Frogs and Puffins for Dinner
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Speaking of different dining experiences… Can you imagine a menu 160 pages long? Does this exist anywhere? Apparently this was an occurrence in the 18th century for English royals residing in Kensington Palace. This menu is currently going up for auction. Master Cook William Daniel kept record of his prepared dishes for his own pride. Apparently, young birds were among one of the popular treats. By young, they mean a day or two old. We were told that back in the day, one’s fat was indicative of royalty and now we’re learning that the fat came from the most exotic foods- whole animals. Exotic dishes were a symbol of royalty: the more exotic the food, the more royal the man. French President Francois Mitterrand had a dish consisting of baby ortolans, songbirds, drowned in Armagnac. These menus are honored today because their food trends reveal something about the culture and time period. We know the British gained control of the West Indies for their sugar trade because their love of sugar in their diets was peaking. Additionally, tropical fruit was also a luxury, sold to royalty, because they could not grow fresh tropical fruit in London’s climate. However greenhouse technology was a new bit that could grow enough for those who could afford it. We are used to having the luxury of consuming pretty much any type of food or fruit we crave at that moment. This is because today we have the technology and the means to either transport that good, or grow the good in an adjusted, favorable environment.
I checked to see if this songbird can be found on menus anywhere today, just out of curiosity, and apparently it has been outlawed.
from Laura Flippin's Dining Experiences http://ift.tt/1bMzayX