The Time of Singing

[EC2]

[

QUOTE=Miss Moppet;50240]This is the irritating thing. I got it on a piece of paper at Hampton Court some years ago - they were having a chocolate festival at Easter and offering sample cups of hot chocolate made to an authentic C17 recipe and copies of the recipe to try at home. Now I cannot find that piece of paper for the life of me, although I know I wouldn't have thrown it away. If I do find it or an adequate substitute I'll post about it.

Thanks! I recently bought a cookery book written by the librarian at my library Bromley House. She's a food historian when wearing one of her other hats and has just won a bursary to continue her research at the British Library. She found a recipe book in some local archives and has tried out the dishes and written about them for today's audience. It's called In Grandmother Gell's Kitchen. A selection of recipes used in the Eighteenth Century and it's by Carol Barstow. Being as it's Grannie's cookbook, some of the recipies go back to the 17thC. No chocolate ones though!

I have heard Ivan Day talk about recreating historic recipes and it's fascinating - his website is here. He teaches courses including one on late medieval cookery. I can't afford it but wish I could as he is a great speaker.

I had a quick look and a lot of it echoes what I've read in Medieval cookery books. It would indeed be interesting to go on one of his cookery days. I took an online course in Medieval food and cookery at Suite 101 with Dr. Gillian Polack. I don't know if they still run that one though. It wasn't expensive, but it was a different animal to Ivan Day.

Interesting! I love cooking sauces and apple sauce is one of my specialties. I put quite a bit of sugar in though - it must have tasted different before sugar was widely available. Or perhaps they used honey as a sweetener instead?

[/quote]

Not that I know of - or in small quantities. They just had a different sort of sweet tooth to ours because sugar wasn't a daily part of their diet.

[Miss Moppet]

Originally Posted by kellie

Do any of your other stories involve these characters, or minor characters? I like finding out the backstories behind characters that I may not neccessarily register as being important in other books.

Kellie, I asked EC another question right after yours so yours got lost in the shuffle! Sorry. If you're looking to follow up minor characters in The Time of Singing I highly recommend The Greatest Knight and The Scarlet Lion, both about William Marshal.

I've now finished The Time of Singing - loved it, but especially the political scenes and the description of Chancellor Longchamp's bling and odd behaviour! My review is up here with, by kind permission of EC, a Q&A section adapted from this thread. Thank you EC and everyone else who has commented.

[EC2]

Originally Posted by
I've now finished [I

The Time of Singing[/i] - loved it, but especially the political scenes and the description of Chancellor Longchamp's bling and odd behaviour! My review is up here with, by kind permission of EC, a Q&A section adapted from this thread. Thank you EC and everyone else who has commented.

I am glad you enjoyed the novel Miss Moppet and I'm relieved that Ida passed the Mary Sue litmus test!

Re Chancellor Longchamp: I came across the oddest description of him written by Gerald of Wales - a description that only adds to my belief that when Gerald had it in for someone, he used the pen to destroy them through huge exaggeration if not downright lies. Here's what he says about Longchamps. I am sure some elements are true, but I really can see gleeful malice in the below too.

'He was short and contemptible in stature and crippled in both haunches, with a big head and with the hair of his forehead coming down almost to his eyebrows like an ape. He was very dark, with little sunken black eyes, a flat nose and a snarling face. His beard below his eyes and his hair above were all shaggy, his chin was receding, and his lips were spread apart in in affected, false, and almost continual grin, which he very suitably used as a disguise. His neck was short, his back was humped, and his belly stuck out in front and his buttocks at the back. His legs were crooked, and although his body was small, his feet were huge.'

[Ash]

Yikes! (I tried reading Gerald's book about traveling in Wales and tossed it aside; he really goes off on people, and places)

[Miss Moppet]

Originally Posted by EC2

I am glad you enjoyed the novel Miss Moppet and I'm relieved that Ida passed the Mary Sue litmus test!

I wasn't too worried myself, although the test is tough. Also it has a lot of questions based on fantasy characters, so it is the best fun to do. Eg: does the character have wings (even if he or she cannot fly)? No. Does the character have shapeshifting abilities? Um, no to that too!

Originally Posted by EC2

Re Chancellor Longchamp: I came across the oddest description of him written by Gerald of Wales - a description that only adds to my belief that when Gerald had it in for someone, he used the pen to destroy them through huge exaggeration if not downright lies. Here's what he says about Longchamps. I am sure some elements are true, but I really can see gleeful malice in the below too.

'He was short and contemptible in stature and crippled in both haunches, with a big head and with the hair of his forehead coming down almost to his eyebrows like an ape. He was very dark, with little sunken black eyes, a flat nose and a snarling face. His beard below his eyes and his hair above were all shaggy, his chin was receding, and his lips were spread apart in in affected, false, and almost continual grin, which he very suitably used as a disguise. His neck was short, his back was humped, and his belly stuck out in front and his buttocks at the back. His legs were crooked, and although his body was small, his feet were huge.'

Makes him sound like an orc! Wonder what Longchamp did to annoy Gerald?