Since at least one of my flisties is as much of a Age of Sail and naval fiction addict as I am, and another at least shares the love (though I don't know yet the degree of the addiction *g*), I'm going to foist upon you share some assorted goodies belonging to that particular craziness with you. Who knows, even for the non-reader of the books/series there might be something in the company books, music and whatnot.
For startes, I'm going to take the most famous series of the whole Age of Sail-fandom: the Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin novels written by Patrick O'Brian. A part of them were turned into one of the best book movies ever, Master and Commander, which came out in 2003. (How awesome is it when the director and screenplay author is already a large fan of the books in question, and has dreamed forever of filming them? Yeah, happened not only with Peter Jackson and LOTR, but also with Peter Weir and MaC, with an absolutely breathtaking result.)
Have the trailer:
Trailer for Master & Commander on Youtube
Starring: Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany, James DʻArcy
Directed By: Peter Weir
If you're obsesssed with historical detail, this is the movie for you - Peter Weir put the term "detail obsessed" to new heigths, I think *g*. And also the feeling of authenticity while fiming... this is, afaik, the first movie on and about a historical sailing ship where actual filming on a seagoing vessel took place. Also, Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany, as many other of the actors, are perfectly cast for the book characters.
An enormous hype concerning the movie, the books, the period and everything around ensued and produced an astonishing number and range of fannish by-products. One of the most quaint, but also well-made of them I'd like to share, also due to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sylvanwitch 's question about the nature of a Drowned Baby. You'll have to know that POB, the author, put a considerable amount of English period dishes and cooking traditions into the series, and most of them sound rather weird to the modern ear, and often are as puzzling as the said Drowned Baby (which is a suet pudding) or the Spotted dog (another kind of suet pudding; these being Aubrey's favourites.)
~oOo~
The book is Lobscouse and Spotted Dog: Wich It's a Gastronomic Companion to the Aubrey/Maturin Novels by Anne Chotzinoff Grossmann and Lisa Grossman Thomas.
The most awesome fact about this companion and cookbook is, in my eyes, that the authors went to extreme lengths to present an extremely well-researched and entertaining oeuvre. They dug up all kinds of period recipes, cooking, preparing and preserving techniques, and present us with an abundance of most fascinating facts - and, of course, recipes. All these are tested and tried, doable with current means and ingredients, but still show the wealth and quaintness of 18th/early 19th cooking, dining, and drinking. It'salos quite lovingly decorated with the odd period seafaring song, complete with score (like "Spanish Ladies"), and these cute little drawings typical for a period cookbook.
I'm taking the liberty quoting a bit from the Amazon description:
The subtitle refers to a kind of running gag in the boosk and movies: Captain Aubrey's steward, Preserved [sic] Killick, is not of the most friendly and accommodating sort, always grumbling and groaning along as he prepares his master's food and takes care of this things. When asked about dinner, he usually answers with "Which it's ready when it's ready!" (quoted by memory from some years ago, so please be with me about literary accuracy).
I love this book to pieces, even if I won't ever try out most of the recipes - they're not really veggie-compatible *g*. Otherwise I probably would, just out of curiousity; we've been to a "Captain's Dinner" at a fandom/forum meeting in Hamburg once, complete with several reenactment/living history fans, dressed to the occasion (though naval uniforms of the period are rare, even in the reenactor scene), and complete with the necessary spirits (although consumed in a more 21th century amount) and singing. Due to the majority of the dinner guests being male, the singing left nothing to desire and came quite close to the famous movie scene:
Don't forget your old shipmates - Master and Commander (on Youtube)
And now finally, as promised, dear![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sylvanwitch , the recipe for the Drowned (or boiled) Baby:
4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups raisins
1/2 pound suet, finely grated
Ice Water
Mix the flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in the raisins, breaking them apart (the flour will coat them so they can't clump together). Mix in the suet.
Work in 1-2 tablespoons of ice water. Continue gradually adding ice water until you have a stiff paste (probably about a cup all in all, but that depens on temperature, humidity, dryness of your flour and so on). Work with your hands until it forms a ball. Turn it out onto a well-floured board. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 5 minutes.
Knead the dough until it is shiny and elastic, cover again, let rest another 5 minutes and knead again for 1-2 minutes. Shape the dough into a nice, fat, vaguely cylindrical lump. Wrap the pudding fairly loosely in a well-floured cloth. Tie securely at bth ends (and perhaps also loosely around the middle to keep the cloth from gaping). Immerse the pudding in a pot of rapidly boiling water and cook for 2 1/2 hours, replenishing the water if necessary.
To serve, untie and unroll the cloth. Turn the pudding out onto a board or platter. Serve hot, accompanied by Custard Sauce.
I haven't tried it, even before my veggie times; suet is decidedly not my cup of tea ;o).
For startes, I'm going to take the most famous series of the whole Age of Sail-fandom: the Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin novels written by Patrick O'Brian. A part of them were turned into one of the best book movies ever, Master and Commander, which came out in 2003. (How awesome is it when the director and screenplay author is already a large fan of the books in question, and has dreamed forever of filming them? Yeah, happened not only with Peter Jackson and LOTR, but also with Peter Weir and MaC, with an absolutely breathtaking result.)
Have the trailer:
Trailer for Master & Commander on Youtube
Starring: Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany, James DʻArcy
Directed By: Peter Weir
Synopsis: In 1805, aboard the H.M.S. Surprise, the brash Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) and his trusted friend, the ship's scholarly surgeon, Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany), are ordered to hunt down and capture a powerful French vessel off the South American coast. Though Napoleon is winning the war and the men and their crew face an onslaught of obstacles, including their own internal battles, "Lucky Jack" is determined that nothing will stop the Surprise from completing its mission.
If you're obsesssed with historical detail, this is the movie for you - Peter Weir put the term "detail obsessed" to new heigths, I think *g*. And also the feeling of authenticity while fiming... this is, afaik, the first movie on and about a historical sailing ship where actual filming on a seagoing vessel took place. Also, Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany, as many other of the actors, are perfectly cast for the book characters.
An enormous hype concerning the movie, the books, the period and everything around ensued and produced an astonishing number and range of fannish by-products. One of the most quaint, but also well-made of them I'd like to share, also due to
sylvanwitch 's question about the nature of a Drowned Baby. You'll have to know that POB, the author, put a considerable amount of English period dishes and cooking traditions into the series, and most of them sound rather weird to the modern ear, and often are as puzzling as the said Drowned Baby (which is a suet pudding) or the Spotted dog (another kind of suet pudding; these being Aubrey's favourites.)~oOo~
The book is Lobscouse and Spotted Dog: Wich It's a Gastronomic Companion to the Aubrey/Maturin Novels by Anne Chotzinoff Grossmann and Lisa Grossman Thomas.
The most awesome fact about this companion and cookbook is, in my eyes, that the authors went to extreme lengths to present an extremely well-researched and entertaining oeuvre. They dug up all kinds of period recipes, cooking, preparing and preserving techniques, and present us with an abundance of most fascinating facts - and, of course, recipes. All these are tested and tried, doable with current means and ingredients, but still show the wealth and quaintness of 18th/early 19th cooking, dining, and drinking. It'salos quite lovingly decorated with the odd period seafaring song, complete with score (like "Spanish Ladies"), and these cute little drawings typical for a period cookbook.
I'm taking the liberty quoting a bit from the Amazon description:
---Quote---
And Spotted Dog is...? You'll find the recipe in the Grossmans' book, along with excerpts from the Aubrey/Maturin novels and many other authentic 19th-century dishes to test your sense of adventure, your culinary prowess, and possibly your waistline. Lobscouse and Spotted Dog is more than a cookbook--it's a window into the past, an inspired piece of culinary detective work, and a delightful gastronomic companion to the novels of Patrick O'Brian.
---End quote---
And Spotted Dog is...? You'll find the recipe in the Grossmans' book, along with excerpts from the Aubrey/Maturin novels and many other authentic 19th-century dishes to test your sense of adventure, your culinary prowess, and possibly your waistline. Lobscouse and Spotted Dog is more than a cookbook--it's a window into the past, an inspired piece of culinary detective work, and a delightful gastronomic companion to the novels of Patrick O'Brian.
---End quote---
The subtitle refers to a kind of running gag in the boosk and movies: Captain Aubrey's steward, Preserved [sic] Killick, is not of the most friendly and accommodating sort, always grumbling and groaning along as he prepares his master's food and takes care of this things. When asked about dinner, he usually answers with "Which it's ready when it's ready!" (quoted by memory from some years ago, so please be with me about literary accuracy).
I love this book to pieces, even if I won't ever try out most of the recipes - they're not really veggie-compatible *g*. Otherwise I probably would, just out of curiousity; we've been to a "Captain's Dinner" at a fandom/forum meeting in Hamburg once, complete with several reenactment/living history fans, dressed to the occasion (though naval uniforms of the period are rare, even in the reenactor scene), and complete with the necessary spirits (although consumed in a more 21th century amount) and singing. Due to the majority of the dinner guests being male, the singing left nothing to desire and came quite close to the famous movie scene:
Don't forget your old shipmates - Master and Commander (on Youtube)
And now finally, as promised, dear
sylvanwitch , the recipe for the Drowned (or boiled) Baby:4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups raisins
1/2 pound suet, finely grated
Ice Water
Mix the flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in the raisins, breaking them apart (the flour will coat them so they can't clump together). Mix in the suet.
Work in 1-2 tablespoons of ice water. Continue gradually adding ice water until you have a stiff paste (probably about a cup all in all, but that depens on temperature, humidity, dryness of your flour and so on). Work with your hands until it forms a ball. Turn it out onto a well-floured board. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 5 minutes.
Knead the dough until it is shiny and elastic, cover again, let rest another 5 minutes and knead again for 1-2 minutes. Shape the dough into a nice, fat, vaguely cylindrical lump. Wrap the pudding fairly loosely in a well-floured cloth. Tie securely at bth ends (and perhaps also loosely around the middle to keep the cloth from gaping). Immerse the pudding in a pot of rapidly boiling water and cook for 2 1/2 hours, replenishing the water if necessary.
To serve, untie and unroll the cloth. Turn the pudding out onto a board or platter. Serve hot, accompanied by Custard Sauce.
I haven't tried it, even before my veggie times; suet is decidedly not my cup of tea ;o).
