Dec. 11: Apicius and Capricorn

By Jeff Cheek

Almost a year ago, this column introduced Marcus Cavius Apicius, the famed Roman gourmet who planned his banquets around the zodiacal signs. The next sign is Capricorn, which will rule the skies from Dec. 22 until Jan. 19. It is now time to say goodbye to this strange, conflicted genius.

We do not know when he was born but evidence suggests that he died in his mid-40s, in 29 AD. At one time he was the wealthiest man in the Roman Empire. He published the first cookbook in 14 AD, a ten-volume series of household hints and recipes. There are 13 recipes just on preparing rabbit, for example.

He hosted Emperor Tiberius at many of his feasts and counted the Emperor's son, Drusus, and Sejanus, his senior adviser, as his closest friends. He invented scores of new sauces and introduced the "chaud-froid" (hot-cold) style of cooking, whereby a hot entrée is dipped into a cold sauce. He even had a small, red apple named after him. This should have been enough honor for one lifetime, but not for Apicius.

His lavish spending and lack of attention to his business interests had the inevitable results. He squandered his fortune. He spent 100 million sesteres on one last feast. Then, unable to face the dismal future of living like an ordinary Roman citizen, Apicius asked a servant for a glass of wine. He added hemlock to the wine and poisoned himself.

Apicius saw the Capricornian as a solid, plebian type of personality, someone who like plain, ordinary, but nourishing food. He also believed that Carpricornians would have to work long and hard to achieve success, so the food should be economical and easy to prepare.

For meats he recommended poultry or pork. The suggested vegetables were cabbage, onions, and spinach. For the fish course he recommended carp, herring, or salmon. (He did not recommend mullet. This fish was so popular that it had disappeared from the seas around Rome, and had to be brought from Corsica. Apicius once paid $1,000 for a record-sized five pound mullet.)

Apicius chose tarragon and bay leaves for spices but he also used pine nuts and walnuts to enhance flavor. These foods and spices were relatively plentiful and cheap in Imperial Rome and authenticated Apicius' views that the person born under Capricorn would be the traditional "late bloomer" who achieved success and wealth after many years of toil and struggle. Tenacity is one of the strongest character traits of the Capricornian.

When he entertained during Capricorn, Apicius expanded on these rather drab offerings. His menu would include a whole Fallow deer roasted with onion sauce, boiled ostrich with sweet sauce, and pitted dates which had been stuffed with pine nuts and fried in honey.

Apicius also served fresh ham. This was an inexpensive meat but his method of preparing it turned it into a gourmet dish. I have not tested it, but it looks tasty. It is called Ham Apicius.

INGREDIENTS:

1 six to eight pound fresh ham

10 dried figs

3 bay leaves

8 cups water

1 cup flour

PREPARATION: Boil figs and bay leaves in water for an hour. Add ham and boil until meat is done, adding water if necessary. Remove skin, score the fat, then pour honey into the incisions. Make a thick paste of flour and oil; spread on ham to give it a new skin. Bake at 350 degrees until the pastry shell is cooked. Serve.

Jeff Cheek lives in Medford.