Farrell Monaco and Raffaele Cirillo of Tavola Mediterranea bring the archeology, imagery, customs, and flavours of Ancient Rome to the modern table via publishing, public education, immersive experiences and culinary master class events in Italy, the UK and the USA.
It’s Christmas in Mesopotamia so let’s bake like a Babylonian… C’mon, Enkidu, it’ll be totally EPIC! Bring a bit of Babylonia to the holiday table this December and produce the world’s earliest known surviving work of literature on gingerbread!
Dig into the science behind what makes Farrell Monaco’s legume sourdough bread starter, Marcus Atillius, so monstrous… and then watch the beast himself being fed!
A pestilence is sweeping our land. The gods are pissed. It’s time to take this situation into our own hands with an ancient Greek sacrifice. Be gone, pestilence, be gone!
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!
Join award-winning experimental archaeologist, Farrell Monaco, for a FREE 1 1/2 hour presentation and workshop on bread and bread-making in ancient Rome. Farrell will discuss the archaeology of bread in ancient Rome, sources of evidence, methods of manufacture, form, function and symbolism.
No flour? No problem! Ancient Roman globi evolve into Italian zeppolle in Bartolomeo Scappi’s Renaissance-era recipe for a mouth-watering fritter made of chestnuts, chickpeas, and a kiss of cinnamon and sugar.
Join archaeologist Farrell Monaco as she discusses depression-era food smarts and how to make the most of what you have in your pantries to make clever recipes such as the bread recipe in this post. Let’s cook it old school!
“On a balmy, starlit night more than 40 people are seated at a table that runs the length of the inner courtyard of Castello di Potentino, a medieval castle in southern Tuscany. Through openings in the wall you can glimpse the slopes of Monte Amiata. The mountain was sacred to […]
This event has been cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic and associated health and safety precautions and travel restrictions. “On a balmy, starlit night more than 40 people are seated at a table that runs the length of the inner courtyard of Castello di Potentino, a medieval castle in southern […]
Join food archaeologist, Farrell Monaco for a 5-day live-in edible archaeology master class at the palatial Castello di Potentino, a medieval castle hidden in a valley in the Tuscan countryside, as we explore the food history and archaeology of Etruria, Magna Graecia, and Rome from 800 BC to the Imperial Roman Era (AD 476). May 31- June 6, 2020 – Monte Amiata (Tuscany), Italy.
2019 was such a fast-moving and action-packed year filled with archaeology, baking, master classes, travel, museums, media coverage, and awards! 2020 promises to be a wonderful year with many surprises in store… but before we press on to the new year ahead, let’s have a quick look back at some of the memorable highlights from 2019!
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).
