I admit it. I am a pit bull about some things. Once I get an
idea in my head, it’s hard to let go (just ask Dr Lostpast).
A few weeks ago, I read that a dish from Apicius’ De re
Coquinaria was like pizza. When I checked the original (I know,
what a geek –– yes, I have a copy), I found the recipe had nothing to do with a
pizza… it was a salad. Once found,
I loved the idea of it, made it, and loved the tastes and textures in the
finished dish. Those Romans knew how to eat.
So, who was Apicius? The name probably came from 1st
century Roman gourmet, Marcus Gavius Apicius. This is a little vague because there seems to have been a
famous earlier gourmet named Apicius in 90 BC and the name became more of a
symbol than a real person. The word Apicius came to mean gourmet at its best
and glutton at its worst. Although I read through a lot of material, it wasn’t
until I found a great article by historian and chef Sally Grainger in
Gastronomica that I felt a strong storyline develop. It was she who said, “Juvenal thinks of all gourmets as
Apicius…. In the A.D.120s another man with that name is credited with sending
oysters to Trajan. Clearly, he has
this name because he likes food, it is used as a cognomen, a nickname that
someone acquires after displaying a particular attribute.”
Apicius’ food advice was mentioned in Pliny, Seneca and
Tacitus and there was even a work (now lost) called On the Luxury of Apicius
by a Greek named Apion. There was a kind of cheesecake named for him and he
supposedly had a school for cooks. Word was his meals were so remarkable that
the Imperial government gave him money to entertain foreign dignitaries for
them.
Grainger noted Seneca deplored such a lifestyle: “May the Gods and Goddesses ruin those whose greed crosses even the boundaries of our invidious empire. They wish produce to be caught beyond the Phasis [ends of the earth] to equip their pretentious cook-shops!” Further, Seneca was horrified that Apicius celebration of cooking was more respected than philosophy, “Apicius, whom we remember well, he who proclaimed the science of the cook shop and afflicted a generation with his doctrine in the city from which philosophers were ordered to leave as though the corrupters of youth.”
Grainger noted Seneca deplored such a lifestyle: “May the Gods and Goddesses ruin those whose greed crosses even the boundaries of our invidious empire. They wish produce to be caught beyond the Phasis [ends of the earth] to equip their pretentious cook-shops!” Further, Seneca was horrified that Apicius celebration of cooking was more respected than philosophy, “Apicius, whom we remember well, he who proclaimed the science of the cook shop and afflicted a generation with his doctrine in the city from which philosophers were ordered to leave as though the corrupters of youth.”
Fresco from Pompei
Legend has it that Apicius traveled to Africa when he heard
they had the finest giant shrimp known to man… shrimp of the gods. When he arrived, the fisherman brought
him their finest specimens but none came up to Apicius’ standards and he turned
around to go back home, never setting food in Africa after months of travel because
he was bitterly disappointed that he had not found the ne plus ultra of shrimp. They were still out there somewhere.
There is another legend that he committed suicide when he
thought his millions could run out and he might starve (or at least not be able
to indulge his appetites)… of course there was one last banquet before he made
his final exit (that must have been some party).
Some writers claimed he had spent 100 million sestertii on his dining.
Who can separate fact from fiction at this point?
9th century copy of de re Coquinaria in NYC
All this leads up to a revelation. The book that has been
attributed to Apicius for over a millennium –– was not written by him –– it
probably wasn’t even written by one person. The 2 oldest Fulda 10 chapter versions (2 copies made at the Fulda
Monastery in Germany that now rest in the Vatican and New York City) show that
it was written in many different styles of Latin–– perhaps written or dictated
by slave-cooks, certainly not written by a great nobleman (the Romans, unlike
the Greeks and their mageiroi [master
chefs], placed no honor on the cooking profession). Grainger said: “The words
reek of soot, grease, and kitchen smells, and the recipes are clearly meant to
be cooked, not read”. Grainger
believes this was written by generations of cooks and passed on as the recipes
reflect styles of different eras.
At some point a scribe took all the bits and pieces and made it into a whole, tidied-up work. I have now seen a few English cookery books that have been written and passed on over hundreds of years so this seems very plausible.
At some point a scribe took all the bits and pieces and made it into a whole, tidied-up work. I have now seen a few English cookery books that have been written and passed on over hundreds of years so this seems very plausible.
There seems to have been at least a few versions of Apician
manuscripts. The 8th
century Excerpta Apicii by Vindarius has
only 30 recipes –– none of which are in the Fulda versions, leading to the
belief that there was once a much larger collection than the 10 chapters in the
Fulda manuscripts or that there were other Apician recipe collections.
Front page of Vatican copy of Apicius, 9th
century
It is believed that because the manuscripts were headed API
CAE that they became Apici Caeli [Caelius
Apicius]–– and that they were first collected in the 4th or 5th
century AD (this is thought because they were mentioned in other materials… no
originals date from that period). The title, De re Coquinaria, is a Renaissance addition. That’s not to say that
the dishes hadn’t crossed Imperial Roman tables at one time or another or even
had a place at an Apician banquet… there are tantalizing hints in Roman writing
of the 1st century that Apicius did have a recipe book. The 5th century scribes may
have faithfully copied 400 year old writings that are now lost.
There was something of a blackout on food writing after the end of the Roman Empire –– a fact I discovered looking for recipes from the Dark Ages (a very cool book by Anthimus in the 6th century is pretty much the next thing and the recipes are definitely related to those in Apicius).
There was something of a blackout on food writing after the end of the Roman Empire –– a fact I discovered looking for recipes from the Dark Ages (a very cool book by Anthimus in the 6th century is pretty much the next thing and the recipes are definitely related to those in Apicius).
Mosaic from a villa at Tor Marancia, 2nd c.CE
We may never know the truth about the collection. Attaching
a famous name to an anonymous manuscript would certainly lend it credibility
and enhance its chances for immortality.
This recipe, ancient Roman or not, is delicious. The aspic addition is excellent and
refreshing and the dressing is superb.
I used Apicius, Cookery and Dining in Imperial Rome as my source
and also found Sally Grainger’s The Classical Cookbook terribly interesting and
well-researched.
For a little fun, also from Grainger’s book, a recipe for
sweet spiced wine, Conditum Paradoxum to
begin your Roman meal.
The Recipe:
Aliter
sala cattabia Apiciana: adicies in mortario apii semen, puleium aridum, mentam
aridam, gingiber, coriandrum viridem, uvam passam enucleatam, mel, acetum,
oleum et vinum. conteres. adicies in caccabulo panis Picentini frustra,
interpones pulpas pulli, glandulas haedinas, caseum Vestinum, nucleos pineos,
cucumeres, cepas aridas minute concisas. ius supra perfundes. insuper nivem sub
hora asparges et inferes.
A very loose
translation:
Put in the
mortar celery seed, dry pennyroyal, dry mint, ginger, fresh coriander, seedless
raisins, honey, vinegar, oil and wine and bruise them. Place 3 pieces of Picentian bread [a
spelt bread] in a mold, interlined with pieces of cooked Chicken, Sweetbreads,
Cheese, Pignoli nuts, cucumbers [pickled] finely chopped dry onions [shallots]
covering the whole with jellied broth.
Bury the mold in snow up to the rim, unmold and sprinkle with dressing.
Sala Cattabia Apiciana for 2
For the
Dressing:
1 tsp celery
seeds
1 T of fresh
pennyroyal or 1 t dry *
1 T fresh
mint or 1 t dry
1 t grated
fresh ginger
1/4 tsp
coriander seed
2 T raisins
2 tsp honey
2 tbsp
vinegar
3-4 T olive
oil
1 T white
wine
For the
Salad:
2 slices
whole grain crustless bread cut into pieces to fit the 1 c ramekin
1 cooked
chicken breast, shredded
small piece
fried sweetbreads (lamb or veal), sliced (optional)
1 ounce
Parmesan cheese, planed in paper thin slices
2 T pine
nuts, chopped
1/2 medium
cucumber, finely sliced
1 shallot or
small onion, finely sliced
2 cup strong
chicken stock, clarified
2 t gelatin
Herbs,
greens, celery tops (only the tops were used) for accompaniments.
2 -1 c
ramekins, oiled
Begin with
the dressing. Pound together the celery seeds, pennyroyal, mint, ginger and
coriander seeds in a mortar. Combine with the raisins then moisten with the
honey, vinegar and white wine. Whisk in the olive oil and set aside, OR, throw
everything in a blender and give it a whir.
Take ¼ c of
the stock and add the gelatin,
Stir to dissolve. Heat the
rest of the stock and add the gelatin stock. Whisk to blend then cool somewhat.
Place the
bread in the mold, then the parmesan, pinenuts, chicken and sweetbreads then
cucumbers and onions. Pour the
stock over all. If the stock is
not beginning to pool at the top after ¾ has been put in, chill and then add
the rest after ½ an hour. Refrigerate for an hour or so… the idea is to have the
gorgeous look of old glass on the top…
Or, what I
did…
Put ¼ cup of
stock in the bottom of a ramekin and freeze until jellied. Place a layer of
onions on the stock, then cucumbers, chicken, sweetbreads, pinenuts and
parmesan. Pour ½ cup of stock over
each mold. Place the bread on top
and pour the rest of the stock over it.
Refrigerate for an hour or so.
Un-mold and
serve with the dressing and accompaniments.
* if you
don’t have pennyroyal, use all mint… but pennyroyal grows like a weed and is
delicious!!
4th
century Roman Cage Cup, Cologne
Conditum Paradoxum
Conditum paradoxum:
conditi paradoxi compositio: mellis pondo XV in aeneum vas mittuntur,
praemissi[s] vini sextariis duobus, ut in cocturam mellis vinum decoquas. Quod
igni lento et aridis lignis calefactum, commotum ferula dum coquitur, si
effervere coeperit, vini rore compescitur, praeter quod subtracto igni in se
redit. Cum perfrixerit, rursus accenditur. Hoc secundo ac tertio fiet, ac tum
demum remotum a foco postridie despumatur. Tum [mittis] piperis uncias IV iam
triti, masticis scripulos II, folii et croci dragmas singulas, dactylorum
ossibus torridis quinque, isdemque dactylis vino mollitis, intercedente prius
suffusione vini de suo modo ac numero, ut tritura lenis habeatur. His omnibus
paratis supermittis vini lenis sextarios XVIII. Carbones perfecto aderunt duo
milia.
The
loose translation
The composition of
this excellent spiced wine is as follows. Into a bronze bowl put
6 sextarii1 of
honey and 2 sextarii of wine; heat on a slow fire, constantly stirring the
mixture with a whip. At the boiling point add a dash of cold wine, retire from
stove and skim. Repeat this twice or three times, let it rest till the next
day, and skim again. Then add 4 ounces of crushed pepper,2
3 scruples of mastich, a drachm each of nard or laurel leaves and saffron,
5 drachms of roasted date stones crushed and previously soaked in wine to
soften them. When this is properly done add 18 sextarii of light wine. To
clarify it perfectly, add crushed charcoal3
twice or as often as necessary which will draw the Residue together and
carefully strain or filter through the charcoal.
Conditum Paradoxum
1 c medium dry white wine
2 T honey
½ t ground pepper
1/2 bay leaf or pinch of spikenard
good pinch saffron
pinch mastic, ground
1 fresh date (I used a dried date), stone roasted for 10 minutes, crushed and soaked with
flesh in 1/2 c white wine.
Put 1/2 c of wine in a saucepan with honey and bring to a boil. Skim if necessary. Repeat and remove from the heat.
Add seasonings to wine when hot.
When cold, add the rest of the wine and allow to stand over night. To serve, strain through a fine sieve.
Thanks to Gollum for hosting Foodie Friday!
