Making 4000 year old Ancient Sumerian (Mesopotamian) beer
Visit for more history, including the history of this experiment!
1. Pour 500g unmalted barley into a jug and cover with water. Leave for 24 hours.
2. Squash 500g grapes in a bowl and add 400ml of water. Place into a sterilised bottle and cover with a balloon. Alternatively, crush 200g of pitted dates into a sterilised bottle and add 400ml of water before covering with a balloon.
3. After 24 hours, rinse your grain in a sieve. Place it back into the jug but don’t cover it with water. Continue to rinse it off every 12 hours.
4. After a few days it will have begun to sprout. When the sprouts are about 1 cm long, place the sprouted grains onto a baking tray and bake at 100 degrees C for 1 hour.
5. When the grains have been malted, crush them in a mortar and pestle (or a food processor if you’re not stuck in the dark ages like me.)
6. Split your ground grains into two even halves. Add crushed spices (I used cardamom, cumin and coriander seeds) and a cup of water to one half. Mold into biscuits and bake at 160 degrees C for an hour or so, or until they are very hard.
7. Take the biscuits out of the oven and crush them up into a bowl. Add 1 l of water to the bowl and leave to sit for 1 or 2 hours.
8. Add 1 l of water to the other half of the grains and cook on a low heat until it reaches 65 degrees C. Keep it as close to this temperature as you can for 1 hour.
9. After this time, combine both mashes into one pan (gunk and all) and allow to cool to 35 degrees C.
10. Once the mash has cooled, tip in your (hopefully successful) grape/date wine.
11. Give it all a bit of a mix, then sieve out the gunk and allow the beer to drain into a bowl. Leave it for 24 – 36 hours and then drink.
How to make 5,000 year old beer I Pleasant Vices episode 3
In episode 3 of the Pleasant Vices series food historian Tasha Marks is joined by brewer Michaela Charles and beverage consultant Susan Boyle to make Ancient Egyptian beer.
To find out more about ancient brewing, read Tasha’s article on the British Museum blog, or visit her website to see what else she’s been up to.
Pleasant Vices is a four-part series on aphrodisiacs, beer, sugar and chocolate. Each is hosted by Tasha Marks with invited guests and each has an accompanying recipe film. To accompany this episode Tasha is making a cocktail using the flavours of Ancient Egypt which will be available from Monday on this channel.
With thanks to the Alpha Beta brewery and Pitt Cue restaurant for allowing us to film in their beautiful premises. To find out more visit them here:
Soul Cakes & Trick-or-Treating
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LINKS TO INGREDIENTS & EQUIPMENT**
Canon EOS M50 Camera:
Canon EF 50mm Lens:
Currants:
Nutmeg:
Clove:
Mace:
Saffron:
KitchenAid Stand Mixer:
LINKS TO SOURCES**
The Customs and Traditions of Wales by Trefor Owen:
The Book of Hallowe'en by Ruth Eda Kelley:
Trick or Treat: A History of Halloween by Lisa Morton:
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Editor: WarwicSN -
SOUL CAKES
ORIGINAL 16TH CENTURY RECIPE (From Elinor Fettiplace's Receipt Book)
To make Cakes
Take flower & sugar & nutmeg & cloves & mace & sweet butter & sack & a little ale barm, beat your spice & put in your butter & your sack, cold, then work it well all together & make it in little cakes & so bake them, if you will you may put in some saffron into them or fruit.
MODERN RECIPE
INGREDIENTS
- ½ Cup Lukewarm Ale (Below 100°F/38°C)
- 1 Teaspoon Yeast
- 3 Cups (360g) Flour
- ½ Cup (100g) Sugar
- 4 Tablespoons Butter Softened
- ½ Teaspoon Salt (if you’re using unsalted butter)
- ¼ Teaspoon Nutmeg
- ¼ Teaspoon Clove
- ¼ Teaspoon Mace
- ⅓ Cup Sack or Sherry
- 1/4 Teaspoon Saffron Threads (optional)
- 3/4 Cup Dried Fruit, plus more for decoration. (Optional)
- 1 Egg for Egg Wash (Optional)
METHOD
1. Create an ale barm by mixing the yeast with the lukewarm ale and letting sit for 10 minutes. If you are using saffron, mix that into the sherry and let steep.
2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, salt, nutmeg, clove, and mace together. Add the yeasted ale and work it in. Then work in the softened butter and the sack with saffron along with any fruit you are using. Mix until everything the dough comes together, then knead for 5 - 12 minutes. The longer you knead, the more bread-like the cakes will be, but the more they will rise.
3. Allow dough to rise for 1 hour (it will likely not double in size), then punch the dough down and form into small cakes. Cover and allow the cakes to rise for another 20 minutes while you preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C.
4. When the cakes have puffed up, add the optional egg wash and/or additional fruit, or form a cross on the top of each cake using the back of a knife (do not cut the cross in). Then back fro 20 minutes. When baked, allow to cool before serving.
PHOTO CREDITS
Elinor Fettiplace Kneeling at her Father’s Tomb: By Philip Halling, CC BY-SA 2.0,
Appleton Manor: By Des Blenkinsopp, CC BY-SA 2.0,
Altar de Día de Muertos en Actopan, Hidalgo, México
RubeHM / CC BY-SA (
Newgrange - TJP Finn
Halloween Costumes 1918 - Richard via Flickr
Cliffs of Dover: Immanuel Giel -
Bonfire Night: Peter Trimming -
#tastinghistory #halloween #soulcakes
Anglo Saxon Spread Flatbreads and Tasting
Year 4 - Design Technology - Food
'Anglo-Saxon Spread' Designing and making foods for an Anglo Saxon reenactment. Part 3 -Making flatbreads and tasting with, butter and cheese made in the previous lesson and other Anglo-Saxon flavourings.
Most BIZARRE Facts About Men
The word man used to be gender neutral. In Olde English the word wer was used to describe man and wif to describe woman. Man was used to describe all of humanity, but sometime during the 13th Century that changed, and man became the standard word to describe man as we know him today. With Father’s Day just around the corner, we have a look at some intriguing and unusual facts about men!
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18 - It’s a positive…
If a man takes a urine pregnancy test and it shows a positive result, it could mean that he has testicular cancer.
17 - Sleep easy…
Duke University released the results of a study they did on men and their sleep patterns. Men can tolerate sleep deprivation way better than women. When women don’t get enough sleep, they suffer both physically and mentally according to the study.
16 - Don’t shoot the messenger…
How this fact was deduced, I have no idea, but many sites suggest that men tell 6 lies every day. This is twice the amount of lies that women tell daily.
15 - Alarm Bells…
According to several studies, men’s biggest dating fears are that the woman won’t allow him his free time, that she will come between him and his friends, that she’ll be a stalker, won’t respect him or is too high maintenance.
14 - If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime…
When it comes to crime, if a man or a woman were to do the same crime – men would on average receive 63% longer sentences. Sorry guys!
13 - I’ll drink to that…
In Ancient Persia, men would often debate important subjects while drunk and sober, that way if the idea sounded good in both circumstances, then it would be considered a great idea.
12 - More cushion
It’s no surprises that women are not initially attracted to men who are carrying around a lot of extra weight around the belly, because science has proven that men with the extra weight there have lower levels of testosterone. They also tend to have lower physical drive and lower fertility. So, from a biological level, you’re less attracted to that person because the chances of him being able to “knock you up” are considerably less than their fitter counterparts.
11 - Teamwork…
Studies have proven that dads who do their share of the housework tend to have daughters that are more ambitious and who have broader definitions of gender roles.
10 - Not a manly man…
When Father’s Day initially began, it wasn’t met with great enthusiasm from everyone. A number of fathers considered the holiday emasculating, and they didn’t approve of the idea of kids giving their fathers presents that they pretty much bought themselves.
9 - Father of evolution…
Charles Darwin had 10 children, and he loved them very much. Those times bringing kids up was definitely seen as a woman’s work, but Darwin played a key role in raising and educating his children.
8 - Number 1 gift…
Yes, neckties are pretty much standard when it comes to gifts on Father’s Day. Neckties have their history all the way back to 221 BC. When the terracotta army was discovered, they were also all depicted wearing neckties.
7 - Age is but a number…
The oldest father in the world is believed to be Ramajit Raghav from India who was 96-years old at the time. His 52-year old wife gave birth in 2010 to a baby boy.
6 - Go halves…
Many fathers around the world have all claimed to have experienced couvade syndrome, which is more commonly known as “sympathy pregnancy.” Basically, the men experience the same pregnancy symptoms as their wife including weight gain, vomiting, changes in hormone levels and nausea.
5 - Hair raising fact…
A man’s beard can contain as many as 15,000 follicles, and no less than 7,000.
4 - Runs in the family...
Men who have many brothers have a higher chance of bearing sons, whereas a man who has a number of sisters will more than likely have daughters.
3 - An itch to scratch…
When women have a yeast infection, it’s honestly no joke. It’s itchy, uncomfortable and embarrassing. Did you know that men are also able to pick up a yeast infection, particularly those that are uncircumcised, heavyset or struggle with heavy sweating? Symptoms include rashes, discharge and a terrible itch. Over the counter medicines don’t discriminate – so if you’re struggling with it, just head to your local pharmacy.
2 - Here comes the bride…
Weddings have changed dramatically over the last few years and giving away of the bride seems to be fading away. This tradition was to symbolize the fact that the father of the bride no longer had control over his daughter, and that it was the new husband’s responsibility to look after her, her welfare and provide her with possessions. Basically, the husband would take over the role of the father in a way… it’s no wonder things have changed so dramatically.
1...
Making Mrs Beeton's 'delicious' EGG WINE
Ever wanted to combine eggs and wine to create a hot lumpy abomination? Of course you have! Here's what you'll need:
1 egg
1 teaspoon and a half of sugar
A sherry glass of sherry (about 180ml or 6 fl. oz)
90ml of water (3 fl. oz)
Grated nutmeg
1. Beat the egg and a tablespoon of water together.
2. In a pan, heat the sherry and remaining water together. Bring it to a simmer, but don't let it boil.
3. Pour the sherry/water mixture over the egg, stirring the whole time.
4. Add sugar and nutmeg to the mixture and combine.
5. Return to the pan and gently heat, but don't let it boil until it begins to thicken. Stir continuously.
6. Once it has begun to thicken, take it off the heat and pour into a glass.
7. If you hate yourself you could follow Mrs Beeton's suggestion to serve this cold, or with toast.