During my research for my novel Even Gods Are Blind, I looked at the typical foods eaten during the early part of the Roman Empire.
In this post I would like to focus on honey cakes or libum and in the interest of authentic research, I of course, have made them and provided a recipe below. Online, you can find an original recipe by Cato the Elder, in his works on Agriculture.
But what is Libum, I hear you cry!
Libum was a small cake used as an offering to the Lares, the household gods and I have seen sources that indicate it was offered to others including my favourite, Bacchus, since he is accredited with gifting honey to mankind. Perhaps it was also just enjoyed as a dessert.
Cato’s translated recipe is as follows,
Make libum by this method. Break up two pounds of cheese well in a mortar. When they will have been well broken up, put in a pound of wheat flour or, if you wish it to be more delicate, half a pound of fine flour and mix it well together with the cheese. Add one egg and mix together well. Then make into bread, places leaves beneath, and cook slowly on a hot hearth under an earthen pot.
And in Latin should you wish,
Libum hoc modo facito. Casei P. II bene disterat in mortario. Ubi bene distriverit, farinae siligineae libram aut, si voles tenerius esse, selibram similaginis eodem indito permiscetoque cum caseo bene. Ovum unum addito et una permisceto bene. Inde panem facito, folia subdito, in foco caldo sub testu coquito leniter.
Now, that isn’t exactly a recipe that is easy to follow for today’s budding Roman chef. First thing to note is a Roman pound or Libra was only 328.9 grams instead of our current 453.6 grams. (Libra is where we get the abbreviation ” lb “, in case you ever wondered mid recipe.)
I have seen recipes using a soft cheese such as ricotta and others suggesting a harder cheese that requires pounding in a mortar. When I made this, I used sheep’s ricotta and farro flour rather than wheat. I also altered the amounts, as I have no household gods to offer this too and I wasn’t sure how they would turn out.
Makes 9 cakes.
Ingredients.
- 250g of ricotta, sheep, goat or cow.
- 125g farro or whole wheat flour.
- 1 egg
- Dried bay leaves
- Honey. As much as you need. I will not judge.
Method.
- Preheat oven to 350F / 180C / Gas Mark 4
- Mix the cheese, flour and egg together in a bowl. You should have a sticky yet firm dough.
- Spread bay leaves on a baking tray and shape dough into small rounds and place on the leaves.
- Cover with an oven proof dish, I used a glass casserole dish. Place in oven and bake for 35 minutes. They may need longer depending on the size you made your cakes.
- Remove from oven. I placed the hot cakes into a dish of honey to soak up as it cooled. I also dribbled more on the top when serving. I love honey, and I’m not ashamed to admit it.
These dense little cakes were tasty, probably due to all the honey. The bay leaf infused the base of the cakes with a pleasant savory taste and filled my kitchen with a wonderful aroma.
I think the Gods would have been pleased had I left these as an offering.
Let me know if you try the recipe and what you think.
