Though there are references to biscuit in period (Froissart for example) I have not come across any evidence that makes it clear how the biscuit was made.

There is evidence amongst middle eastern cultures (both medieval and ancient) for a bread product approximating hardtack (unleavened bread baked and dessicated) and the Menagier de Paris has a recipe for a crysp (unleavened bread, fried).

I am trying to determine more precisely the form that bread rations would have taken. My confusion stems from the difference between leavened and unleavened breads. Most of the 'evidence' I have seen for medieval hardtack relies on occurences of the terms biscuit (twice cooked) or panis nauticus (ship's bread). Either term could refer to zweiback (twice baked) which is, in modern terms, leavened bread baked once, cut into sections and then dessicated. In fact the term shifszweiback (ship's twice baked [bread]) suggests that panis nauticus may not have been hardtack (as we understand it) at all.

But I have no evidence either way and would greatly appreciate it if anyone could point me to some new information that would help clear up the question.

there is VERY little info on bread or bread products in period. There are a couple recipes in the cookbooks, but not much.

Check out Elisabeth Davids "english bread and Yeast Cookery". its a great book, with more info in one place than any other I've seen. She does a good job of gleaning this mention from here and that mention from there and putting them all in one place.

She talks about the "bread assiz" of the 12th century, which laid down the rules and regulations for Bakers. This is useful since what they tell us was NOT allowed suggests that which really happened .

I think its important to remember that bread was common. Hardtack is good when you're somewhere where you CANT get bread, ie at sea or such. Every tiny village had a baker where you could buy (or take) bread for cheap, so why eat nasty hardtack when you can have fresh bread instead? Every list of rations or food purchases clearly shows large piles of bread being bought, not biscuit, etc.

Also, anything that requires two bakings will require twice as much fuel and time to produce. I have never seen an example in the medieval european corpus of cookbooks that suggests such a technique. Frying then baking, sure, but that's for honey fritters .

hope this helps...
--AM

--------------------

Bread was common (and the preferred ration, I agree) but it takes a large number of large ovens to produce enough bread to feed an army, even for just one day. Most small towns and probably all villages would not have that sort of capacity.

I would be very interested in reading some of the supply lists you mention. Where can I find them? Are they for a field campaign or for garrison duty?

We should also remember that hardtack isn't really meant to be eaten 'raw'. While it can be done, it isn't a pleasant experience. Turning grain into hardtack is essentially a means of food preservation that has the side benefit of making the grain easier to transport and distribute. Hardtack can be re-ground and baked into bread, made into porridge or pottage, fried in grease, soaked in wine/beer, or mixed with bacon and cooked over/on coals.

>Also, anything that requires two bakings will require twice as much fuel and time to produce. I have never seen an example in the medieval european corpus of cookbooks that suggests such a technique. Frying then baking, sure, but that's for honey fritters.<

quote:

---

Originally posted by jester:
>...Bread was common (and the preferred ration, I agree) but it takes a large number of large ovens to produce enough bread to feed an army, even for just one day...

---

Above all, it takes TIME to bake bread, not a luxury that an army on the move would have in abundance. Surely the foragers would commandeer loaves of bread, if not a complete bakery. In a secure zone, such as a castle, barrels full of grain might have sufficed to feed the defenders, but that is assuming firewood or charcoal to bake with.

--------------------