Several friends have asked for my version of this recipe, so a blog post it is!
I first found this recipe while I was researching a Roman themed Royal Lunch last autumn in Grainger & Dalby's Classical Cookbook. Grainger takes her redaction from the poem Moretum by Virgil. 1 Full disclosure: I did not do my own redaction initially; at the time I was focused on a palatable menu not experimental archaeology so I read her translated excerpt of the poem and used her redaction as written for my initial batch.
2 heads (25 cloves) garlic (no, this is not a typo)
8 oz Pecorino Romano cheese
large handful coriander leaves (coriander is the British name for cilantro)
2 heaped tsp chopped fresh celery leaf
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp white wine vinegar (one of the people this was for was sensitive to vinegar so I used white wine)
1 tbsp olive oil
The Roman way to combine everything would be in a mortarium with lots and lots of grinding. I used Grainger's alternate method: my food processor.
I have a Vitamix and I just tossed everything in and turned it on. Surprisingly, it was hard work getting everything combined. Grainger says that the garlic juice and notes that the vinegar and olive oil are to soften the mixture not turn it into a spread. I ended up having to add a little more wine & olive oil just to get everything to congeal but followed the caution not to make it a spread.
It was so garlicky it was spicy. The other garlic lovers at the taste test liked it, but I though it was a bit too much garlic (and I consider myself a garlic-lover). It was also a bit hard and crumbly and difficult to get onto bread to eat.
The next batch I dropped the garlic down to 20 cloves but it was still pretty in-your-face garlic. And it was still kind of crumbly.
My current version is very much a "based on" the original recipe. I've toned down the garlic and added enough liquid to make it semi spreadable, just for ease of serving. Is it entirely HA? No. But my first goal is to serve food people want to eat, so I am OK with my changes.
12 cloves garlic
12 oz Romano cheese
handful cilantro, chopped (I have never had anyone that dislikes cilantro notice it was in the recipe)
2 tsp celery salt (buying celery that will go unused just for 2 fresh tsp of leaves seems wasteful to me)
white wine/white wine vinegar & olive oil as needed
Toss the garlic in the food processor & chop until juicy.
Toss the chopped cilantro & celery salt in and blend
Add the cheese, 2 tbsp white wine & 2 tbsp olive oil and combine, stopping frequently to scrape the sides.
Keep adding white wine alternated with olive oil and blending after each addition until your desire consistency is reached.
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I first found this recipe while I was researching a Roman themed Royal Lunch last autumn in Grainger & Dalby's Classical Cookbook. Grainger takes her redaction from the poem Moretum by Virgil. 1 Full disclosure: I did not do my own redaction initially; at the time I was focused on a palatable menu not experimental archaeology so I read her translated excerpt of the poem and used her redaction as written for my initial batch.
2 heads (25 cloves) garlic (no, this is not a typo)
8 oz Pecorino Romano cheese
large handful coriander leaves (coriander is the British name for cilantro)
2 heaped tsp chopped fresh celery leaf
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp white wine vinegar (one of the people this was for was sensitive to vinegar so I used white wine)
1 tbsp olive oil
The Roman way to combine everything would be in a mortarium with lots and lots of grinding. I used Grainger's alternate method: my food processor.
Reproduction mortarium from Der Romer Shop
I kind of want one to try just one batch the real Roman way.
I have a Vitamix and I just tossed everything in and turned it on. Surprisingly, it was hard work getting everything combined. Grainger says that the garlic juice and notes that the vinegar and olive oil are to soften the mixture not turn it into a spread. I ended up having to add a little more wine & olive oil just to get everything to congeal but followed the caution not to make it a spread.
It was so garlicky it was spicy. The other garlic lovers at the taste test liked it, but I though it was a bit too much garlic (and I consider myself a garlic-lover). It was also a bit hard and crumbly and difficult to get onto bread to eat.
The next batch I dropped the garlic down to 20 cloves but it was still pretty in-your-face garlic. And it was still kind of crumbly.
My current version is very much a "based on" the original recipe. I've toned down the garlic and added enough liquid to make it semi spreadable, just for ease of serving. Is it entirely HA? No. But my first goal is to serve food people want to eat, so I am OK with my changes.
12 cloves garlic
12 oz Romano cheese
handful cilantro, chopped (I have never had anyone that dislikes cilantro notice it was in the recipe)
2 tsp celery salt (buying celery that will go unused just for 2 fresh tsp of leaves seems wasteful to me)
white wine/white wine vinegar & olive oil as needed
Toss the garlic in the food processor & chop until juicy.
Toss the chopped cilantro & celery salt in and blend
Add the cheese, 2 tbsp white wine & 2 tbsp olive oil and combine, stopping frequently to scrape the sides.
Keep adding white wine alternated with olive oil and blending after each addition until your desire consistency is reached.
This past January Tavola Mediterranea (a fascinating food archaeology site that I follow) posted recipes for several other versions of moretum, at least one of them in a primary source I already own. One of these days I may make all the versions and host a moretum tasting party.
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Dalby, Andrew and Sally Grainger. The Classical Cookbook. Los Angeles, J. Paul Getty Museum, 1996.
Monaco, Farrell. "Edible Archaeology: Columella's Fresh Cheese and Herb Moretum." Tavola Mediterranea. January 15, 2018. Accessed April 25, 2018. http://tavolamediterranea.com/2018/01/15/columellas-moretum/.
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