A Drizzle of Honey; The Life and Recipes of Spain's Secret Jews

by David M. Gitlitz and Linda Kay Davidson

• ISBN13: 9780312198602
• ISBN10: 0312198604
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Trade Book
• Copyright: 1999-01-15
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Summary

When tens of thousands of Iberian Jews were converted to Catholicism under duress during the Inquisition, many rapidly assimilated to their new religious culture. Others, the crypto-Jews, struggled to retain their Jewish identity in private while projecting Christian conformity in the public sphere. In order to root out these "heretics," the courts of the Inquisition published checklists of Jewish household habits and koshering practices and grilled the servants, neighbors, and even the children of those suspected of practicing their religion at home. From these testimonies and other primary sources, Gitlitz and Davidson have drawn a fascinating picture of the secret culinary life of the crypto-Jews and the customs and foods that threatened their existence while securing their precarious sense of identity. From nearly a hundred specific references to Sephardic cuisine, the authors have recreated these recipes. They combine Christian and Islamic traditions in cooking lamb, beef, fish, eggplants, chickpeas, and greens and use seasonings such as saffron, mace, ginger, and cinnamon. These recipes, with accompanying text that tells the stories of their creators, promise to delight the adventurous palate and give insights into the foundations of modern Sephardic cuisine.

Author Biography

David and Linda Kay Davidson are professors at the University of Rhode Island. They are married and each has written several books on Spanish culture, including Gitlitz's Secrecy and Deceit, an alternate selection of the History Book Club and winner of the 1996 National Jewish Book Award for Sephardic Studies and the 1997 Lucy B. Dawidowicz Prize for History.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xi
Preface	xiii
Introduction	1	(1)
Jews and Conversos in Late Medieval Iberia	1	(2)
Sephardic Cuisine and the Inquisition	3	(2)
Eating in Medieval Iberia	5	(1)
A Note About the Published Resources	6	(4)
Modern Sephardic Cooking	10	(1)
A Note About the Contributors	11	(2)
Cooking Medieval in a Modern Kitchen	13	(290)
Ingredients	13	(5)
Sabbath Stews	18	(285)
Recipes, Stories & Commentary
Salads and Vegetables	27	(43)
Eggs	70	(12)
Fish	82	(26)
Fowl	108	(38)
Beef	146	(41)
Lamb and Goat	187	(22)
Sausages	209	(13)
Meat and Fish Pies	222	(20)
Breads	242	(10)
Desserts and Snacks	252	(32)
Holiday Foods	284	(19)
Endnotes	303	(16)
Bibliography	319	(6)
Culinary Sources	319	(3)
Historical Sources	322	(3)
Index	325

Excerpts

Chapter One

COOKING MEDIEVAL

IN A MODERN KITCHEN

In re-creating these recipes from the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeen centuries, we have used standard American measurements, utensils, and cooking techniques. We have not roasted meat over an open flame, nor have we banked coals around clay pots filled with Sabbath stew. The recipes in this book were developed in our late twentieth-century kitchen, with ovenproof glass and ceramic casseroles, enameled pots and pans, and cast-iron skillets and Dutch ovens, with an occasional use of the microwave oven for quick heating of ingredients. We have opted for modern food processors, blenders, and grinders to pulverize spices and mix ingredients. Our directions assume that you will use similar equipment.

Ingredients

Medieval recipes tend to be sketchy, and what was obvious to medieval cooks, and therefore had no reason to be written down, is often obscure today. Consequently, the exact nature of some ingredients will likely never be completely known or completely duplicable. Here are some governing assumptions and the resultant modern approximations of ingredients:

    Cheese

    Medieval Iberian cookbooks call for several kinds of cheese, including "fresh cheese" and "Catalán cheese." We use two broad varieties of cheese which approximate but which do not correlate exactly to what probably was available to medieval cooks. For fresh cheese we prefer farmer cheese, queso fresco , carried by many Hispanic groceries. If that is not available, we suggest cream cheese and/or cottage cheese, blended to a smooth texture. For hard cheeses, we recommend the Spanish Manchego cheese, which is usually available in specialty cheese shops. If that is not obtainable, then Italian Romano or Asiago cheeses are acceptable.

    Eggs

    Eggs present a minor quandary. They are ever-present in medieval recipes, but there are no indications about what kind of eggs were to be used or what size. In the United States almost all cooking is with chicken eggs, but we cannot presume that the same held true five hundred years ago. Still, in these recipes we use large chicken eggs.

    For those who must regulate their intake of cholesterol, we suggest that you try the recipes using half of the number of eggs and replacing the other half with "Egg-Beaters" or "Second Nature," unless otherwise indicated.

    Flour

    The most common medieval flour was stone-ground wheat flour. The more it was sifted the whiter it became. We have found no references to kosher flour. Our recipes use standard white flour or, when so indicated, a combination of three to one of white flour and stone-ground whole wheat flour.

    Herbs and spices

    A variety of herbs grew in every medieval household garden. During the growing season, they were used fresh and we have done likewise. Some herbs, like rosemary and oregano, can be used dried. Others, especially cilantro, cannot. We are fortunate in that today's supermarkets generally carry fresh green herbs and we recommend their use.

    Medieval cooking used lots of spices and multiple flavors in a single dish. We have experimented to create pleasing combinations, but you may find that certain spices are not to your liking. You can reduce the amounts of those spices. Generally, we have used whole spices (e.g., caraway, cumin seed), grinding only enough for the specific recipes, unless otherwise indicated. We have found that using preground spices (such as dried ginger, cumin, or even pepper) diminishes the intensity of the dish's flavor.

    Some medieval flavorings (such as galingale, lavender, or grains of paradise) do not appear on the typical supermarket shelf. But they are purchasable from mail order herb suppliers throughout the United States and many are available in natural food stores or co-ops.

    Saffron deserves a special mention here. In medieval Iberian cooking it is called for in prodigious amounts to add both flavor and color. Often its flavor is combined with several other spices. However, it tends to be costly. We have suggested its use only in those recipes in which its effect will not get lost. If you wish to further enhance the yellow color of some recipes, especially stews, try turmeric or safflower tied in a muslin bag.

    Leavening agents

    Medieval bakers either used a fermented vegetable starter or a live yeast culture, which they kept going much as is done with a modern sourdough starter. Since potatoes come from the New World, potato starters were unavailable. We have used packaged dry yeast.

    Legumes

    Much like today, chickpeas and many varieties of beans were dried so that they could be preserved and eaten year round. As today, they were reconstituted by boiling or by soaking them for several hours and rinsing them before cooking. In many recipes, for convenience's sake, we have substituted canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed.

    To prepare dry beans or chickpeas quickly for cooking: boil the beans for two minutes in sufficient water to cover them. Set aside for one hour. Drain.

    Meats

    Kosher meat was available to crypto-Jews prior to the expulsion. Afterward most kosher slaughtering was done at home away from prying eyes. There are many references to salting and soaking any meat before using it and to removing fat and veins. Recipes prepared with kosher meat will differ somewhat from those where the meat has not been soaked and salted. See page 161 for our directions for soaking and salting.

    Meat parts (innards)

    In the Middle Ages much more of an animal was consumed than is the common practice in modern, middle-class American kitchens: every part that was edible was eaten. Specialty butcher shops still sell tripe, heart, kidneys, livers, and chicken feet. Many ethnic markets carry a large variety. Still, it may be difficult to convince your butcher that yes, you really do want chicken necks with the skin. In those recipes whose main ingredients may be difficult to find, we suggest alternatives.

    Oil

    Always olive oil. We recommend the use of "extra-virgin" olive oil for those occasions when the oil is not to be cooked (e.g., on a salad).

    Salt

    Medieval references to salt indicate that many times a cook would buy a cone of salt and scrape off the necessary amount when needed. We have used coarse-ground kosher salt or sea salt. The recipes indicate if the salt is to be ground finer. Many recipes call for quantities of salt that today we consider unhealthy. If you choose, you may reduce the amount of salt listed.

    Sugar

    As with salt, late medieval cooks bought cones of sugar and scraped off the needed amount, sifting it to attain finer sugar powders. Most medieval sugar was probably brown, although we have used white sugar or a combination of white and brown sugars in, our recipes.

    Thickeners

    Modern cooks tend to use cornstarch or flour to thicken stews, casseroles, and some fruit desserts. Medieval and Renaissance cooks, like the author of the Sent soví , Nola, and Granado, used a variety of thickeners, sometimes more than one in a single recipe. On days when meat was not prohibited, beaten eggs or egg yolks was one popular thickener. Other times poultry livers, especially chicken livers, either raw or previously cooked, were ground and cooked into a stew. On meatless days, or when a white color was more desirable, almond milk was a popular thickener. Two other thickeners, based on starch, were also quite common. The first is almidón (or amydon ), a paste made of wheat steeped in water for several days, then dried. Apparently small bricks of amydon were at the chef's side in the kitchen, to pulverize and mix into stews and pottages. A thickener made of rice flour was used somewhat less often on the Iberian Peninsula. By far the easiest, cheapest, and most common thickener was bread crumbs or bread soaked in vinegar. If the cook wished to have a white or light-color dish, the bread was soaked in vinegar and tempered with white wine. If the dish was meant to be dark, toasted bread was soaked in vinegar and tempered with red wine. The Al-Andalus cookbook also occasionally mentions "flour" in an obvious thickening process.

    For this cookbook, we occasionally suggest a specific thickener when its use reinforces the dish's flavor. This is especially true for mild white dishes for which almond milk is best. For certain recipes from the Al-Andalus cookbook, the directions include thickening with chicken livers and we have followed the thirteenth-century work's instructions. Other times a vinegar-soaked bread adds depth of flavor to the stews. On other occasions, especially with the Sabbath stews, we leave it to the cook's own preference. Here are general instructions for various medieval thickeners. The quantities suggested here should thicken a stew meant to serve four people.

    Bread thickener

1. Toast 2 pieces of dry stale bread (whole wheat is good). Do not use commercial bread crumbs.

2. Pulverize the toasted bread in a grinder. You may have to do this in two batches.

3. Place the crumbs in a nonreactive bowl. Pour 3 tablespoons white or red wine vinegar and 2 tablespoons white or red wine over the crumbs. Let the crumbs soak up all of the liquid, making a very thick paste. Let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes.

4. Slowly pour 1 cup of the hot stew liquid into the bread mixture. Mix thoroughly with a fork, dissolving all lumps.

5. Gradually stir the mixture into the stew pot. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes or until the stew thickens to the desired consistency.

    Flour paste

1. Place 2 tablespoons flour (white flour or a combination of white and whole wheat) in a small bowl.

2. Slowly add 2-3 tablespoons cold water and dissolve the flour completely.

3. Slowly mix in 1/3-1/2 cup of the hot stew liquid into the flour and water mixture.

4. Stir the flour and liquid mixture back into the stew and simmer until the desired consistency is reached.

    Rice flour

1. Take 6 tablespoons uncooked rice and pulverize it in a grinder. You may have to do this in two batches.

2. Place the rice flour in a small bowl. Stir in 9 tablespoons cool liquid (water or almond milk).

3. Mix in 1/2 cup of the hot stew liquid.

4. Slowly stir the rice mixture into the simmering stew, about 1/4 cup at a time, and cook for about 8 minutes, or until the stew thickens to the desired consistency. The pulverized rice will swell in cooking, adding a subtle granular texture to the stew.

    Vinegar

    Vinegar is a basic ingredient of medieval cuisine. We know that vinegar, as well as wine, agraz (a liquid made of unripe green grapes), and orange juice from the sour, Seville oranges were used to give a special tang to the foods. In every recipe we indicate which souring agent we have used. Generally speaking, we prefer balsamic vinegar because its fermentation process, in wood casks, probably resembles the fermentation and storage of medieval vinegar. But we also use red wine vinegar in certain recipes.

Sabbath Stews

Many of the recipes reported to the Inquisition tribunals were for Sabbath meals. The ingredients did not necessarily evoke suspicion. Instead, it was the manner in which the meal was cooked. The defining element of the Sabbath meal is that it is prepared before sundown on Friday and then not touched again until time to be eaten on Saturday. Often the pot was sealed and put on the side of the fire, near banked coals, and kept warm until it was time to serve it on Saturday afternoon. Others were eaten at room temperature. In medieval times and still in modern North Africa the pot is sealed with a collar of dough of flour and water which bakes on tightly, keeping the juices in the pot.

    For purposes of this cookbook, we have prepared nearly all of the dishes as if they were to be served at the time of preparation, or refrigerated to be eaten cold or to be reheated later. Only occasionally do we replicate the Sabbath stew preparation. In general, any recipe can be held for a Sabbath meal by following these few directions:

1. Use an ovenproof cooking pot with a tight lid, such as a cast-iron Dutch oven.

2. Prepare the stew, adding all ingredients, including spices and herbs.

3. Follow the recipe directions until the stew's meat or main ingredient is nearly tender.

4. Cover and place the cooking pot in the oven and keep it at 200° until ready to serve.

Almond Milk

Makes about 2 cups milk

Almond milk was such a common ingredient in medieval recipes in Spain and elsewhere that no one seems to have written down precisely how it was to be made. It was used both as a thickener and to provide nourishment on those occasions when animals' milk was not possible. Our best information suggests that it was made by steeping ground almonds in a liquid, perhaps broth or water, or even wine.

1 cup sliced almonds

2 teaspoons sugar

2 cups chicken broth, water, or wine

1. Grind the almonds very finely. Place them in a medium bowl. Stir in the sugar.

2. In a medium saucepan, heat the liquid to nearly boiling over medium heat. If using bouillon cubes, boil the water and add the cubes and remove from heat. Stir to dissolve and let sit about 5 minutes. Reheat to very hot over medium heat.

3. Pour the hot liquid over the ground almonds. Stir and let steep about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Strain and separate the liquid from the almonds. Discard the almonds.

NOTE

It is best to make the milk the day you intend to use it. However, it can be stored 1 or 2 days in the refrigerator.

Almorí

Almorí (Arabic: murrí ) appears to have been a strong mixture of rotted unleavened breads, salt, herbs, and spices, tempered with water. Lexicographers believe that the Arabism (from al and morí ) has a root in the Latin muria (salt liquor, brine), from which derives the modern Spanish salmuera , pickling brine. It was a staple in medieval Islamic cooking, often used as a coating for fowl or as a paste to add to oil when frying.

    Both the twelfth-century Baghdad Cookery-Book and the thirteenth-century Al-Andalus cookbook mention almorí frequently in such a way as to indicate that the cooks of the time knew the mixture well. Other Arabic manuscripts also refer to almorí and other concoctions called kamakh and bunn , whose use seems to have been widespread and common. Although it had disappeared from use by the end of the Middle Ages, the eighteenth- century Spanish Diccionario de autoridades still records it, listing "flour, salt, honey, palm hearts, and other things" as almorí 's ingredients. It further states that "it was an esteemed and medicinal food."

    The basic ingredient of murri was budhaj , an unleavened dough made from barley flour. It was placed in a vessel and left to rot. Then it was combined with wheat flour, salt, and some herbs and again left to rot. Toward the end of the process, when the mass had turned black, water was added and the mixture was left for another prolonged period. Sometime during this process other herbs and spices were added. Finally, when the mixture had ripened to its appropriate state, the liquid was drained and used in cooking.

    Arberry's translation of the Baghdad Cookery-Book in the late 1930s included two recipes for budhaj and murri which had been appended to the manuscript. His version features the herb pennyroyal as a basic ingredient. Since Arberry's translation, only Perry has dealt seriously with this culinary mixture. Perry believes that fudhanj is more properly "rotted barley dough" than "penny-royal." He has actually made and taste-tested the rotted budhaj , and cautions strongly not to eat it, since it is highly carcinogenic.

    For our cookbook, we have preserved almorí 's arrays of spices without attempting to re-create the carcinogenic rotted mass. Our first version, with pennyroyal, reflects Arberry's interpretation of almorí . Version two is a combination of spices occurring frequently in the medieval Islamic almorí recipes. The first two versions can be used interchangeably, although with quite different flavor results. The third recipe, with nigella, combines the principal spices found in a thirteenth-century version of murri . Since the original almorí was obviously a liquid or paste, we generally combine the aromatic herbs with a tempering agent such as honey and/or vinegar. The cooked version of the third almorí recipe should be used the day it is made or shortly thereafter. It is a remarkably tasty enhancer of meat broths.

Pennyroyal Almorí

Makes about ¾ cup

1/3 cup bread crumbs

2 tablespoons sea salt

1 tablespoon dried pennyroyal leaves (see Note)

1½ teaspoons cinnamon

1 tablespoon fenugreek

1. Finely grind the ingredients together until they are well combined.

2. Store in an airtight container. The mixture will store indefinitely, but it is better used within a month, since the spices lose potency over time.

NOTE

Important: Pennyroyal oil is toxic. The dried leaves are not. They are found in the medicinal herbs section of natural food stores. If you wish, substitute dried mint leaves. Or use the next recipe.

VARIATION

Substitute dried mint leaves for the pennyroyal leaves.

Simple Almorí

Makes about ¼ cup

2 tablespoons bread crumbs

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1½ teaspoons fennel

1 teaspoon safflower (optional)

1. Finely grind the ingredients together until they are well combined.

2. Store in an airtight container. The mixture will store indefinitely, but it is better used within a month, since the spices lose potency over time.

Nigella Almorí

Makes about ¾ cup

3 tablespoons matza flour or ground matza

3 tablespoons bread crumbs

2 tablespoons salt

1 tablespoon nigella (see Variation)

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

1 teaspoon fenugreek

1 teaspoon anise

1½ teaspoons cinnamon

1½ teaspoons fennel

1½ teaspoons safflower (optional)

Dry preparation

1. Finely grind the ingredients together until they are well combined.

2. Store in an airtight container. The mixture will store indefinitely, but it is better used within a month, since the spices lose potency over time.

Baked preparation

Makes about 6 tablespoons

1 tablespoon honey

4 tablespoons nigella almorí

4 tablespoons white vinegar

1. Preheat the oven to 325°. In a small saucepan over low heat, briefly warm the honey. Mix the almorí, vinegar, and warmed honey in a small nonreactive baking dish.

2. Bake the mixture for 20 minutes. Remove it from the oven. The top will look somewhat crusty, but the interior will be gooey. Use it when it cools, or refrigerate it, covered, for up to 3 days.

VARIATION

Nigella ( Nigella sativa ) is sometimes called "black cumin" or kalonji . It is a staple in Indian cooking, often seen as the black seeds in nan bread. If you cannot find nigella, an acceptable substitute is a finely-ground combination of

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

Cilantra Juice

Makes about 1/3 cup

Cilantro was a staple in medieval recipes of the Iberian Peninsula, especially the southern area, which had been influenced by Islamic cooking. Often the dried seeds are used, but the most important parts of the plant are the fresh green leaves and stems. Many recipes call for cilantro juice, which is often used in Moroccan cooking today. It is best made at the moment of its use, but if you must you may make a batch and freeze it in ice-cube trays.

1-1½ cups tightly packed chopped fresh cilantro leaves

3 tablespoons water

Puree the ingredients in a food processor.

Salsa Fina

Makes 3 tablespoons

Several fixed mixtures of spices were stocked by medieval Iberian cooks. Both Nola and Sent soví list the basic ingredients of this popular mixture called salsa fina .

4 teaspoons dried ginger

3 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon ground cloves

½ teaspoon mace

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon crushed saffron threads

1. In a mortar or electric mill, combine all the ingredients and grind them to a fine powder.

2. Store the mixture in a tightly closed container.

Vegetable Broth

Makes 10-12 cups

The vegetable broth we use for stews and as a base for sauces is made up of only those vegetables and herbs that would have been available in medieval Iberia. Thus tomatoes and peppers are excluded. Outside of that, we invite you to make your own broth based on what you find in your market vegetable section. Here is one of many possibilities:

2 medium onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 bay leaves, fresh if possible

3 cups chopped cabbage

2 cups sliced carrots

1 cup sliced white turnip

1 leek, well cleaned and sliced

1-2 cups watercress

2 cups chopped mushrooms

1 cup chopped celery

½ cup chopped lettuce

½-1 cup chopped fresh parsley

10-12 cups water

1. In a large stewing pot, fry the onions and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the bay leaves and continue to fry until the onions are golden, about 8 minutes total.

2. Add the vegetables and herbs to the pot in any combination, totaling about 12-15 cups.

3. Add enough water to just cover. Bring to a boil. Turn down the heat, cover, and simmer for 1½-2 hours. Remove from the heat. Let cool.

4. Strain the broth from the vegetables. Discard the vegetables.

5. Freeze the broth in small containers (approximately ½ cup size) for easy use. We freeze the broth in ice-cube trays and store the frozen cubes in a plastic bag.