BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

BAR Test Kitchen: Roman “French” Toast

A savory and sweet dish from biblical times to make at home

People love sweets, and the Romans were no different. However, Apicius and his De Re Coquinaria (On the Subject of Cooking) does not contain an abundance of what we would term sweet dishes or dessert recipes. A few survived, including this “French” toast recipe, which is an odd mix of sweet and savory. It is possible many more were lost to the ravages of time.

Roman French Toast

Apicius’s recipe and its modern adaption were sourced from Around the Roman Table: Food and Feasting in Ancient Rome by Patrick Faas. It is an easy recipe to be sure, although a bit time consuming.

Roman “French Toast”
Another sweet dish: cut the crust from the best African mustaceum bread and soak it in milk. When it is saturated, bake it in oven, but not for too long to avoid drying it out. Remove the bread when it is hot, and pour honey over it. Prick holes in it so that it absorbs the honey. Sprinkle with pepper and serve.

Unlike modern French toast, this Roman version does not contain egg and requires a specially baked loaf of bread. The bread is simple: if possible, it’s important to weigh the flour, as it ensures the right consistency (baking is a science after all). The additions of pepper and cumin are a bit odd to our modern palates; I suggest being liberal with the honey.

We hope you enjoy this Roman “French Toast” with your family and friends.

Ingredients for the Bread:

One packet (about 2¼ tsp) of yeast

1 tbl honey

Water (about ¼ cup, but follow instructions on the packet)

500g (about 4 cups) flour

2 tsp ground anise seed

2 tsp ground cumin

1½ cup white wine or white grape juice

Scale

Instructions:
(1) Mix honey into water. Dissolve yeast in honey-water and allow it to sit for about 10 minutes. (2) Add flour, anise seed, and cumin.

Yeast

Stone Mortar

(3) Use white wine/white grape juice to moisten the dough. Add about ½ cup at a time. I used 1½ cups. Knead the dough. Then leave it to rest for 2–3 hours.French Toast Dough

(4) Preheat the oven to 350° F and bake for 30 minutes. (The crust should not be too firm when you take it out.)

Cutbread

Ingredients for the French Toast:

Milk (about 2 cups, depending on your dish size. Enough to soak the bread thoroughly)

Pepper (to taste)

Honey (to taste)

 

Instructions:

(1) Once the bread has cooled, remove the crust and cut the loaf into slices or cubes. Soak in milk until soft.

Breadsoaking

(2) Remove from milk and bake at 350° F until brown (about 20 minutes)—be careful they don’t dry out.

(3) When done, remove from oven, drench with honey, and sprinkle with pepper. Bon Appetite!


Ready to cook some more authentic ancient recipes? Download the free ebook Recipes From the BAR Test Kitchen

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1 Responses

  1. Billie says:

    An example of how some people are confused about the knowledge, wisdom and understanding of the Bible and my feeling 2TIMOTHY 2:7
    Example of perhaps a futile search for truth. Is There Any Extra-Biblical Evidence That The Israelite Peoples Came Out of Egypt And Later Invaded And Conquered The Land of Canaan?
    Hal Flemings
    Suppose I told you that I live on the 7th floor of a certain 15 storied apartment building. But, in spite of that clear information from me, suppose that other people who seem rather insightful and persuasive tell you that based on something they are sure that I said, I really am claiming to live on the 10th floor. Moved by the numbers of credible people who are quite sure that I am saying that I live on the 10th floor, you set out to find me. There are only 6 units on the 10th floor but you search and search and there is no evidence at all that I have ever lived on the 10th floor. When you go back to the individuals who suggested you check out the 10th floor to find me, they tell you that they had gone on the same wild goose chase and were certain the whole story was fabricated. They advise you not to ever listen to my stories again since they are likely untrue. So sad! Who bears the weighty responsibiity for this end result?

Write a Reply or Comment

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1 Responses

  1. Billie says:

    An example of how some people are confused about the knowledge, wisdom and understanding of the Bible and my feeling 2TIMOTHY 2:7
    Example of perhaps a futile search for truth. Is There Any Extra-Biblical Evidence That The Israelite Peoples Came Out of Egypt And Later Invaded And Conquered The Land of Canaan?
    Hal Flemings
    Suppose I told you that I live on the 7th floor of a certain 15 storied apartment building. But, in spite of that clear information from me, suppose that other people who seem rather insightful and persuasive tell you that based on something they are sure that I said, I really am claiming to live on the 10th floor. Moved by the numbers of credible people who are quite sure that I am saying that I live on the 10th floor, you set out to find me. There are only 6 units on the 10th floor but you search and search and there is no evidence at all that I have ever lived on the 10th floor. When you go back to the individuals who suggested you check out the 10th floor to find me, they tell you that they had gone on the same wild goose chase and were certain the whole story was fabricated. They advise you not to ever listen to my stories again since they are likely untrue. So sad! Who bears the weighty responsibiity for this end result?

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