Dining with Inês
Meet the Chef - Viki Fox
Victoria Fox graduated from the Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park, New York. She has dedicated her life work to providing nutritious meals with flavor and choice inside the dietary constraints many elderly people follow. Outside of work hours, she has developed menus and recipes from Colonial American history and for children around fairy tales.
Taken with the tale of Inês and Pedro, she devised seasonal menus and dishes the couple could well have enjoyed in their day with modernizing touches.
We all think farm to table and seasonal eating are recent phenonmena, while the epitome of such eating dates back centuries. We'll feature food facts as well as menus and recipes that could have appeared on the table of Inês and Pedro. The following are taken from Viki's Medieval Meals for the Modern Table, reinventing seasonal eating.
Simple Supper After a Hunt
Platter of Olive, Bread, Cheese, and Sardine Pate
The tradition of a plate with olives and bread before a meal lives on today in restaurants in Portugal and Spain. If Sardine Pate does not appeal, try a duck pate from the grocery.
Beef Brisket with Yams - Carne ao caldeiro
In medieval times, yams came from North Africa.
This dish is a favorite of ours for supper or entertaining.
Peasant Bread – Saloio
Poached Meringue
Beef Brisket with Yams
2 Tablespoon olive oil
2 1/4 pounds of beef brisket, sliced in strips
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 1/3 cups onion, chopped
2 Tablespoons smoked paprika
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 cups beef broth
3 cups yams, peel and cut into slices
or cubes of varying size (1” to 2”)
1 1/2 Tablespoon Italian Parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
1. Brown the beef in olive oil. Once the beef is browned, remove from pan to a plate or bowl.
2. Keep oil in the pan. Sauté the onion, garlic, and smoked paprika in the oil the beef cooked in.
3. Add the beef, red wine vinegar and beef broth. Season with salt and pepper to taste
4. Close the pan and place over high heat.
5. When it starts boiling, turn the heat to medium and let it cook for about 25 minutes until the beef is tender.
6. Add sliced yams and cook for another 20 minutes or until the yams are soft.
7. Once the yams are done, remove the pan from the heat and let it cool for about 5 minutes.
8. Garnish with the chopped Italian parsley.
Nothing is Wasted
The Olive Leaf- Portugal has the perfect climate to grow olives in lush groves. Olive trees were prolific in medieval Portugal. It is not surprising to learn that all parts of the olive tree were put to good use. The olive, as we all know, is crushed to make oil, and it can also be used as a base for ink.
The bark dried and steeped is known as a cure for colic in children.
The leaves are dried, crushed, and used as an aid to stop nose bleeds. When you infuse the leaves, you can drink the tea to relieve a sore throat or blend into a soothing lotion for the eyes of man or beast.
Most recently olive leaves are said to promote energy, relieve fatigue, balance blood sugar and lower blood pressure.