baking

Rendering Suet aka Makin’ Lard

Suffice to say that I have a greater understanding of the scent of a medieval household after my first experience rendering suet.

I’ve been reading The Great Mortality by John Kelly, a riveting account of the black plague and how it wound its way through Europe in the 14th century. Needless to say a key ingredient in its spread was the incredible filth of households in this period. People bathed rarely and garbage (think dead animals, toilet offerings, rotten food) was strewn about the streets. They also used lard or tallow in making candles. According to Kelly, lard wasn’t a preferred source of fuel because of the smell.

So let me get this straight. People who were surrounded by rotting flesh and human excrement complained about the smell of burning lard. How could this be?

Baking at Inle – Snakes, Opium and the West Cashing in

Baking at Inle – Snakes, Opium and the West Cashing in

I was just trying to sort out and put away some papers when I got sidetracked by some diary entries from back when I had just fled the United States (I used to swear there was some kind of mass insanity going on there) and ended up in Burma. I was struggling with sugar addiction at the time, along w ...

Anise Hazelnut Torte

Anise Hazelnut Torte

I picked up a bag of shelled hazelnuts and soon found they are very easy to shell using a morter and pestle. After soaking the nut meat overnight I roasted them in a very low oven. The following recipe is what resulted next: 1 1/2 c hazelnuts (ground) 1/2 c almonds (ground) 1 T anise (ground) ...

Bread and Butter Pudding

Bread and Butter Pudding

This makes a delicious holiday dessert, warm, rich, moist nourishing and comforting. 1 loaf Panatone bread 250g softened butter 1/2 liter cream 1/2 liter milk 1/2 c maple syrup 2 t vanilla essence or 2 vanilla beans 9 eggs 1 t ground cinnamon 1/2 t salt Method: Warm the cr ...

Apple Sauce Souffle

Apple Sauce Souffle

A very simple light and fluffy dish. 1 c home-made apple sauce 2 egg whites 1/4 c honey Method: Add honey to apple sauce, or if it is sweet enough leave it out. Beat egg whites until stiff and dry. Fold into apple sauce. Put mixture in buttered baking dish (I like to use teacups) ...