Harriet Mahood
Lecturer in medieval history at the University of Reading.
My own research focuses upon religion in the middle ages and particularly the architecture employed in controlling access within a building.
Location Reading
Activity
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Harriet Mahood replied to Brenda B
I've never had an issue using glass or stainless steel, or even plastic. I think copper is only necessary if you're aiming for absolute perfection - my creations have always been more than satisfactory!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Campbell Milton
She does! Her new show, The Stuarts: A Bloody Reign, is on at the moment on the Yesterday channel
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Hi Colleen,
This step might help answer your questions: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/royal-food/5/steps/320714 -
Harriet Mahood replied to Claudine Tyrrell
They were often simply dissolved in wine (as in the finale scene of Shakespeare's Hamlet for example). The acidity of the wine is enough to dissolve the delicate pearls.
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Harriet Mahood replied to John Williams
I think it is probably a rounded tablespoon.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Cristina Gias
Hi Cristina, I'll raise this point when we consider future runs. For now however:
- If thou bee younge, then marie not yet
(If you are young, and not married yet)-If thou bee old thou haste more witt:
(If you be old, you have more wit [intelligence or wisdom])- For younge menns wives will not bee taught,
(For young men's wives will not be... -
Harriet Mahood replied to Karen Pearson
Hi Lorena, I think that might classify as a 'tincture' - or at least be in that ball park. Elderflower cordial for example is free from alcohol.
In general however, I suspect it's not unfair to say that people call their recipes whatever they like!
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Hi James! Myself and the other mentors highlight comments and questions to bring to the attention of the course educators who in turn drop in on discussions in the comment sections if their input will help.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Karen Pearson
I believe it is the addition of sugar/sweetener that differentiates it.
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Hi Sadie. The answer is yes and no....some houses did, some didn't. The most stable form of alms giving we can see in the records is at monasteries as they would record how it was to be done. This doesn't mean it wasn't more prevalent however, we can only know for certain when we have a record however!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Carol Kellas
Hi Carol. You're right, it did change society drastically and many had to adapt. Recent studies are showing however that there was more communal spirit in rural areas than previously thought. We're beginning to appreciate that this help will have continued and the lack of monastic hospitals and almshouses while an inconvenience, wasn't as catastrophic as once...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Lis Karsten
A good dollop of mustard (I used English) in the cheese mix is also excellent! This is my favourite way of using up cheeses that are going mouldy in the fridge.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Sophia Blackwell
There's an argument that it's better for baking and cooking in as well. You can read a little more in the link below, but the basic gist is copper is a really good conductor so heat evenly. It also reacts to an extent with the food itself making egg whites easy to whip stiffly for example....
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Try rolling it out between two sheets of clingfilm, makes it so much easier to handle and squish into a tin!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Nora Hayes
There's a wonderful quote by Neil Gaiman: 'England has history, Americans have geography'
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Harriet Mahood replied to Deborah Harsen
I'm afraid I don't know if they every do special demonstrations - but there's a really good video that loops there showing the whole process from start to finish
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Both! Many monasteries had vineyards certainly but then, as now, Britain has a difficult climate to grow grapes in so much was still imported.
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I believe hops were introduced from Flanders under Henry VIII. They help to give beer a longer shelf life among other things!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Kathleen Walker
For more on Lady Gertrude, this web page has some useful (cited) information and doesn't have a pay wall. The Oxford dictionary of National Biography is the usual go-to for reliable biographies, but it is for subscribers only.
http://spartacus-educational.com/Gertrude_Courtenay.htm -
Harriet Mahood replied to Kathleen Walker
Myself and the other monitors read all the comments posted for this exact reason (feedback), and the course is updated and reviewed with every incarnation. However we have to achieve a balance on the course which makes it suitable for an audience of all ages and cultures which does unfortunately mean that details are sometimes skipped over. If you want more...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Kathleen Walker
This is in fact the third incarnation of this course and the other commentators are correct. Repetition is sometimes necessary to enforce a point and there are some very ingrained assumptions we are trying to overcome in this course. Please do enjoy the course, it is meant to be entertaining and educational.
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Thank you Paullette, I have brought this to the attention of the course creators. I suspect it is an unintentional bias however. If we had Henry VIII's underpants - I'm sure we'd discuss them also! Victoria has the misfortune to have more evidence survive for her day-to-day life allowing us to study her in greater detail.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Sue Burton
I hope you enjoyed the majority of the course Charles.
Sally, please be respectful to other learners and remember that this course is meant to be enjoyable and learning about food and feasting.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Rebecca Tyson
The whole course is available from the off, and will remain available once it has 'finished'. Progressing week-by-week is how the creating team envisaged the course should run. It allows commentators and course educators and tutors (like myself!) to focus on one topic each week. Educators and mentors will only comment on the 'active' week
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Molasses should be absolutely fine, I substitute the other way round (i.e. treacle for molasses) all the time!
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Yes and no! The discrepancy lies with calendar used. The 24th of May is the old style date (Julian), and the 4th of June the new style (Gregorian, our modern calendar). The Gregorian year begins on the 1st January, the Julian on the 25th March. This means that dates don't match up and when using documents pre-1752, you have to watch out when focusing on a...
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Harriet Mahood replied to George Griffith
Thank you for your kind words! I'm passing your comments onto the team
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I believe it was cane sugar
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There's a museum about the prison on the original site, worth a visit:
http://www.clink.co.uk/ -
Harriet Mahood replied to Holly Hubbs
I've used wensleydale and mild cheddar before - both have worked fine!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Janna Webster
I've covered by dining table in cling film before to roll out pastry before, a solution possibly?
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Harriet Mahood replied to Melody Twigg
Gas mark 6 is roughly equivalent to 200C or 400F
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Harriet Mahood replied to Joy O
Good question! I suspect it referred to both if I'm honest. My specialty is more medieval monks than Tudor nobility, but I know that some monks used to deliberately try and leave leftovers on their plate to not only demonstrate their abstinence, but also the amount they were leaving to the poor.
As such, I suspect leftovers in the Tudor period referred to...
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That's a really interesting question Cleo. I think they were aware that some foods weren't good for them and that too much of one sort of food would imbalance the 'humors'. Overeating for example was understood to increase your 'moist humors' (blood and phlegm) and too much of an imbalance was beleived to lead to disease. I don't think it ever quite reached...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Jennifer Slade
Yes indeed! Gobbet means a small bit, and a a gob was a small mouthful. It's just changed over the years to now mean the mouth, rather than that which was put in!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Diane Ferguson
I'm not sure about worcester sauce...I'm sure they'd have had something similar as worcester sauce is basically fermented fish, the same base as 'garum' sauce which was a cooking basic of the classical world (Greeks and Romans etc.)
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Hello, what seems to be the problem?
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Harriet Mahood replied to Kate Scarratt
Hi everyone. This comment regarding meat on a fish menu was passed onto the team in the last incarnation of the course. We (the mentors) have passed it on again.
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Bowls! Just an archaic spelling
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Harriet Mahood replied to John Collum
Interestingly, the priority of male heirs over female heirs was only rectified very recently. The recent changes also included the overhaul of the ban on the monarch marrying a catholic:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-15492607
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succession_to_the_Crown_Act_2013
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Harriet Mahood replied to Diane Ferguson
I've added a spoonful of djon mustard before to the tart, really helped cut the tart's richness (I've also used whatever cheese I have in my fridge rather than strictly cheshire...)
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Harriet Mahood replied to Glenys Brown
Do! The cheese pie is super. It's my favourite way of using up cheese that has gotten a bit 'past it'
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Harriet Mahood replied to Richard Ward
Around 56-57 kg
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I think something like prune juice might be the closest you could get as a non-alcoholic port substitute. I might be more inclined to make it with milk - the french way!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Harry Adamson
Yes! lamb for a year, then hogget until the age of 2. After 2, the animal is called a gimmer, and the meat mutton
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Castor oil is made from castor beans and has been used in the past for all sorts of things, including medicinal treatments.
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Yes! Both are correct
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Harriet Mahood replied to Caitlin Milligan
Give it a go anyway Caitlin! You can't go wrong with pastry and cheese. Don't forget you can often pick up pre-made shortcrust pastry in the shops. Just roll, fill, and cook!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Ruth Zielke
This link has nice account of her brief life:
http://www.historytoday.com/richard-cavendish/lady-jane-grey-proclaimed-queenThe short story is that Edward wanted a protestant successor. Mary was catholic, and Elizabeth wasn't really suitable as the younger sister and the daughter of Anne Boleyn; plus, her ascendancy would make The Duke of Northumberland...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Helen White
Hi Helen,
don't worry about catching up, or being left behind. All of the course material is available right from the start, and will be available long after the end of the five weeks. The five chronological weeks of the course are just when the main 'group' will move through the weeks together. You could zoom through to week five today if you so wished,...
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I'm sorry to hear that Phyllis. The course has been developed for a very wide and general audience which is why it doesn't go into to as much detail as some participants would like. However myself and the other mentors would be very happy to help expand upon any explanations you may want, or direct them to the course creators.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Jan Campen
I have flagged this up with the organisers. Should be corrected soon I hope!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Deb Schneider
Hi Deb,
I just tried downloading it myself and it downloaded the correct video so I think the link is correct. Can I suggest you try again (sorry if I'm telling you how to suck eggs) and let me know if that fails also?
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Harriet Mahood replied to Leonie Falger
I love those books Leonie - excellent suggestion!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Tom Hudspeth
They can be found here:
https://archive.org/stream/collectionofordi00soci/collectionofordi00soci_djvu.txtForgive the poor formatting. Many sources are like this at the moment as they're going through a digitising process!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Shirley MacKenzie
Not in Cornwall anymore. It unfortunately fell out of favour as a crop when it faced competition from cheaper, imported saffron. However a farmer in Essex and Devon has started growing it again in recent years: http://www.englishsaffron.co.uk/
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Harriet Mahood replied to Elise Fleming
Yes sorry, you're quite right. Elite dining would certainly have opted for the finer sieved and therefore whiter flours. I was trying to give an idea of general flour quality - my error for generalising!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Betty Hobbs
The role of the almoner is actually a much older role and originates in the monasteries themselves (around the late eleventh century) who used to collect the leftovers from meals for distributing as 'alms' to the daily poor (along with used clothing and coins).
I believe the almoner's role was later incorporated into secular households and hospitals,...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Julie Hinsley
Mustard would actually be era-appropriate! (Possibly not something they'd envisaged being in this dish admittedly)
One of the first references is in 1229 where 4d (4 pence) is spent on mustard in a set of household accounts [see J. Webb Househ. Expenses R. de Swinfield (1853)]
Then in 1447 you have "Furst set forthe mustard & brawne of boore." [see F. J....
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Harriet Mahood replied to Sheryl Logan
Really pleased to hear you're enjoying the course Sheryl!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Elise Fleming
Hi Tine,
flour today is much cleaner and finer than flour back then, partly because we have better milling processes and laws which mean you can't bulk it up with other ingredients. The type of grain we use has also changed as wheat has been cultivated further by farmers to be productive and robust over the centuries, although I suspect this is fairly... -
Harriet Mahood replied to Liz Watson
Fascinating Marielle! Do you know what the novel was called?
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Harriet Mahood replied to Elise Fleming
Very good thoughts and I am as at a loss as you as to why venison is on this fish day menu. Even bending the rules to the extreme, a deer is always meat. The experts on this will be in touch!
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Harriet Mahood replied to Tracey Sawyer
The Cistercian order of monks (renowned for their austere way of life) even went so far as to ban pepper from monasteries!
This abstinence continues to the modern day, and I've read statues (sort of like supplementary guidelines) from modern Cistercian monks where they've debated whether or not they can eat ice-cream, and how often (they can - but not if...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Tracey Sawyer
Only mentors can as we're in contact with the course creators. However we do scan for the most 'liked' comments so that's a good way of catching our attention if we haven't spotted a question!
I'll let the creators respond to this question in full later as I'm not certain about secular fasting (I'm a monastic historian primarily). However from the monastic...
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Harriet Mahood replied to Tracey Sawyer
Hi all! I've flagged the question of meat on a fish day for the course creators to answer.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Nan Earnheart
You can buy grains of paradise in Waitrose on the high street (UK) - or online
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Harriet Mahood replied to Cathy Stewart
The 'y' is pronounced as an 'i' so it would be pronounced 'fillets'
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Harriet Mahood replied to Elise Fleming
Yes there is indeed a way to get the attention of the organisers. Myself and the other mentors read the comments and highlight questions to be put forward to the course creators. Your question about meat on a fish day has been sent their way.
I'll offer my own two cents however on the topic (I'm usually a monastic historian). 'Fish' days came from fast days...
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Hi Ken,
can I suggest you have a look at the FAQ (https://about.futurelearn.com/about/faq/) and this item specifically: https://about.futurelearn.com/browser-support/
- if that doesn't help (it might not), email your problem to feedback@futurelearn.com? They should be able to help you.
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Harriet Mahood replied to Mariana Blengini
Hi Mariana!
The key to this course is to do as much of it as you want, when you want. The real 'flurry' of activity will focus on the initial five weeks the course runs for, and that's when you'll be able to interact with the course educators and monitors. However the course will still be there afterwards indefinitely for you to pursue at your own pace. The...
