cucumbers-msg - 12/25/11 Medieval and period cucumbers. Recipes. NOTE: See also the files: Cucumbers-Hst-art, pickled-foods-msg, peppers-msg, vegetarian-msg, leeks-msg, peas-msg, beans-msg, gourds-msg, beets-msg, vegetables-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 ************************************************************************ Date: Tue, 11 Aug 1998 18:13:45 -0700 From: "Anne-Marie Rousseau" Subject: Re: SC - cucumbers in period Hi all from Anne-Marie We are asked about recipes for cucumber in period. Might I suggest the cucumbers from Apicius? Easy, tasty and soooo simple to make! "Cucumbers (Apicius #84): Pepper, pennyroyal, honey or passum, liquamen and vinegar. Sometimes silphium is added." AM's version: 2 cucumbers, sliced but not peeled. Make sure to wash that wax off, though. 1/4 tsp fresh black pepper 1/2 T fresh mint (if you dont want to use pennyroyal) 2 T honey 1 c. balsamic vinegar 1 T worsheschestershurstershire sauce ("liquamen" sorta kinda) 2 pinches asafetida ( optional...considered by some a suitable substitute for the now extinct silphium) In a dish, layer the sliced cucumbers with pepper and mint. Mix the marinade from the remaining ingredients. If you warm it slightly, it helps the honey mix. Let cool a bit so as not to cook the cukes. Pour over the cucumbers and let sit for a bit. Serve cold or at room temp. I know of no examples of medieval European food that uses sour cream at all, much less with cukes. Even the middle eastern stuff uses yogurt. - --Anne-Marie Date: Fri, 30 Oct 1998 17:55:39 EST From: LrdRas at aol.com Subject: SC - Cacik (Cucumbers in Yogurt Mint Sauce)-recipe uther at lcc.net writes: << I would love the recipes for the cucumbers in yogurt mint sauce >> Cacik Adapted by L. J. Spencer, Jr. 2 cups plain yogurt 4 lagre cucumbers, peeled and sliced 3/4 cup water 2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, finely minced 6 cloves garlic, mashed to a paste 3 tablespoons cider vinegar 4 tablespoons olive oil 6 small ice cubes Salt to taste Mint sprigs, for garnish Mix yogurt, water, mint, garlic, vinegar and oil together until thoroughly blended. Pour mixture over cucumber slices. Toss cucmbers and yogurt mixture together until the cucumbers are thoroughly coated. Add salt to taste. Just before serving stir in ice cubes. Garnish with mint sprigs, chooped fresh mint or a sprinkling of dried mint. NOTES: Original recipe taken from 'A Book of Middle Eastern Food'. Claudia Roden. Vintage Books,a Division of Random House, New York. The original poster stated that early Turks did not have ice cubes so she substituted cold water instead. This is an error because there is some evidence that one of the first things the Turks did after conquest was to establish ice houses. Although this is a modern recipe, it is very much like similar recipes that can be found in al-Baghdadi which dates from the 13th century under the heading of 'Persian milk'. Ras Date: Mon, 8 Nov 1999 18:51:55 -0500 (EST) From: Gretchen M Beck Subject: Re: SC - Cucumbers Excerpts from internet.listserv.sca-cooks: 8-Nov-99 SC - Cucumbers by "Richard Kappler II" at hom > The question is, when were cucumbers first used in Medieval Europe. I have > Tannahill, who says they were imported into Rome back in the days even > before Adamantius from Spain, as well as that they were used to prevent > scurvy before the Chinese told the Portuguese about citrus, but when were > they first used in Europe after the fall of the Roman empire or, as I > suspect, were they always just there? Recipes and documentation > puhleeeeeeease..... I don't know about first used, but Platina describes three different types of cucumbers (serpentine, and blue, and I don't remember the third), categorizes them as melons, and says they are generally eaten raw, peeled and seeded, and sauced with either salt and pepper, or with salt, oil and vinegar. He also says they aren't necessarily terribly healthy foods ;-) toodles, margaret Date: Tue, 9 Nov 1999 14:34:04 EST From: ChannonM at aol.com Subject: Re: SC - Cucumbers According to Waverly Root's "Food" and I quote The cucumber was slow to penetrate into norther Europe, where after all the claimate was not kindly disposed toward it. It seems to have appeared in France and England about the same time, in the fourteenth century, but it may not have ben known in Germany until the sixteenth if a doucument of that period which chronicles its appearance in Wurttemberg was really reporting a novelty. Hauviette Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 07:33:07 -0600 From: "UnruhBays, Melanie A" Subject: RE: SC - Cinnamon Cucumbers If I remember correctly, Platina waxes poetic about cucumbers. About how great they are, how healthful and good. He then of course finds something he likes better later. My copies are at home though, and I can't check at this very moment.... > C. Anne Wilson, in "Food and Drink in Britain" says that the cucumber > was little known in England in the 15th century, but was widely > cultivated during the 16th century. I have checked all of the late-period > and post-period English cookbooks I own, and the only cucumber > recipes I can find are pickled. I haven't seen any that were sliced raw > and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. At this point, I would be inclined > label the periodness of Canel Cucumber as "undocumented and > dubious". Does anyone else on the list have anything to add? Has > anyone seen a period recipe like this (from England or elsewhere)? > > Lady Brighid ni Chiarain > Settmour Swamp, East (NJ) Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 09:57:37 -0400 From: "Robin Carroll-Mann" Subject: RE: SC - Cinnamon Cucumbers And it came to pass on 29 Jun 00,, that UnruhBays, Melanie A wrote: > If I remember correctly, Platina waxes poetic about cucumbers. About how > great they are, how healthful and good. He then of course finds something > he likes better later. My copies are at home though, and I can't check at > this very moment.... Thank you for the suggestion. I have my copy at hand. Platina says that of the 3 types of cucumber, 2 are served with oil and vinegar, and the other with just salt. No cinnamon sugar. Lady Brighid ni Chiarain Settmour Swamp, East (NJ) Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 16:10:30 EDT From: ChannonM at aol.com Subject: SC - Re: Cucumbers in Period > C. Anne Wilson, in "Food and Drink in Britain" says that the cucumber > was little known in England in the 15th century, but was widely > cultivated during the 16th century. I have checked all of the late-period > and post-period English cookbooks I own, and the only cucumber > recipes I can find are pickled. I haven't seen any that were sliced raw > and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. At this point, I would be inclined > label the periodness of Canel Cucumber as "undocumented and > dubious". Does anyone else on the list have anything to add? Has > anyone seen a period recipe like this (from England or elsewhere)? > > Lady Brighid ni Chiarain I don't have a recipe, but there is a mention in the Petrie household records (think Henry 8th, early in his reign) for seeds of cucumbers. The Petrie household was an English Manor, Sir Petrie I believe. Hauviette Date: Wed, 4 Apr 2001 13:16:07 -0500 From: "Decker, Terry D." Subject: RE: SC - Cucumbers and the SCA > I keep running up against the notion, among SCAdians, that > cucumbers are not period. This > is quite definitely a SCAdian Urban Myth, because I've never > seen it in a print source. > So, where is it coming from? If we can figure out where 'pink > isn't period' came from, we should be able to trace this myth too. > > Jadwiga Zajaczkowa, mka Jennifer Heise What a fascinating non-fact. Cucumber derives from the Middle English (1100 - - 1500) word "cucomer," derived from Old French derived from Latin. Very prescient of our ancestor to have a word for something they didn't know. That should take care of the documentation and I think Rumpolt has a recipe for cucumber salad, which should take care of the recipe. Come to think of it, I think cucumbers are mentioned in Pliny. Bear Date: Wed, 04 Apr 2001 14:02:43 -0500 From: "Michael Gunter" Subject: SC - noon-member submission - Cucumbers Of course cucumbers are period. I don't know whether the ones you find the grocery store are period varieties(I somehow doubt it), but you can get some periodoid (at least) varieties in places like Indian grocery stores. Platina lists three types of cucumbers and a variety of ways to eat them, so there are extent recipes from Italy 15th C. Elizabethan cookbooks also give recipes for preserving cowcumbers which sound remarkably like recipes for dill pickles. The OED refers cowcumber -> cucumber, and under cucmber says "A creeping plant, Cucumis sativis (family) Cucurbitaceae), a native of southern Asia, from ancient times cultivated for its fruit. Sited in 1400 Of erbis he schal ete femel, melones, cucumeris. Wyclif makes reference to the plant in 1382, Where cucumeris, that ben bitter berbis, waxen. toodles, margaret Date: Fri, 6 Apr 2001 08:14:19 -0400 (EDT) From: Jenne Heise Subject: Re: SC - Cucumbers and the SCA [about my cucumbers-msg file - Stefan] > As that is only a recently created file, it is also possible that there > is other period cucumber evidence scattered in other files there. I don't know if it's in any other files, but this study cites seeds of modern, small seeded cucumbers found in an archaeological dig in Gniezno, Poland, in a 12th-century setting (in other words, in the layer that indicated the material was from the 12th century): "Archaeobotanical Evidence for Food Plants in the Poland of the Piasts (10th-13th Centuries AD)", M. Polcyn. Biological Journal of Scotland, vol 46, no 4, p 533-537. - -- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa, mka Jennifer Heise jenne at mail.browser.net Date: Thu, 24 Nov 2005 08:53:14 -0600 From: "Terry Decker" Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] The pumpkin/gourd debate (again) from theapothecary'sworkshop To: , "Cooks within the SCA" >> All members of genus Cucurbita are of North American origin, including >> those found in Asia and Africa. Gourds and melons are of Old World origin. >> A quick way to tell the difference is to look at the stem. Cucurbita have >> deeply ribbed stems, the gourds and melons have round, relatively >> smooth, lightly veined stems. > > Now, I'm confused. Cucumbers are genus Cucurbita, but their presence in > Europe pre-dates any significant contact between Old and New Worlds. Do > we have an explanation for that? I didn't find one anywhere. > -- > -- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa, Knowledge Pika jenne at fiedlerfamily.net Cucumbers are genus Cucumis, Squashes, gourds, melons, watermelons, cucumbers and luffas are all members of the family Cucurbitaceae. Bear Date: Tue, 7 Jul 2009 08:56:45 -0400 From: Barbara Benson Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Probably OOP cucumber questions To: Cooks within the SCA On Tue, Jul 7, 2009 at 8:19 AM, wrote: <<< My cucumber plants are going gang-busters - 9 cucumbers growing already, and they only just started flowering. Are there any period cucumber recipes? I can't think of any in the European stuff I'm familiar with, but I focus mostly on northern European 15th century and earlier, so that leaves out a lot of sources. Is there anything in later or more southern sources? >>> Here is a recipe from Rumpolt: Cucummern 20. Schel die Murcken/ vnd schneidt sie breit vnnd duenn/ mach sie an mit Oel/ Pfeffer vnd Saltz. Seind sie aber eyngesaltzen/ so seind sie auch nit boe?/ seind besser als roh/ denn man kans eynsaltzen mit Fenchel vnd mit Kuemel/ da? man sie vber ein Jar kan behalten. Vnnd am Rheinstrom nennet man es Cucummern. 20. Peel the Cucumbers/ and cut them broad and thin/ season them with oil/ pepper and salt. But if they are salt-preserved/ they are also not bad/ are better than raw/ because one can salt it with Fennel and with caraway/ that both can be kept over one year. And near the Rhine-stream one calls it Cucummern. and from "Delights for Ladies" by Sir Hugh Platt, 1609 "To preserve cowcumbers all the yeere: Take a gallon of faire water and a pottle of verjuice, and a pint of bay salt, and a handful of greene fennel or Dill; boile it a little, and when it is cold put it into a barrel, and then put your cowcumbers into that pickle, and you shall keep all the yeere." I have recently been eyeballing a recipe for cold cucumber and avocado soup that looks tasty (just google it). Another classic cucumber application is Taziki. I like taking my cukes, slicing them thinly, and tossing them with a mixture of soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and fresh ginger - let them sit in the 'fridge for at least 15 minutes and you have a lovely quick Japanese pickle. Pickling cucumbers differ from regular cucumbers in that their structure is more suited to hold up to the pickling process and remain crisp. Eating cucumbers are less dense and can have a tendency to go a bit limp after awhile in the pickle. Whatever type of pickle you are making, weather slicing or pickling whole it is necessary to remove the blossom end of the pickle or it can cause your entire batch to go soft. It is always good to use a tried and true recipe if you are attempting to make a "putting up" pickle, less so if you are doing a refrigerator pickle. -- Serena da Riva Date: Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:06:26 -0400 From: Johnna Holloway Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Probably OOP cucumber questions To: Cooks within the SCA Here's a 17th century recipe from The cook's guide: or, Rare receipts for cookery. By Hannah Wolley. 1664 To pickle Cucumbers to look very green. TAke those that you mean to pickle, and lay them in water and salt three or four daies; then take a good many great Cucumbers and cut the out|sides of them into water, for the insides will be too pappy, then boyle them in that water with Dill seeds and Fennel seeds, and when it is cold put to it some salt and as much vineger as will make it a strong pickle, then take them out of that water and salt and pour that over them in your vessel, then let them stand close covered for a fortnight or three weeks, then Pour the liquor from them and new boyle it, putting in some whole pepper, cloves and mace, and when it is cold adde to it some more vineger, and a little salt, then pour it on them again, and let them stand a month longer, then boyle it again, and when it is cold put some more vineger, and pour it on them again, then let them stand a longer time, and as you see occasion boyle it over again, and alwaies put your seeds and pieces of Cucumber on the top; be sure your pickle be cold when you pour it over. Another 17th century recipe from A choice manual of rare and select secrets in physick and chyrurgery collected and practised by the Right Honorable, the Countesse of Kent, late deceased ; as also most exquisite ways of preserving, conserving, candying, &c. ; published by W.I., Gent. by Elizabeth Grey, Countess of Kent (1581-1651). and W. J. 1653 To pickle Cowcombers. Take the Cowcombers, and wash them clean, and dry them clean in a cloth, then take some Water, and Vinegar, and Salt, and some Dill tops, and some Fennel tops, and a little Mace, make it fast enough, and sharp enough to the taste, then boyle it a while, and then take it off, and let it stand and be cold, and then put in the Cowcombers, and lay a board on the top to keep them down, and tye them close, and with|in a week they will be fit to eat. -------- One of the problems is trying to determine what to search under because you are just as likely to find "Cowcombers" as you are to find cucumbers. The closet of the eminently learned Sir Kenelme Digbie Kt includes them in pottages under at least two different spellings. OED mentions a number of spellings and there's a mention that they should be yellow. 1551 Turner /Herbal/ i. (1568) M iv b, The fruyte of the cucumbre is for the most part yelow and long. C. 1400 /Lanfranc's Cirurg./ 275 Of erbis he schal ete fenel..melones, cucumeris. 1535 Coverdale /2 Kings/ iv. 39 Then went there one in to the felde..& gathered wylde Cucumbers; 1582 N. Lichefield tr. /Castanheda's Conq. E. Ind./ 61 a, [They] brought to sell many gourds and cowcombers. And there were other plants that were also called cucumbers. 1548 Turner /Names of Herbes/ 32 /Cucumis sylvestris../maye be called in englyshe wylde cucummer or leapyng cucumer. 1578 Lyte /Dodoens/ iii. xl. 372 Of the wilde spirting Cucumbre..This Cucumber is called..in Englishe Wilde Cucumber, or leaping Cucumber. Here's more in terms of dietary advice from Butts, Henry. Dyets dry dinner consisting of eight seuerall courses. 1599. Citrull Cucumbers Choice. LOng: thicke: best ripe: yellow, like a ripe Orenge. Vse. Exc?edingly cooleth an hote stomacke: quencheth thirst: appeaseth choller. Hurt. Is hard of digestion: engendreth flearue & clammy humours, which soone after proue virulent, but in a stomacke hote aboue measure: poison to a cold stomacke. Correction. Eate it with Onions, Oraggon wort, Mint, Rewe, Pepper, and such other very hot things. Degree. Colde in the ende of the second; moist in the end of the third. Season. Age. Constitution. Bad nourishment, for any season, age, or constitution. Cucumis citrulus. Storie for Table-talke. THe best vse of Citrull Cucumber is this. Pare off the rinde, and cut the Cucumer into this broad sliees, & lay them in water. Then apply them to the tongue of one sicke of a burning ague: it shall do him great case. If you seeth them first with sugar, all the better; for by this means they quench his thirst, mitigate the scalding heate of the feauer: and in place of siccitie or continually instilla verie gratefull liquor, with which the tongue, palate, throate, and drie soule of the patient, is wondrously suppled and refreshed. ----- This plant, which is a variety of cucumber(?) is described by John Gerald as follows: THe Citrull Cucumber hath many long, flexible, and tender stalkes trailing vpon the ground, branched like vnto the Vine, set with certaine great leaues deeply cut, and very much iagged: among which come forth long clasping tendrels, and also tender footstalkes, on the ends whereof do grow floures of a gold yellow colour: the fruit is somewhat round, straked or rib|bed with certaine deepe furrowes alongst the same, of a green colour aboue, and vnderneath on that side that lyeth vpon the ground something white: the outward skin whereof is very smooth; the meat within is indifferent hard, more like to that of the Pompion than of the Cucumber or Muske melon: the pulpe wherein the seed lieth, is spungie, and of a slimie substance: the seed is long, flat, and greater than those of the Cucumbers: the shell or outward barke is blackish, sometimes of an ouerworne reddish colour. The fruit of the Citrull doth not so easily rot or putrifie as doth the Melon, which being gathered in a faire dry day may be kept a long time, especially being couered in a heape of wheat, as Matthiolus saith; but according to my practise you may keepe them much longer and better in a heape of dry sand. 2 The second kinde of Citrull differeth not from the former, sauing that it is altogether les|ser, and the leaues are not so deepely cut or iagged, wherein consisteth the difference. He describes also a wild cucumber and under "of Cucumbers" he writes: THere be diuers of Cucumber; some greater, others lesser; some of the Garden, some wilde; some of one fashion, and some of another, as shall be declared in the following chapters. ? The Description. 1 THe Cucumber creepes alongst vpon the ground all about, with long rough branches; whereupon do grow broad rough leaues vneuen about the edges: from the bosome whereof come forth crooked clasping tendrels like those of the Vine. The floures shoot forth betweene the stalkes and the leaues, set vpon tender foot-stalks composed of fiue small yellow leaues: which being past, the fruit succeedeth, long, cornered, rough, and set with certaine bumpes or risings, greene at the first, and yellow when they be ripe, wherein is contained a firme and sollid pulpe or substance transparent or thorow-shining, which together with the seed is eaten a little before they be fully ripe. The seeds be white, long, and flat. ------- One way to find recipes is to search under "cucumber" in Doc's index at www.medievalcookery.com. http://www.medievalcookery.com/cgi/search.pl?term=cucumber&file=all There are a number of Tudor-Jacobean recipes in Martha Washington's Booke of Cookery for cucumbers plus Karen Hess's notes. Johnnae Date: Sun, 12 Jul 2009 17:06:53 -0400 From: dcl1 at aol.com Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Probably OOP cucumber questions To: sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org There are some interesting cucumber recipes in Food and Drink in Medieval Poland. Pears stewed with cucumber and figs is definitely a different taste. We served it at the last Middle Kingdom Coronation. There is another of ham stewed with cucumbers which I have not tried. Ealdred Date: Mon, 18 Apr 2011 23:59:38 -0500 From: "Terry Decker" To: "Cooks within the SCA" Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] An almost final Feast Menu Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is an Old World member of the Cucurbitacaea.  The German recipe you remember is likely oil, vinegar, salt and sugar. For a period recipe, you might give this recipe a try: Cucumber Salad Peel the Cucumbers/and cut them broad and thin/ season them with oil/ pepper and salt.  But if they are salt-preserved/they are also not bad/ are better than raw because one can salt it with Fennel and with caraway that both can be kept over one year. And near the Rhine-stream one calls it Cucummern Rumpolt, Ein Neue Kochbuch, 1581 1 cucumber 1/8-1/4 C oil (olive) Salt and pepper Peel cucumber and slice thinly into rounds, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss to coat I can't really tell you how they taste.  Raw cucumber gives me indigestion, so I avoid it.  However, a number of the people who tried it liked it. Bear Date: Tue, 19 Apr 2011 08:46:31 -0400 From: Barbara Benson To: Cooks within the SCA Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] An almost final Feast Menu <<< Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is an Old World member of the Cucurbitacaea. ?The German recipe you remember is likely oil, vinegar, salt and sugar. For a period recipe, you might give this recipe a try: Cucumber Salad Peel the Cucumbers/and cut them broad and thin/ season them with oil/ pepper and salt. But if they are salt-preserved/they are also not bad/ are better than raw because one can salt it with Fennel and with caraway that both can be kept over one year. And near the Rhine-stream one calls it Cucummern Rumpolt, Ein Neue Kochbuch, 1581 >>> I prepared this dish for a German feast and went with the preserved version. It was excellent in that it was a "make ahead" type dish to an extent. I always find it good to save time in the kitchen. And it is a dish served cold/room temperature which is another thing I find an excellent addition to a menu temperature, texture and preparation wise. Cucumbers to fill jar 4 T Canning Salt 3 t Fennel Seeds 3 t Caraway Seeds Oil Black Pepper Clean cucumbers. Mix salt, fennel, and caraway with water. Place cucumbers in glass canning jar and pour brine over. Weight to ensure that all cucumbers stay below the water. Allow to sit unsealed, covered with a towel, in a "room temperature" location for two to three days. Check to see if a scum forms on the top of the water. If if does, remove with a paper towel or spoon. After they have reached desired sourness remove weight and seal jar. Keep in the refrigerator for several weeks before serving, shaking jar occasionally to distribute seasoning. On day of service, peel and thinly slice the cucumbers. Dress lightly with olive oil and a small amount of pepper. Place in a sealed container and hold in refrigerator for several hours before service. And depending on where you would like your recipes to come from, here is an English (slightly post period) pickle: Pickled Cowcumbers Delights for Ladies by Sir Hugh Platt, 1609. To preserve cowcumbers all the yeere: Take a gallon of faire water and a pottle of verjuice, and a pint of bay salt, and a handful of greene fennel or Dill; boile it a little, and when it is cold put it into a barrel, and then put your cowcumbers into that pickle, and you shall keep all the yeere. 1 Gal Water 4 pints Verjuice 2 C Kosher Salt 1 big handfull chopped Dill Wash and slice cucumbers. Make pickle and allow to cool completely. Place cucumbers into a jar and pour in liquid. Keep refrigerated. These were pretty darn salty - so you might want to cut the salt down a bit. I kept them in the 'fridge because I didn't "can" them seeing that this is not a USDA tested recipe. They would probably be fine sitting out, but I didn't want to risk that. I have a fabulous Cucumber, Onion and Basil salad recipe that is Italian but you have already mentioned how over-onioned you are in this menu. Serena Date: Tue, 3 May 2011 21:49:46 -0400 From: Guenievre de Monmarche To: Cooks within the SCA Subject: [Sca-cooks] Melons, cucumbers and eggplants, oh my! Given our many conversations on the list regarding cucumbers, melons, and eggplant, the attached may be of interest to some... http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/TS_aob.pdf (*The Cucurbitaceae and Solanaceae illustrated in medieval manuscripts known as the Tacuinum Sanitatis)* Guenievre