Recipe for Zomos
(Butter beans in herb sauce)

from Heidelberg Papyrus

Yeah, go ahead and click here to buy this book!
Roman Cookery: Ancient Recipes for Modern Kitchens.

Yes, this book has a new cover, but I like this one better. Blah, I am so horrible.

The classical world ate a diet rich in vegetables. But where the Greeks ate fairly simple recipes, the Romans spared no effort (or expense) in the complexity of their greens or the variety of their spices. Grab your nose plugs, open the nearest window, have a ready glass of water, and get ready for some herbed herbs!

History has forgotten what this sauce should actually accompany, but Mr. Grant recommends butter beans. The original recipe describes two different cooking methods, depending on how stern your stomach is. Suitably warned by Plautus, we opted for the more gentle taste. This is a typical mixture of greens for a Roman dish. we found it very good, though we prefer the similar Leek and Barley Soup (below). we recommend keeping the room well ventilated while preparing this dish.

Original recipe:

Put wheat groats, coriander, leeks, onion, dill, basil and a little aniseed into a mortar. Boil on the stove and moisten with water, wine, garum and wine vinegar all mixed together. When it has boiled and you are about to take it off the the heat, sprinkle on someground pepper. Some people make it slightly sharp with wine vinegar by pouring over a little, and then remove it from the fire; but others boil everything when the wine vinegar has been added, and by adding green herbs they make it ready to serve.:

*A good copy and version of this recipe is at this website:
http://musingsmmst.blogspot.com
/2015/06/trial-by-spice-testing-stomachs-and.html