CRUDITIES WITH VARIOUS SAUCES

HOLERES CRUDA CUM OXYGARUM, OENOGARUM, ET OXYMEL 

Crudites with oenogarum, oxymel and hummus (made with verjus not lemon juice). Raw vegetables (Carrot, celery, cucumber, fennel, asparagus, olives, radish, spring onion, mushrooms) with various dipping sauces

Oxymel.

4 parts honey to 1 part cider vinegar, boil, skim reduce by 2/3.

Suggest 4 Tbsp honey, boiled, 1 TBsp red wine vinegar, coriander, rue, asafoetida, oil, salt.

Oenogarum. Apicius 4, 5, 3.

Oenogarum sic facies: teres piper, ligusticum, suffundis vinum et liquamen, passo temeprabie, olei modicum, mittis in caccabum et facies ut ferveat. Cum ferbuerit, amulo obliges.

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Make an oenogarum thus: crush pepper, lovage, origano, moisten with wine and fish sauce, blend with passum, put a little oil into the saucepan and let it boil. When it has boiled, thicken with cornstarch.

1 tsp pepper, 1 tsp lovage, 1 tsp origano, 2 TBsp fish sauce, 2 TBsp wine, 2 TBsp passum, 1 TBsp olive oil, boiled down and thickened with cornflour.

Or 2 TBsp fish sauce, 2 TBsp white wine, 2 TBsp passito, 2 Tbsp olive oil, ½ tsp black pepper. Combine, whisk and use as dipping sauce.

Or 50/50 fish sauce and sweet white wine boiled down to 60% of original volume.

Patina ciceris.

150g chickpeas, 60ml verjus or white wine vinegar, 2 cloves garlic, 100g tahini, olive oil, salt, black pepper, chopped parsley. Either boil chickpeas and use them with the boiling liquor, or use canned cooked chickpeas and include the liquid in the can. Blend all ingredients together, control texture with further additions of oil and cooking liquor or stock. Sprinkle with pepper and parsley and serve. 

OLIVE TAPENADE

CATO DE AGRI CULTURA 119.

EPITYRUM

EPITYRUM ALBUM NIGRUM VARIUMQUE  SIC FACITO. EX OLEIS ALBIS NIGRIS VARIISQUE NUCULEOS EICITO. SIC CONDITO. CONCIDITO IPSAS, ADDITO OLEUM, ACETUM, CORIANDRUM, CUMINUM, FENICULUM, RUTAM, MENTAM,. IN ORCULAM CONDITO, OLEUM SUPRA SIET. ITA UTITO.

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Recipe for a confection of green, ripe and mottled olives.

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120g black olives

120g green olives

60-90 ml red or white wine vinegar

60ml olive oil

1 tsp chopped fennel

2 tsp chopped coriander

1 tsp chopped rue

3 tsp chopped mint

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Remove the stones from green, ripe and mottled olives, and season as follows: chop the flesh and add oil, vinegar, coriander, cumin, fennel, rue and mint.

Cover with oil in an earthen dish and serve.

SNAILS A LA APICIUS

APICIUS 7, 18, 3.

COCLEAS

COCLEAS ASSAS; LIQUAMINE, PIPERE, CUMINO, SUFFUNDIS ASSIDUE.

120g tinned snails

4 TBsp best olive oil

Liquamen (Fish sauce) to taste

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Rinse snails, warm olive oil on stove, add snails, roast gently for 10 mins.

Baste diligently with liquamen, pepper and cumin.

BLUE SHELLED EGG + SWEET, SOUR & SALTY SAUCE

APICIUS 7, 19, 3. 

OVA   IN OVIS HAPALIS: PIPER, LIGUSTICUM, NUCLEOS INFUSOS. SUFFUNDES MEL, ACETUM: LIQUAMINE TEMPERABIS.

Soft-boiled blue-shelled chicken eggs with a sweet, sour and salty sauce

Sauce for soft-boiled eggs: pound pepper lovage, soaked pine kernels. Add honey and vinegar, blend with liquamen.

4 eggs

200g pine nuts

2 tsp pepper

1 tsp lovage

1 tsp honey

4 TBsp garum

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Soak pine nuts, then drain and grind. Add pepper, honey and garum. Heat gently. Boil eggs for 3½ mins, then plunge into cold water.

OYSTERS WITH LOVAGE, HONEY + VINEGAR

APICIUS 9, 6. 

IN OSTREIS  PIPER, LIGUSTICUM, OVI VITELLUM, ACETUM, LIQUAMEN, OLEUM ET VINUM. SI VOLUERIS, ET MEL ADDES.

Oysters au naturel with a lovage, honey and vinegar sauce

Dressing for oysters: pepper, lovage, yolk of egg, vinegar, liquamen, oil and wine. If you wish add also honey.

1 tsp lovage

1 TBsp white wine vinegar

1 TBsp garum

1 TBsp oil

1 TBsp honey

1 TBsp white wine

1 tsp pepper

1 egg yolk

SEAFOOD RISSOLES

APICIUS 2, 1, 1 (OR APICIUS 9, 1, 4.)

ISICIA

ISICIA FIUNT  MARINA DE CAMMARIS ET ASTACIS, DE LOLLIGINE, DE SEPIA, DE LUCUSTA. ISICIUM CONDIES PIPERE, LIQUAMINE, CUMINO, LASERIS RADICE.

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Seafood rissoles are made from large prawns, or lobsters, from squid, cuttlefish or sea-crayfish. You will flavour your rissoles with pepper, liquamen, cumin and asafoetida root.

250g green prawns

½ tsp black pepper

1 tsp cumin

½ tsp fried asafoetida powder

1 egg

30ml fish sauce

1 TBsp breadcrumbs

flour for dusting.

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Mince prawns, blend with all other ingredients, roll into 12 balls, dust with flour, chill. Then either simmer for 10 mins in the sauce given below, or deep fry the balls.

HONEY-GLAZED SHRIMPS

DALBY AND GRAINGER, CLASSICAL COOKBOOK, P48. 

Basically an invented Greekish recipe, but tasty:

225 g cooked shrimps

1 TBsp oil

2 TBsp fish sauce

1 TBsp honey

2 tsp origano, pepper.

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Saute shrimp with other ingredients for 2-3 min, then remove and keep warm. Reduce liquor by half, add oregano, pour over shrimp, dust with black pepper.

LUCULLAN SAUSAGES

APICUS 2, 4.  

LUCANICAE   LUCANICAE TERITUR PIPER, CUMINUM, SATUREIA, RUTA, PETROSELINUM, CONDIMENTUM, BACAE LAURI, LIQUAMEN, ET ADMISCETUR PULPA BENE TUNSA, ITA UT DENUO BENE CUM IPSO SUBTRITO FRICETUR. CUM LIQUAMINE ADMIXTO, PIPERE INTEGRO ET ABUDANTI PINGUEDINE ET NUCLEIS INICIES IN INTESTINUM PERQUAM TENUATIM PRODUCTUM, ET SIC AD FUMUM SUSPENDITUR

Pound pepper, cumin, savory, rue, parsley, mixed herbs laurel-berries, and liquamen, and mix this with well-beaten meat, pounding it again with the ground spice mixture. Work in liquamen, peppercorns, plenty of fat and pine kernels, insert into a sausage skin, draw out very thinly and hang in the smoke.

(serve with mustard – cum sinape)

450g minced belly pork

2 TBsp roasted pine kernels

20 black peppercorns

1 tsp each of rue, pepper, cumin, parsley

2 tsp savory

3 TBsp fish sauce

Laurel berries

Smoke in Weber with oak not hickory chips

ROAST SUCKING PIG A LA VITELLIUS

PORCELLUM VITELLIANUM

APICIUS 8, 7, 7.

PORCELLAM ORNAS QUASROAST SUCKING PIG A LA VITELLIUS. APICIUS 8, 7, 7.I APRUM, SALE ASPERGES, IN FURNO ASSAS. ADICIES IN MORTARIUM PIPER, LIGUSTICUM, SUFFUNDES LIQUAMEN, VINO ET PASSO TEMERABIS. IN CACCABO CUM OLEI PUSILLO FERVEAT. ET PORCELLUM ASSUM IURE ASPERGES, ITA UT SUB CUTE IUS RECIPIAT

Prepare a piglet like a boar, sprinkle with salt, roast in the oven.

Put in the mortar pepper, 1 tsp lovage, moisten with 45 ml liquamen, blend with 45 ml red wine and passum (or use honey, suggest 30ml).

Bring to the boil in a saucepan with a little oil.

Pour this sauce over the roasting piglet, allowing the sauce to penetrate under the crackling.

TWICE COOKED DUCK + BABY TURNIPS + GRAPE SYRUP

APICIUS 6, 2, 3.

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ANATEM EX RAPIS  

ANATEM EX RAPIS: LAVAS, ORNAS ET IN OLLA ELIXABIS CUM AQUA, SALE ET ANETHO DIMIDIA COCTURA. RAPAS COQUE, UT EXBROMARI POSSINT. LEVABIS DE OLLA, ET ITERUM LAVABIS, ET IN CACCABUM MITTIS ANATEM CUM OLEO ET LIQUAMINE ET FASCICULO PORRI ET CORIANDRI. RAPAM LOTAM ET MINUTATIM CONCISAM DESUPER MITTIS, FACIES UT COQUATUR. MODICA COCTURA MITTIS DEFRITUM UT COLORET, IUS TALE PARABIS: PIPER, CUMINUM, COIANDRUM, LASERIS RADICEM, SUFFUNDIS ACETUM ET IUS DE SUO SIBI, REEXANANIES SUPER ANATEM UT FERVEAT. CUM FERBUERIT, AMULO OBLIGABIS, ET SUPER RAPAS ADICIES. PIPER ASPARGIS ET ADPONIS

I Duck

I tsp salt

1 tsp dill

turnips

2 TBsp olive oil

bouquet coriander and leek

4 TBsp Defrutum

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Wash and truss the bird and boil it in a large saucepan with water, salt, dill until half done. Cook the turnips so that they lose their pungency. Remove the duck from the pan, wash again, and put into another saucepan with oil, liquamen and a bouquet of leek and coriander. Put over it one washed and finely chopped (raw) turnip and braise. When it has been cooking for a while add defrutum to give it colour. Then prepare the following sauce: pepper, cumin, coriander, asafoetida root, add vinegar, and some of the cooking liquor; pour over the duck and bring to the boil. When it boils thicken with cornflour, and add to the turnips. Sprinkle with pepper and serve.

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Boil duck for about an hour, reserve the cooking liquor. Stuff duck with bouquet of coriander and leek, then roast, basting frequently with defrutum.

Turnips parboiled for 8mins (much less if baby turnips), then basted with defrutum and added to the duck roasting pan.

Sauce: 2 TBsp garum, 2 TBsp olive oil, 2 TBsp defrutum, 150ml cooking liquor, 1 tsp black pepper, 20 ml white wine vinegar, cornflour to thicken.

ROASTED VENISON + 4 SAUCES

APICIUS 8, 2, 4.

IN CERVO 

Backstraps or rump roast ideally. Rub with salt and pepper, brown meat in olive oil. Baste with honey, garum, wine, garlic and pepper baste. Preheat oven to 220 deg C, use meat thermometer to determine when done. Do not overcook: aim 125 deg F in centre of meat. Allow to rest before serving.

Sauces for Venison: Apicius 8, 2

4. IUS IN CERVO: PIPER, LIGUSTICUM, CEPULAM, ORIGANUM, NUCLEOS, CARYOTAS, MEL, LIQUAMEN, SINAPE, ACETUM, OLEUM.

½ tsp black pepper, 1 tsp lovage seed or celery seed, 4TBsp shallots, ½ tsp dried oregano, 2 TBsp toasted hazelnuts or almonds, 2 Tbsp dates, 2 tsp honey, 2 TBsp garum, 250 beef stock, 2 tsp mustard, 1 Tbsp white wine vinegar, 2 tsp olive oil. Grind seeds, mix all ingredients, boil 25 mins.

Variant interpretation of sauce: ½ tsp pepper, ½ tsp chopped lovage, 2 TBsp chopped onion, 1 tsp oregano, 1 TBsp toasted pinenuts, 2 TBsp chopped dates, 2 TBsp honey, 1 TBsp liquamen, 1 tsp mustard, 1 TBsp white wine vinegar. Olive oil as needed.

5. CERVINAE CONDITURA: PIPER, CUMINUM, CONDIMENTUM, PETROSELINUM, CEPAM, RUTAM, MEL, LIQUAMEN, MENTAM, PASSUM, CAROENUM ET OLEUM MODICE. AMULO OBLIGAS, CUM IAM BULLIIT

½ tsp pepper, ½ tsp cumin, 1 TBsp parsley, 2 TBsp onion, ½ tsp rue, 1 TBsp honey, 1 TBsp liquamen, 1 TBsp mint, 1 TBsp passum (used red wine), 1 TBsp caroenum, olive oil, cornflour. Boil.

8. ALITER IN CERVUM ASSUM IURA FERVENTIA: PIPER, LIGUSTICUM, PETROSELINUM, DAMASCENE MACERATA, VINUM, MEL, ACETUM, LIQUAMEN, OLEUM MODICE. AGITABIS PORRO ET SATUREIA

Hot sauce for venison, another method: ½ tsp pepper, ½ tsp lovage, 1 tsp parsley, 200g soaked damsons, 2 glasses wine, 2 TBsp honey, 2 TBsp vinegar, 4 TBsp fish sauce, a little oil. Stir with a bunch of leek and savory. (Cook gently for an hour).

HONEYED MUSHROOMS

BOLETOS 

BOLETOS ALITER: THYRSOS EORUM CONCISOS IN PATELLAM NOVAM PERFUNDIS, ADDITO PIPERE, LIGUSTICO, MODICO MELLE, LIQUAMINE TEMPERABIS. OLEUM MODICE.

1 TBsp olive oil

I TBsp fish sauce

2 TBsp honey

2 tsp chopped lovage (or celery leaf)

½ tsp black pepper,

250g sliced mushrooms

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Boil sauce ingredients, add mushrooms till sauce reduced to a glaze. Or fry mushrooms in olive oil and glaze with equal quantities of honey and garum. 

LENTILS + CHESTNUTS + SWEET & SOUR SAUCE

APICIUS 5, 2, 11.

LENTICULAM DE CASTANEIS 

ACCIPIES CACCABUM NOVUM, ET CASTANEAS PURGATAS DILIGENTER MITTIS. ADICIES AQUAM ET NITRUM MODICE, FACIES ET COQUATUR. CUM COQUITUR, MITTIS IN MORTARIO PIPER, CUMINUM, SEMEN CORIANDRI, MENTAM, RUTAM, LASERIS RADICEM, PULCIUM FRICABIS. SUFFUNDIS ACETUM, (ADICIES) MEL, LIQUAMEN, ACETO TEMPERABIS, ET SUPER CASTANEAS COCTAS REFUNDIS. ADICIES OLEUM, FACIES UT FERVEAT. CUM BENE FERBUERIT, TUDICLABIS (UT IN MORTARIO TERES). GUSTAS, SI QUID DEEST, ADDES. CUM IN BOLETAR MISERIS, ADDES OLEUM VIRIDE.

600 ml beef stock

225g sweet chestnuts

½ tsp pepper

½ tsp coriander

½ tsp cumin

pinch asafoetida

1 tsp rosemary

rue

1 Tbsp honey

1 TBsp red wine vinegar

200 g cooked lentils

salt, fresh black pepper

olive oil.

Grind spices, mix with wine and honey to form a paste. Boil chestnuts in stock with spice mix until tender, then crush in a blender, mix with cooked lentils, add water, season with salt, pepper, oil.

PATINA OF PEARS A LA APICIUS

APICIUS 4, 2, 25.

PATINA DE PIRIS.

PATINA DE PIRIS: PIRA ELIXA ET PURGATA E MEDIO TERES CUM PIPERE, CUMINO, MELLE, PASSO, LIQUAMINE, OLEO MODICO. OVIS MISSIS PATINAM FACIES, PIPER SUPER ASPARGES ET INFERES.

675g Pears

280ml raisin wine

2 TBsp honey

1 tsp cumin

1 TBsp olive oil

1 TBsp fish sauce

3 eggs

½ tsp pepper

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Peel and core the peas and chop them roughly. Cook till soft in passum and honey. Pass through a sieve or process till smooth. Add the cumin, oil, fish sauce and eggs and process again. Pour into a greased casserole dish and bake in a pre-heated oven at 190 deg C. for 20 minutes or until it sets. Serve warm with a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper. 

THREE LAYERED BRITTLE (HONEY NUT CAKE)

ATHENAEUS 647f.

In Crete they make a little cake which they call gastris. This is how it is done: sweet almonds, hazelnuts, bitter almonds, poppy seeds; roast them, watching them carefully and pound well in a clean mortar. After mixing the nuts, knead with boiled honey, adding plenty of pepper. It turns black because of the poppy. Flatten out into a square. Now pound some white sesame, work with boiled honey, and stretch two lagana, one below and the other above, so that the black is in the middle, and divide into shapes.

To make 15 pcs;

120g nibbed almonds

120g nibbed hazelnuts

15g bitter almonds

32 TBsp black poppy seed

170g sesame seed

7 TBsp clear honey

1 tsp (or less?)

Coarsely ground black pepper.

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Heat oven to 180 deg C. Mix nuts and poppy seeds and roast to colour. Roast sesame seeds very briefly. Pound all into a fine mixture. Put 3 TBsp honey into a pan, boil and simmer gently for 7 mins. Add the pounded sesame seed and stir well. Allow to cool and turn out onto a greased board. Grease hands and knead till firm but still warm. Divide into 2 equal portions. And keep one of these warm on stovetop. Grease a shallow baking tray or pan with olive oil, then using a greased rolling pin, roll out the cooler portion of the sesame paste into a thin sheet to fit inside the tray.

Place all the roasted nuts in a food processor with pepper and process till fine. Boil the remaining 4 TBsp honey for 7 mins as before, then add the nut mixture and stir well. While still hot, spread this over the sesame layer and level it off. Roll the second layer of sesame paste in to a sheet that covers the nuts. Put it inplace on top, leave for an hour to set, and without further delay (it will harden) cut into lozenges.

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Note: bitter almonds available from Chinese foodshops, ideally get Greek mountain thyme honey (thymeli). 

CHEESE AND SESAME SWEETMEATS

CATO DE AGRI CULTURA 79.

GLOBI

GLOBOS SIC FACITO. CASEUM CUM ALICA AD EUNDEM MODUM MISCETO. INDE QUANTOS VOLES FACERE FACITO. IN AHENUM CALDUM UNGUEN INDITO. SINGULOS AUT BINOS COQUITO VERSATOQUE CREBRO DUABUS RUDIBUS, COCTOS EXIMITO, EOS MELLE UNGUITO, PAPAVER INFRIATO, ITA PONITO.

1.25 cups milk

2 TBsp semolina

3 TBsp honey

120g ricotta

85g sesame seed, lightly roasted, olive oil. 

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Boil milk, sprinkle in semolina, allow to cool, stirring as needed. When cool, add I TBsp honey and all ricotta. Mix, and stir in 60 g sesame seeds. Form quenelles, deep fry one or two at a time till golden brown, drain on paper. Pour over remaining (warmed) honey, dredge with remaining sesame seeds.