The World That Was

 Hello and welcome to the World That Was!  Today, I'll be going back to the Hellenistic Period, to the Hasmonean dynasty of Judea. The recipe in question is a simple honeyed-hens, recorded by Seleucid accounts of a feast held by one of the ruling elite. Though the original recipe refers to it plainly as chicken with honey, I'm going to be recreating it today based on our knowledge of contemporary dining habits! In any case, let's now take a look at the World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video above! Ingredients 4 chicken thighs salt (to taste) pepper (to taste) ground cumin ground coriander 2 tbsp wholegrain mustard 2 tbsp olive oil 2 tbsp honey 2-4 cloves garlic Method 1 - Prepare the Chicken To begin with we need to season our chicken. Do this by sprinkling some salt, some freshly ground black pepper, some ground coriander, and some ground cumin on top of your chicken, before rubbing it in with your hands. I used some skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs, but really ...

Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! Today, I'll be making a simple bread-based soup - referred to as juscellum by Apicius! It's a lot like Tuscan "aquacotta" soup, which is prepared in a similar way - though today it often includes tomatoes, which would not have been available in antiquity. Ingredients 1 onion 1 carrot 1 stick celery 3 cloves garlic thyme 2 slices bread (torn or grated) 2 eggs 750ml chicken stock olive oil salt pepper Method 1 - Chop Ingredients To begin with, we need to chop and dice an onion. You don't need to worry about being too careful here, as they'll soften up considerably while its cooking. Peel and dice a carrot or two - carrots and parsnips were considered to be the same vegetable to the Greeks and Romans, so either one works well here! Finally, deal with some celery by slicing it thinly. 2 - Sautee and Cook Toss a bit of olive oil into a pot, and place this over a medium heat. When it's shimmering, toss in your onions, car...

Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! Today, I'll be making a 13th century cheesecake, from Andalucía - the South of Spain! The original text is from a medieval cookbook, by Ibn Razin al-Tujibi, and the audience seems to be for elite members of society. Though today, it's a simple and easy cake that anyone can make inside an hour! Ingredients 1 cup flour 1 cup milk 1tbsps yeast (or 1/3 cup sourdough starter) 250g ricotta (or other soft white cheese) honey olive oil cinnamon Method 1 - Prepare Dough To begin with, we need to make a simple dough. Pour a cup of flour into a bowl, along with a tablespoon of yeast. Dry yeast wouldn't have been available in antiquity, but wild yeast from a sourdough starter would have been used, and a third of a cup can be used here. Pour in a cup of room-temperature milk on top of this, along with a splash of olive oil. The original recipe calls for "fat" which can be any one of a huge number of things - like butter, lard, or oils. ...

Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! Today, I'll be making an Etruscan dish - which is preserved through Roman cuisine through to modernity! The simple testaroli - a rudimentary ancestor to the pasta that we know and love today! In any case, let's now take a look at The World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video, above! Ingredients 1/2 cup plain flour 1/2 cup wholemeal flour 1 cup water pesto Method 1 - Prepare the Batter To begin with, we need to make the batter. To do this, toss a half a cup of plain white flour into a bowl, along with some wholemeal flour. Mix in an equal amount of water, to form a thin slurry. 2 - Oil the Pan and Make the testaroli When the batter is ready, pour a ladleful into a pan that's been oiled with olive oil. Spread this into a very thin layer, by tilting the pan around. Cook the thin layer of batter for a minute or two over a high heat, or until the edges start to firm up. Don't cook it all the way through! Flip it over and let ...

Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! This week, I'm recreating some Akkadian bread, as seen in some cuneiform inscriptions, as well as visual representations in carved panels in Akkadian palaces. The original bread has a striking similarity to modern Iraqi samoon - from it's shape to it's description in Akkadian! In any case, let's now take a look at the world that was! Follow along with my YouTube video, above! Ingredients 1 cup wholemeal flour 2 cups plain flour salt water active dry yeast (or 1/3 cup sourdough starter) milk sesame seeds Method 1 - Preparing the Dough and letting it Rest To begin with, we need to make a starter. The easiest way to do this today is to use some dry active yeast, opening a sachet, and placing it in a bowl with a bit of warm water. But if you have some sourdough starter, you can use 1/3rd of a cup of that instead! But keep in mind that the sourdough starter will affect how hydrated your dough is later on. Pour in 1 cup of wholemeal fl...

Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! Today, I'll be making a medieval drink from 13th century Egypt - and is still drunk today! A simple, refreshing drink called subiyah/ It was originally made to drink during Ramadan - a holy month of fasting in the Islamic calendar - but this is able to be enjoyed around the year! It's simple to make, and has a very nice crispness to it! In any case, let's now take a look at The World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video above! Ingredients 3-4 slices of sourdough bread (crusts removed) 3-4 cups water 1 tsp cardamom pods fresh mint fresh parsley Method 1 - Soak and Strain Bread To begin with, de-crust three slices of sourdough bread and tear the bread into small chunks, before placing them in a bowl. The original recipe requires "bread" and gives no elaboration - so I went for sourdough because it has a more distinct taste than a regular slice of white bread. In any case, pour in three cups of water into your bowl to ...

Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! Today, I'll be taking a look at a staple of Irish medieval cuisine: the humble nettle soup. Late spring and early Summer is the ideal time to make this dish, as the nettle leaves used here won't have matured fully, and retain a soft, lighter texture than older woodier leaves. Plus they won't sting your hands as badly as mature nettles. Plenty of Irish families have their own takes on this recipe, and this is influenced by my family's take on the tradition! In any case, let's now take a look at The World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video, above! Ingredients 2-3 cups nettle leaves 1 onion, minced 2 cloves garlic (or two bulbs of wild garlic, minced) chives (for decoration) butter 1/2 cup milk/double cream 500ml water or stock salt pepper Method 1 - Chop and cook the Garlic and Onion To begin with, we need to peel and chop a whole onion, before tossing this into a pot with some melted butter. You can of course use oil...

 Hello and Welcome to The World That Was! Today, I'll be making an Egyptian dish that dates to the pre-Dynastic period (the bronze age) - a simple herb and egg omelette that's still eaten today: "eggah" (in modern Egyptian Arabic). The first records of this dish come from early Arab writers, discussing a much older dish! In any case, let's now take a look at The World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video, above!  Ingredients 6 eggs 1 onion fresh parsley or cilantro ground cumin ground coriander salt pepper olive oil Method 1 - Chop and cook onion To begin with, chop a single onion in half, and peel off it's outer skin. Then slice and dice the onion into small pieces, making sure they're all the same size. Then, pour some olive oil into a pot, and place it over a medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, toss your onion into it and let it sauté away while you mince your parsley. Or coriander, if it doesn't taste like soap to you. When your o...