flipAlmond Milk with Barley, A Water-Cure Beverage
Almond Milk with Barley, A Water-Cure Beverage
Why this dish? Montaigne suffered from "gravelle" (kidney stones), an ailment that led him to take the waters at Bagni di Lucca in Tuscany and elsewhere — hence the thermal cup among his objects. The medicine of his time prescribed cooling drinks such as almond milk and barley tisane for the stone: here is the potion that accompanied his cure.
A sweet, soothing drink without animal milk: ground almonds infused with a barley decoction, lightly sweetened. Cool and slightly bitter, it was the dietary beverage recommended for stone sufferers like Montaigne, between glasses of thermal water.
You who read me, know that the stone has greatly tormented me, that malady of my father which I inherited like a troublesome legacy. At the waters of Lucca, between two cups of that sulfurous water, they gave me this almond milk mixed with barley, cool and sweet, to refresh the kidneys. I expect no great miracle from doctors or their brews, I frankly admit — but this one, at least, is pleasant to the mouth and does no harm, which is already much.
- •Sweet almonds — a good handful (milk base)
- •Barley — a cup (soothing decoction)
- •Water — sufficient (liquid)
- •Sugar or honey — a little (sweetness)
- •Orange flower water or lemon peel — a few drops (flavor (optional))
Almond Milk with Barley, A Water-Cure Beverage
A sweet, soothing drink without animal milk: ground almonds infused with a barley decoction, lightly sweetened. Cool and slightly bitter, it was the dietary beverage recommended for stone sufferers like Montaigne, between glasses of thermal water.
Why this dish? Montaigne suffered from "gravelle" (kidney stones), an ailment that led him to take the waters at Bagni di Lucca in Tuscany and elsewhere — hence the thermal cup among his objects. The medicine of his time prescribed cooling drinks such as almond milk and barley tisane for the stone: here is the potion that accompanied his cure.
You who read me, know that the stone has greatly tormented me, that malady of my father which I inherited like a troublesome legacy. At the waters of Lucca, between two cups of that sulfurous water, they gave me this almond milk mixed with barley, cool and sweet, to refresh the kidneys. I expect no great miracle from doctors or their brews, I frankly admit — but this one, at least, is pleasant to the mouth and does no harm, which is already much.
Ingredients (period version)
- Sweet almonds — a good handful (milk base)
- Barley — a cup (soothing decoction)
- Water — sufficient (liquid)
- Sugar or honey — a little (sweetness)
- Orange flower water or lemon peel — a few drops (flavor (optional))
Ingredients
- Blanched almonds — 150 g (almond milk)
- Pearl barley — 60 g (decoction)
- Water — 1 litre (liquid)
- Sugar or honey — 2 tbsp (sweetness)
- Orange flower water — 1 tsp (flavor (optional))
Method
- Rinse the barley, cover with 75 cl of water, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes; strain to keep the barley water.
- Soak the almonds in hot water for 1 hour, then drain.
- Blend the almonds with the warm barley water until milky.
- Strain through a fine cloth to retain the pulp (save it for baking).
- Sweeten lightly, flavor with a little orange flower water, and serve well chilled.
How it was made : Before coffee and tea, almond milk was a beverage of choice, especially on lean days when animal milk was forbidden. Humoral medicine of the Renaissance considered it, like barley tisane, "cooling" and beneficial for heated kidneys. Montaigne, skeptical of doctors, described his thermal cures at length in his Travel Journal.
The contemporary twist : Serve it over ice in a tall glass with a few ice cubes and a lemon twist — an old-fashioned "orgeat-almond" drink, distant ancestor of our plant milks.
Sources : Montaigne, Travel Journal (thermal cures, kidney stones) · Platina, De honesta voluptate et valetudine
Michel de Montaigne · Charactorium
