In North American or northern European settings, those who observe Easter will feast with friends and family on the evening of Easter Sunday, following a long Lenten fast. And this is generally when the festivities and Easter contemplations end. Not in Italy, however. On Easter Monday, it’s as if they have chosen to celebrate the resurrection of Christ one more time, breaking out Cuddura di Pasqua yet again after the dawn of this new day.
A Pompeii è stato scoperto un nuovo affresco raffigurante una focaccia italiana. L’archeologa culinaria Farrell Monaco propone una ricetta per prepararla e spiega perché non è una pizza.
Have you ever had an experience when you were out for dinner and a dish was served that, when it hit your palate, sent you reeling on a sensory roller-coaster back to a time and place in your life that was associated with someone that you loved dearly? I have, but I never expected it to happen to me within the sphere of my research. After all, ancient Roman food has nothing to do with my Swedish grandmother and her Ukrainian friends, right?… Wrong.
On 27 June, the Archaeological Park of Pompeii announced that a new fresco depicting a focaccia (an Italian flatbread) had been discovered. In recent years, the site has begun excavating previously unexplored areas of the once bustling town that was buried during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.
La scoperta dell’anello di pane carbonizzato a Pompeii ci lascia con molte domande senza risposta, ma un archeologo culinario ha rintracciato le sue radici e identificato la ‘ciambella’ di Pompeii.
Perché a volte un biscotto richiede la scrittura antica assira!
Un’antica ricetta romana per un pasto fatto in casa di un contadino come ben descritto in una poesia dell’Appendice Vergiliana.
Saca tus ollas forradas de plomo ¡porque hoy vamos a vivir peligrosamente como los romanos!….. ¡Está bien, sólo bromeaba! Explora el versátil condimento romano ‘asesino’ conocido como Defrutum hecho de uvas prensadas y especias. La historia es mortal… y delicioso!
Il Savillum incontra la Kalitsounia in questa antica ricetta di 2,500 anni fa per una sontuosa torta al formaggio di capra e al miele degna di un banchetto… o di uno spuntino di mezzanotte dopo una turbolenta partita a kottabos!
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.
Give praise to the Roman oven goddess with Mola Salsa: spelt and salt wafers that were made during the annual festival of Fornacalia. All hail Fornax!
Good day, coqui! It’s getting a bit chilly on the old latifundium, isn’t it? Not such a bad thing, really. It simply means that it’s time to start cooking some hot, carbohydrate-rich meals that stick to the ribs… ancient Roman-style! Up here in the northern hemisphere the days are growing […]
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).
