Dora Bremond

In the colonial times, the woman were the ones who cooked. She was bound to cook the food and take care of that process. The daughters also helped, but only if they had any daughters. Sometimes in more wealthy houses the woman did not do the whole process alone. Most of the people were women, but sometimes could be men. They worked in taverns and on plantations. In the 1600s people called indentured servants were the ones who took over the process of cooking. A lot of the servants were people who wanted to go to America instead of Europe, but did not have enough money to go on the trip. Later on, there were slaves that wealthy families owned. The slaves were people were brought from Africa and then sold.

From research I have done in the past, it always seems to be woman that run the households. I am not surprised by the fact that they were the ones that needed to cook. Something I was surprised about was that sometimes men were the ones to cook. Why weren’t they at work. I believe that sometimes the cooking was their job or that the men were unmarried, or their wives had died. What kinds of things did the daughters help out with? I infer that they helped with the baking, the vegetables and even getting water from the well. Sometimes in wealthier households the servants were told what to cook and cooked  instead of the women. I wonder what women did if they didn’t cook? Maybe they did many arts, organized and helped out their children.  I was surprised by the fact that the servants could not afford the trip across the seas, because did it really cost that much money? These servants weren’t even paid for all the long and time consuming work they did. Were the slaves part of their family in some way? I bet that they were not even cared about and maybe even forgotten about. So they did not get to eat with the family, and have a conversations with the people. I think that the thought of a human being being purchased is terrible. This kind of reminds me of the Giver in a way because people are controlled so much. They don’t have a right in what to say, and are obligated to follow the rules. I am surprised that slaves did not stand up for themselves. Intact why, was there a reason? I believe that slaves were not cared about and whatever they said was unheard. I believe that these people had been following the rules the whole time and were afraid to break those. I believe that they were terrified of the consequences that would happen if they broke the rules. They were forced to work without being paid.  A slave didn’t only have to cook for the family she worked for but also her own family. How did she have time to cook two different meals in two different places? I infer that every night her family had to eat very very very late.

 

Stella Kekalos

Paraphrase or summary:

– Wealthier people had a dinner including eight or nine dishes

– Desserts like pies and crisps were made out of fresh or dried fruits

– Fruits were also used to make cider (which was a very popular drink), juices and a drink called shrub which was a dessert drink

– People who were wealthy meet in the dining room for dinner

– Servant and slaves would serve them platters of food in the dining room

– On special occasions or when guests were over the cook took extra time and effort to make food so that guests would be impressed

– The chef wanted to make sure the food looked and tasted great

– She trimmed the outside of the pies with braided dough

– Cakes were sprinkled with sugar

– These meals were served on the families fanciest and beat dishes

– Some of the wealthier families owned dinnerware that was brought over from England

My Ideas:

Wealthier people had a dinner including eight or nine dishes. They had desserts like pies and crisps that could be made out of fresh or dried fruits. They had severely different dessert cakes and puddings. One of the many privileges they had was ice cream. In Williamsburg ice cream was reserved to the upper-class because there were only two ice boxes. Fruits were also used to make ciders and juices. Cider was one of the most popular drinks in England. Another thing they made was called shrub which was a dessert drink. People gathered in the dining room to eat dinner. The servants and slaves would bring the food from the kitchen to the dining room. On special occasions or when guests were over the cook took extra time and effort to make food so that guests would be impressed. This boosts the appearance and social status of the family. The chef wanted to make sure her food was perfect, it needed to look and taste great. One of the ways she did that was by trimming the outside of the pies with braided dough. They also sprinkled cakes with sugar. These meals were served on the families fanciest and best dishes. Some of the wealthier families owned dinnerware that was brought over from England

In most homes the cook prepared one or two main dishes for a meal. The less wealthy families ate meals at a rough wooden table. They ate from trenchers using wooden spoons. Trenchers were bowls carved from blocks of wood. Sometimes the trenchers were carved right into the tabletops. If there were not enough trenchers for everyone the mothers and daughters ate after the fathers and sons finished. In wealthy families when guests were over kids sat at their own table. When they were old enough they sat with the adults because they could engage in conversation.

 

Lily P

Paraphrase or summary: The gentry class had 7 courses

Every meal there was one source of meat for protein. Usually pork

The vegetables were flavored with meat

They only ate beef occasionally because cows were hard to raise

They ate vegetables like onions, carrots, potatoes, turnips, and fruits like apples.

There were various types of greens in the summer

They ate desserts like custards, cakes, pies, puddings

The fish that they ate was caught in the river

They also had deer, duck, and goose

Fish was covered in a thin crust and then decorated

My ideas: I think that the gentry class kind of showed off what they had. When they had guests, they probably served their best and most expensive foods, to show off how rich they were. Also, when guests were there, they dressed nicer than they usually would, and served all of the food on nicer plates, and trays. They ate seven courses because they had all of this delicious food, and wanted to fill their guests up. Basically all of the foods that they ate were either grown, or hunted, because there weren’t as many grocery stores, and even if they were, they didn’t sell everything. The gentry class owned more animals like pigs. They kept cows sometimes, but not usually because they had to be fed bought food, instead of scraps off of the table like the pigs would eat. The gentry class also owned more land, that they used to grow fruits, and vegetables. They caught the fish that they ate in the James river, and then they decorated it, to make it look more impressive for their guests. The slave did all of this for them though, because they were lazy and needed someone to do it for them. I can infer that the gentry class only had guests over for supper, because dinner, and breakfast were all leftovers from supper, and they wouldn’t want their guests to have to eat the leftovers.

 

Nina G

The Kitchen House

“In large homes and on plantations, the kitchen was a separate building. It was often connected to the Big House, or main house, by a breezeway, or covered walkway. Having a separate kitchen kept heat and cooking smells away from the living areas. It was also safer. If the kitchen caught fire, the flames could be put out before they spread to the main house. Families who lived in places with cold winters often had two kitchens. In summer, they cooked in a separate building called a summer kitchen or at an outdoor fireplace or oven. During winter, they used the fireplace inside the main house, since doing so helped keep the entire house warm.”

• the kitchen was separate from the large homes and on plantations
• The kitchen was usually connected to the Big House using a breezeway or a covered walkway
• it was safer and kept the heat and smells out of the main house
• if a fire was in the kitchen it could be put out before the main house caught on fire
• anyone who lived in a place where the winters were cold they might have two kitchens, one for the summer called a summer kitchen or cook at an outdoor fireplace or oven
• during the winter they would use the main house fireplace to keep the whole house warm

People who lived in a house with warmer winters than others, they would have one separate kitchen. People with colder winters would have two kitchens. One in the main house and a separate one near the house, or when the woman of the house cooked a meal, she could make a fire or use an oven outside. I wonder if they had any other buildings that held food supplies or pots and pans. The Europeans probably had a storage place where they kept the food that went bad, along with the Indians, and that the African Americans had to get supplies for all of the meals for that day. Pots and pans were very expensive and not many people had more than about two or three pots and two or three pans, even if someone was in the middle, upper middle, or higher class. They also probably used the pots and pans more than once every day because they didn’t have enough to make all of the food for the whole day. It also probably took a long time to make breakfast, dinner, and supper. I can infer that supper was just leftovers from dinner because dinner was an elaborate meal, and the biggest, most important meal of the day. When it comes to bowls, plates, and utensils, the upper and middle class would probably have metal spoons, and the lower class would use wooden bowls, sometimes the bowls were carved into the table, and they would also use wooden utensils. For the lower class, if there weren’t enough bowls for everyone to eat at the same time, the men would eat first, then the women. I can infer that the women were bossed around when the men ate if there weren’t enough bowls for the women. Also, that there wasn’t always enough food for the women to have as much as the men ate. I think this is very unfair because men are no better than women.