Are you curious about how the Roman ‘panis quadratus’ loaf of Pompeii was really made? Do you often find yourself wondering what flour grades were used in ancient Roman commercial bakeries? Do you want to win that bet that you made with your ancient bread-nerd buddies that cord really was used around the perimeter of the loaves during baking? Well, I’ve got good news for you!
Are you ready for the summer? Are you ready for the good times? Chin up, good readers! Just because COVID-19 has limited our travel and stolen our summer holidays out from under us doesn’t mean that we can’t embark on some culinary adventures together and learn about Classical Mediterranean food archaeology in the process! Dry those tears, pistores, because Summer Camp is in session at The Old School Kitchen and YOU are invited!
Explora una de las muchas formas y simbologías relacionadas con el pan griego antiguo con ‘La hija de Deméter’: una receta para una barra de pan de 2.000 años de antigüedad que se asemeja a un trirreme griego. ¡Velocidad de ataqueeeee!
Prepariamo il Caseus Fumosus Velabrensis (Caciotta Affumicata del Velabro) come era fatto un tempo al Velabrum: il vivace distretto del mercato del cibo nell’antica Roma.
It’s Christmas in Mesopotamia! Bake like a Babylonian and make the internet’s most popular holiday season biscuit with this custom-designed cuneiform gingerbread rolling pin exclusively available through Tavola Mediterranea.
Make Roman smoked cheese from start-to-finish the same way it was once made in The Velabrum: ancient Rome’s bustling food market district.
Explore one of the many forms and symbologies involving ancient Greek bread with ‘Demeter’s Daughter’: a recipe for a 2,000-year-old loaf of bread that was shaped to resemble a Greek trireme. Ramming speed!
Hey, good looking! Whatcha got cooking? So… I took a break this week from preparing for this summer’s presentations and cooking workshops in Italy to get back into the kitchen where I could indulge in what I call ‘procrastibaking‘. This sometimes happens when I have a writing deadline or lot […]
Good day, good readers! Summer is drawing to a close, the days are slowly getting cooler, and the season of sweaters is just around the corner! While it brings tears to my eyes to say goodbye to Italy for another summer well spent… there’s something wonderful awaiting us in the […]
About the author:
Farrell Monaco is an award-winning Classical archaeologist and food-writer whose research centers on food, food preparation, and bread in the Roman Mediterranean. She writes regularly on the role of food and food preparation in Roman daily life on her site, Tavola Mediterranea, and publishes in both English and Italian. Farrell has also written exclusively for Atlas Obscura and BBC Travel. Her work has been featured prominently by National Geographic, Popular Science, The Atlantic, the BBC, The Guardian, The Economist, Esquire Magazine, SAPIENS Magazine, Verve Magazine, Saveur Magazine and Milk Street. In November of 2020, Farrell co-produced, wrote and presented a video on the history of the date palm fruit with The Getty Museum (Los Angeles, USA).
