Food & History–The Renaissance Table

Take a step into the past! Explore recipes, cooking methods, and social rituals surrounding the preparation and consumption of food in late Medieval/early Renaissance Europe. Expect hands-on experience with period recipes, from pottage to elaborate meat pies, prepared on a wood-fired hearth. Engage in discussions of historical context, including the impacts of trade routes and social position in shaping culinary traditions. Prepare for a feast for the senses; period costumes welcome. $

$90-$130

Karen Becker has more than 30 years of experience in living history and museum work, focusing on crafts, costuming, and domestic skills. She was formerly the Domestic Skills Coordinator at Old Salem in Winston-Salem, NC, followed by a long stint at the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, VA. Karen has special interest in 18th-century Scottish dress and foodways; she prepares haggis for an annual Burns Night Dinner. Early German peasant cookery, gingerbread, and Nigerian foodways have also intrigued her. Now happily retired, she enjoys Scottish Country Dancing and is setting up a home studio for historic fun!