I assume that Vreni is trying, with some spices that Baako bought, to make a somewhat tasty dish out of the bloomrabi, and they invited Scarlet to have lunch with them.
And by the look of it Vreni is a much better cook than Tibor or at last puts in much more effort. And possibly she can spend more on condiments, herbs and spices too.
The red root vegetables are firebeets (or just beets, as Scarlet calls them in MoES 003) – and they look just like real world beets. Bloomrabi must look like real world kohlrabi, white with slight yellow or green tint. We see it cooked in SFoS 005, and I think the white ball-like vegetables in the boxes in SFoS 066 (panel 2) and SFoS 096 (panel 2) are bloomrabi.
A plausible (therefore unlikely…) followup to this episode is something like this:
Scarlet is persuaded to try this dish, and to her astonishment, loves it. She asks Vreni for the recipe, which of course is cheerfully given, along with some spices to try it out. At the next meal with Tibor, she announces that SHE will do the cooking from now on. This does not do wonders for Tibor’s self-esteem, as might be imagined, with consequences that will take the rest of this chapter, and probably another one, to explore.
Incidentally, as a lover of the cuisine of New Mexico and the fantastic chile peppers it features, my first reaction on seeing the sixth and seventh panels was “red, green, or Christmas?”
Having lived within a hundred miles of the border with Mexico all my life, currently in New Mexico, I heartily endorse this message.
When Prairie Home Companion was in Las Cruces in 2008, he was doing his opening local humor bit. “The morning after we arrived, we went out for breakfast and I ordered pancakes. The waitress asked if I wanted red or green.”
(interlude music) Those are big beets. (low-fry hip hop beets to study/cook to) So there are gemstones that produce heat, instead of gems that heat a coil, like electrical frying pans? Where was that when people were freezing to death?
We get no info on what Farm Man is selling. Spices? Apple sugar? Marijuana? I’ve never bought the storyfluff that only two foodstuff plants exist. If something’s hushed up, that means that fewer people have heard about it. Grafting a apple sapling as a branch to an oak tree is just as plausible as the omelette stove the cook is using.
People were starving to death, not freezing. And though the climate is indeed getting colder, the crystals probably wouldn’t suffice for all the people (or would otherwise drain eventually so that’s just postponing the inevitable). The way things are going, they’re at risk of running out of food sooner than freezing.
Of course, the next question to ask would be about heated greenhouses, but it might well be that the crystal can’t substitute sunlight (and no champignon either).
Novil beat you to it: https://www.sandraandwoo.com/scarlet/setting/#plants
“Some endeavors to grow food indoors exist, but there’s not enough heating material available for widespread application. Still, these greenhouses ease the situation at least a little.”
Fungi would not solve hunger issues anyway as we don’t extract any nutrients from them (or barely any). We eat them only for their taste.
hkmaly
Mushroom contain lot of vitamins, that counts as nutrients. They are low on calories, that’s true.
Vicious Sand
There are (on Earth) mushrooms that can be used to make antibiotics. The famous story of bread mould that creates penicillin. And mushroom alcohol, because humans keep alcoholing everything. None of that’s food, I admit.
Well, we’ve seen crystals draining (energy crystals in weapons at last). We’ve also seen they are mined and even a low yield mine is kept open to get them and it still is important enough for Kirelia to show this on their coats of arms. There may be other sources but the main one seems mining. Since these crystals seem to power most of their tech this means energy probably is fairly expensive. Meaning heating a greenhouse would probably not be economical. It would also require mass produced sheet glass and structural material, most building we’ve seen use wood and stone. We’ve seen very little in the way of mass producing anything so they likely couldn’t build enough greenhouses even if they were viable.
Interestingly enough we don’t see them using wood for fuel – only as building material.
HKMaly
They don’t use wood as fuel because it’s too costly, probably. Also, note about glass: it needs LOT of energy to produce, and it’s hard to make really transparent.
I asume that the gemstones that generate heat are not so efficient or numerous that they would be used on a large scale. I believe that wood is used for heating apartments as well as for industrial processes (metallurgy, brick-making, etc.). There is a lot of forest on Lavarel, and I believe that the population density is low, so there is enough wood for construction and firewood. We see chimneys on houses and stoves in rooms, and on the table SFOS 080 there is an iron stove with a smoke outlet in the room.
You’re acting like conditions are exactly the same all over the world, yet not only do we know there are wealthier and poorer regions, this would be just like Earth (since you insist on making such comparisons despite this being a fantasy world). For example, just because well-off households in the US or Europe have induction ranges doesn’t mean people in poorer parts of Africa aren’t cooking on charcoal burners. The current setting and characters seem fairly well off, so it’s not hard to grasp that maybe they have access to limited higher levels of magical technology.
18 thoughts on “Machine Girl 009”
Hegel-Marx
I assume that Vreni is trying, with some spices that Baako bought, to make a somewhat tasty dish out of the bloomrabi, and they invited Scarlet to have lunch with them.
'phoon
And by the look of it Vreni is a much better cook than Tibor or at last puts in much more effort. And possibly she can spend more on condiments, herbs and spices too.
SadBeaver
The red root vegetables are firebeets (or just beets, as Scarlet calls them in MoES 003) – and they look just like real world beets. Bloomrabi must look like real world kohlrabi, white with slight yellow or green tint. We see it cooked in SFoS 005, and I think the white ball-like vegetables in the boxes in SFoS 066 (panel 2) and SFoS 096 (panel 2) are bloomrabi.
Hegel-Marx
SadBeaver, Thanks for the correction!! 👍
Graybeard
A plausible (therefore unlikely…) followup to this episode is something like this:
Scarlet is persuaded to try this dish, and to her astonishment, loves it. She asks Vreni for the recipe, which of course is cheerfully given, along with some spices to try it out. At the next meal with Tibor, she announces that SHE will do the cooking from now on. This does not do wonders for Tibor’s self-esteem, as might be imagined, with consequences that will take the rest of this chapter, and probably another one, to explore.
Novil
Not that Scarlet is an action-packed comic, but that would be way too slow.
Graybeard
Incidentally, as a lover of the cuisine of New Mexico and the fantastic chile peppers it features, my first reaction on seeing the sixth and seventh panels was “red, green, or Christmas?”
Wayne
Having lived within a hundred miles of the border with Mexico all my life, currently in New Mexico, I heartily endorse this message.
When Prairie Home Companion was in Las Cruces in 2008, he was doing his opening local humor bit. “The morning after we arrived, we went out for breakfast and I ordered pancakes. The waitress asked if I wanted red or green.”
Vicious Sand
(interlude music) Those are big beets. (low-fry hip hop beets to study/cook to) So there are gemstones that produce heat, instead of gems that heat a coil, like electrical frying pans? Where was that when people were freezing to death?
We get no info on what Farm Man is selling. Spices? Apple sugar? Marijuana? I’ve never bought the storyfluff that only two foodstuff plants exist. If something’s hushed up, that means that fewer people have heard about it. Grafting a apple sapling as a branch to an oak tree is just as plausible as the omelette stove the cook is using.
Tadrix
People were starving to death, not freezing. And though the climate is indeed getting colder, the crystals probably wouldn’t suffice for all the people (or would otherwise drain eventually so that’s just postponing the inevitable). The way things are going, they’re at risk of running out of food sooner than freezing.
Of course, the next question to ask would be about heated greenhouses, but it might well be that the crystal can’t substitute sunlight (and no champignon either).
Midgard
Novil beat you to it: https://www.sandraandwoo.com/scarlet/setting/#plants
“Some endeavors to grow food indoors exist, but there’s not enough heating material available for widespread application. Still, these greenhouses ease the situation at least a little.”
No One of Consequence
Fungi would not solve hunger issues anyway as we don’t extract any nutrients from them (or barely any). We eat them only for their taste.
hkmaly
Mushroom contain lot of vitamins, that counts as nutrients. They are low on calories, that’s true.
Vicious Sand
There are (on Earth) mushrooms that can be used to make antibiotics. The famous story of bread mould that creates penicillin. And mushroom alcohol, because humans keep alcoholing everything. None of that’s food, I admit.
'phoon
Well, we’ve seen crystals draining (energy crystals in weapons at last). We’ve also seen they are mined and even a low yield mine is kept open to get them and it still is important enough for Kirelia to show this on their coats of arms. There may be other sources but the main one seems mining. Since these crystals seem to power most of their tech this means energy probably is fairly expensive. Meaning heating a greenhouse would probably not be economical. It would also require mass produced sheet glass and structural material, most building we’ve seen use wood and stone. We’ve seen very little in the way of mass producing anything so they likely couldn’t build enough greenhouses even if they were viable.
Interestingly enough we don’t see them using wood for fuel – only as building material.
HKMaly
They don’t use wood as fuel because it’s too costly, probably. Also, note about glass: it needs LOT of energy to produce, and it’s hard to make really transparent.
Hegel-Marx
I asume that the gemstones that generate heat are not so efficient or numerous that they would be used on a large scale. I believe that wood is used for heating apartments as well as for industrial processes (metallurgy, brick-making, etc.). There is a lot of forest on Lavarel, and I believe that the population density is low, so there is enough wood for construction and firewood. We see chimneys on houses and stoves in rooms, and on the table SFOS 080 there is an iron stove with a smoke outlet in the room.
ME
You’re acting like conditions are exactly the same all over the world, yet not only do we know there are wealthier and poorer regions, this would be just like Earth (since you insist on making such comparisons despite this being a fantasy world). For example, just because well-off households in the US or Europe have induction ranges doesn’t mean people in poorer parts of Africa aren’t cooking on charcoal burners. The current setting and characters seem fairly well off, so it’s not hard to grasp that maybe they have access to limited higher levels of magical technology.
Poll
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Ariana Carolus Athamas Baako Bolin Cyril Evelina Ferrus Gale Nenawa Gavin Carolus Iona Jehona Shardyk Julius Mirkning Kala Silverspring King Protos Lauro Levon Goldwood Leyton Wayt Luitpold Marik Marton Princess Elodie Raymond Reto Mirkning Reva Rodar Rosetta Greenleaf Scarlet Carolus Severin Silvana Mirkning Tibor Frey Vidal Viola Vreni Xaver Yerim Zach Ilkin