In September 1533. In the portyener Catherine Medici, he sat on a ship that was supposed to take her to France to celebrate the sector with Henry II. She brought not only hand luggage with her: in addition to suitcases with clothes and caskets with jewelry, the newly -made queen took a real pantry with her.
In her royal retinue, one vine, bakers, confectioners and several excellent culinary specialists were welded. Catherine’s distrust of French cuisine was based on the fact that at the beginning of XVI in. Cooking on the banks of the Seine was really not too good. The French court of that time was characterized by an abundance of abundance, preserved from the Middle Ages. Any meal was carried out in compliance with certain rules, since the wealth of the owners of the house was supposed to reflect. Exotic and expensive products were much higher than fresh local. The preparation of dishes has passed many stages, one is more complicated than the other, and the art of adding spices was reborn to orgia! After eating, the guests usually started one game, very amusing them. They restored the list of ingredients used for the preparation that they just tasted! It seemed as if France was not able to perceive new trends that appeared after Maestro Martino translated the great creation of De Honesta Voluptate et Valetudine (“On true pleasures and well -being”), dedicated to cooking and the art of serving, created by the Italian Bartolomeo, known under the name of Platinum (Platina). Unfortunately, this very useful treatise, in which he tried to illuminate the rules of the exquisite kitchen, remained an empty sound for her. The access to the political and culinary arena of Catherine was caused by a real palace coup. Her marriage, deftly organized by Pope Clementy VII, left the work of French cooks without the work. Since Catherine loved to eat and was a thin gourmet, she forbade to serve at the same time sweet, sour, sharp and salty dishes. She ordered them to bring them to the table so that they were well combined with each other.
The riot of food has ceased to be considered the order of things. Fessile banquets gave way to a well -thought -out ceremony. The thinnest dishes were served to the table; Exclamation reigned behind him and social conversations were held. Roughly executed cups were replaced by elegant Venetian glasses. From the Faenians ordered to deliver the earthenware – clay dishes covered with icing. It was Catherine who instilled in France to use a fork. However, Catherine did not stop there. She took up the main food – olive oil and beans. And she also gave an impetus to the development of local dishes as a prosecutor with chestnuts, fricassa, stewed meat, paste, shherbets. In addition, it improved the distillation of the liquor according to the recipe of the monastery Delle Murata. Catherine introduced spinach in Florentine and began to order artichokes for her husband. We also owe it to her by the fact that in France we began to breed grapes of the variety of trebbano.
According to other sources, she gave the Italians the opportunity to get acquainted with the Caburne grapes. Simply put, in Paris it was considered a good tone to dine in the “Queen of Catherine’s style”. Even several centuries later she was remembered and revered for introducing to French cooking. The beloved cook of Napoleon and Talleyrand, the great Aituan Karem (1784-1833), did not get tired of repeating that the famous “caps” (cooks) should learn the art of Italian culinary specialists Ekaterina Medici before taking up French cuisine.
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Santi di Tito (1536-1603), portrait of Catherine Medici 1585-1586, butter on boards (wood), 142 × 118 cm, Uffizi Gallery, Florence