein, rendering the whole

: animal ok. (although in Israel IMHO meat tastes terrible) I'm not sure of

: the parts of other animals...sheep for instance.

: BTW: In the Middle Ages a dairy dessert would NEVER follow a meat meal.

: Just thought I'd mention that. (You had mentioned that your friend was

: thinking of serving a dairy dessert...how long should the people wait.) Even

: though Dutch Jews, for instance, would wait 1 hr between meat & dairy, dessert

: is considered the end of the meal, part of the meal, so no Jewish matron would

: serve dairy. Can you go parve? (neutral?)

: <My respect for Kosher (Kaddish?)>

: just for info: Kaddish, the word, means "holy". Kaddish, the prayer is the

: prayer for the dead.

: I'd love the postings & what is omni-vorasity? (hey, I only teach little

: kids, I don't know from big words!)

: As I say, I'll start going through my kosher cook books as soon as I

: return.

: Be well, dear cousin, A gizunt auf der (be well, in Yiddish - a period

: language.)

: Your Cousin Phillipa

Date: Thu, 22 Jan 1998 06:51:40 EST

From: CorwynWdwd <CorwynWdwd at aol.com>

Subject: Re: SC - Fw: [EK] Fw: Looking for Dessert Lasagna-OOP

Found it... <blush> Seems I had it on file and actually have cooked such a dish.

I can't say it's period or from period sources, but here's what we eat around

here.

Lokshen Kugel

8 0z Broad noodles

1 cup raisins

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 cup ricotta

1 egg. slightly beaten

2 teaspoons cinnamon

3/4 cup sour cream

preheat oven to 350

cook the noodles al dente, drain. Stir in remaining ingredents reservuing half

the melted butter. Place in a greased casserole and pour over the remaining

melted butter. Bake uncovered for one hour.

Actually, it would be less if it were a gas oven.. the top was a BIT too

crunchy when we tried it with gas. The second time I did this, I substituted

chooped apples and added more cinnamon. that was good too. Hope this helps.

Corwyn

Date: Sun, 8 Feb 1998 02:36:54 -0500

From: David Friedman <ddfr at best.com>