Ham in Red Wine and Fennel Sauce
(this is for 50 people, all measurements approximate)
- Red wine ( I used a big bottle, but that’s cooking for 50)
- A cup or so sapa (reduced sweet wine) I cheated and used about ¾ of a can of frozen grape juice concentrate
- ½ or so red wine vinegar (should come out sweet/sour)
- Tbl. or so each of dill weed and thyme
- 2 tbl. or so coriander
- ¼ - ½ a cup honey (again, going for sweet and sour)
- 2 heads of fennel, chopped
- Tsp. of black pepper.
Boil the whole thing until the fennel is tender, then puree. Server over warm or cold ham slices.
Originally from a description in the “Heidelberg Papyrus”.
Braised Cucumbers
- Peeled, seeded and chopped cucumbers
- While wine vinegar
- Olive oil
- Honey
- Salt
Braise the cucumbers in the sauce ingredients until just approaching tender and serve warm.
Originally described in Pliny’s Natural History.
Celery in Raisin Sauce
- Celery
- Raisins
- Red wine vinegar
- Sapa (again I used frozen grape juice concentrate)
- Dried onion flakes
Cover the raisins in the sauce ingredients and let sit for an hour or two until plumped. Puree. I served the sauce with celery that had been stir-fried until hot but still crisp. I’ve tried it before over steamed celery, but I think I like stir-fried better.
Originally described in Columella’s On Agriculture.
Fried Carrots
- Carrots
- Oil for frying
- Salt & pepper
Fry until tender.
Originally described in Anthimus’ On Foods.
Chickpeas and cheese
- Cooked chickpeas (canned or from dried)
- Hard cheese such as parmesan or pecorino. I used good old green tube Kraft parmesan.
Heat up the chickpeas and coat in the cheese.
Originally described in Galen’s On the Powers in Foods.
All of these recipes I found described in Mark Grant’s fabulous Roman Cookery (Serif, London, 1999).