A Mess of Links
Finally, what all food historians have been waiting for. Sandy Oliver, long time friend, moving force for years behind Food History News, author of authoritative books and articles on American Cuisine, and unassuming practitioner of a traditional lifestyle for decades before it became the thing to do (think slaughtering and preserving your own pigs as well as growing your own vegetables) has entered the blogosphere.
And what a difference the blog makes. In the 90s in Hawaii, I stumbled on boxes of cordyceps in Chinese grocery stores. It did not seem to fit neatly into animal, vegetable, mineral categories. Hmm. After poking about I found an article by Alan Davidson who had been equally puzzled, and who spilled some of the beans about the curious cordyceps. Now all I would have had to do was google. You will love this site. The Hawaiian mushrooms are pretty amazing too.
Closer to home (temporary home in Austin, Texas, that is) I was intrigued driving to Houston a few years ago to run across a historical marker commemorating the Wendish presence in the area. Here’s a description of Wendish noodles on the blog Boots in the Oven by Rachel and Logan Cooper whom I had the pleasure of meeting recently. But apart from being home made are they different from other German, Central European noodles?
And can you reconcile increased milk production with a prohibition on the killing of cattle? That’s what Rajaratarala asks of Sri Lanka. Always interesting reflections on farming in South Asia.
- Alcuscuz de maiz (Couscous of corn) in early nineteenth-century Mexico
- Serving couscous in Mexico in the 1800s
I don’t know how I missed this – thank you for linking to us, Rachel! I’m not sure that Wendish noodles are all that different from other Mittel Europe egg noodles. They’re thinner than the ones I grew up with in my mostly German Jewish family, but taste about the same.
It was such a pleasure meeting you!