Trying to avoid the rabbit holes....

FYI: the Food in the Anglo Saxon Period article I linked to yesterday is really well written and comprehensive and I highly recommend it. On the second page, they link to this recipe for an Anglo Saxon Elderflower Ale (Ellen-Elau), which ... well, I don't brew (and have never tried) and I also don't drink beer, but something about that particular recipe (maybe the elderflowers?) makes me want to try and make it to serve at this event. (Unfortunately (Fortunately?) Decimus has pointed out to me that the site does't allow us to bring in alchohol, so that project will need to be set aside for another time.  Good thing, too.) These are the rabbit holes that it is easy to fall in to.

Yesterday, also, spurred on by the Meat Day Menus in Le Menagier I started wondering aloud (on Facebook) about what "bacon gruel" might be (second menu, fifth platter), which, of course, led us back to looking at the original French, where it's written as Un boulli lardé. Now, none of us who were discussing this are really medieval French scholars, but the difference between larde and lardé is the difference between bacon and "larded" ... which led to a whole discussion about the difference betwen the two terms, and how larding was used on meats, and what the final dish might have looked like (no recipe is given) and how it might be the same/similar/different than the "smothered rice" (ris engoulé - here's a version) that is the next item listed.

All of which, really, while very interesting, is me getting far, far ahead of myself.

Our fee is set ($12 per person).  We have a headcount (sorta) -- maximum of 80 attendees, plus the high table, who will figure into the counts but who likely won't pay. That puts the budget at $960 for 88 or so mouths to feed. 8 per table means that services will need to be cut into 11 'platters' for 8.  I have a few people who want to help already, but to be true to the spirit of the project I'd like to have some more. A bunch more, in fact.

So, how about it? Are you interested in helping -- either during the planning or in the kitchen or both? If so, make a comment here and let me know!