Rome Wasn't Fed in a Day!

"If you're striving for world domination, you should probably eat healthy and often." -Ryan Seiter


These wise words stand as true today as they did a week ago when I said them...and even more true around 115 C.E., the height of the Roman Empire. 


There were four meals throughout the Empire's history: 
Ientaculum- breakfast
Prandium- light, cold lunch for the wealthy
Cena- afternoon meal, but later moved back to be evening meal
Vesperna- evening meal until it was eliminated after Cena became larger and more diverse


Ientaculum was not very important to most Romans, and was often consumed around noon (my kind of schedule). It typically included things like bread, wine, cheese and fruit and usually wasn't a family meal. The Roman upper class often had more options like eggs, honey, and milk. 


The Roman upper class got all of their business obligations out of the way early in the day so they had plenty of time to visit the baths  ...

...and then make it home for Cena.

Cena usually started around 4pm and could last late into the night depending on the number of guests. For the rich, it was about impressing your guests with hospitality and diverse food. Greek culture greatly influenced the Roman upper class, which is where the three-course meal was derived. 

The meal was consumed in a triclinium (dining room) where everyone reclined on a special couch surrounding a round table in a horseshoe so that slaves could easily serve.

some Roman elite looking pretty comfortable

The list of typical dishes consumed at Cena is endless, and for the most part, includes items more expensive than my entire grocery budget. For this reason, we chose to cook a dish often consumed for Ientaculum.

OVA SPONGIA ex LACTE

Ingredients

3 tbsp honey
4 eggs
275 ml milk
25g butter
1 tbsp olive oil
Twist of black pepper

Instructions

1.Beat eggs in olive oil and milk.

2. Heat more oil in frying pan, then add egg mixture when sizzling.

3. Stir around until it solidifies, or scrambles.

4. Pour honey and dice it up and mix it around, then add black pepper.

After cooking this dish, it seems that simplicity was key in world domination for the Roman Empire. Although the honey was a touch exclusively used by the upper class, Ova spongia ex lacte was a very standard dish eaten by most for Ientaculem. 

So next time you feel like cooking Roman cuisine for your parents....consider making some Ova Spongia for-um!!