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Mixtura cum Nucleis Pineis (Pine Nut, Cheese and Herb Pâté)

Mixtura cum Nucleis Pineis (Pine Nut, Cheese and Herb Pâté) is a traditional Ancient Roman recipe for a pâté-like paste made from a blend of pine nuts, cheese, herbs, red wine vinegar anf olive oil. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ancient Roman version of: Pine Nut, Cheese and Herb Pâté (Mixtura cum Nucleis Pineis).

prep time

10 minutes

cook time

10 minutes

Total Time:

20 minutes

Serves:

6

Rating: 4.5 star rating

Tags : Vegetarian RecipesHerb RecipesAncient Roman Recipes



I've seen many recipe redactions from Columella's Re Rustica (On Agriculture) but previously I was unable to track down the original Latin text. Finally I have a copy of Book XII of Re Rustica and I can begin publishing these recipes.

Original Recipe


Columella, Re Rustica, XII-lvii
Caseum Gallicum vel cui uscumque notae volueris minutatim concidito et conterito nucleosque pineos, si eorum copia fuerit, si minus, nuces avellanas torrefactas, adempta cute, vel amygdalas eque, supra, condimenta pariter misceto acetique piperati exiguum adicito et permisceto compositumque oleo superfundito.

English Translation


Finely chop and grind the Gallic cheese or any other cheese you like, and pine nuts, if there is plenty of them; if not, toasted hazelnuts, with the skin removed, or almonds, as above, mix the seasonings together, add a little vinegar and pepper and mix, and pour over the oil.

Modern Redaction

In modern terms, this is a herb, cheese and pine nut pâté. This it works well in those terms. Serve as a starter accompanied by crusty bread or flatbreads for spreading.

Ingredients:

200g pine kernels
125g feta cheese, crumbled
2 or 3 mint leaves
A handful of fresh coriander leaves
A handful of fresh parsley
A sprig each of rue and pennyroyal
1 tbsp young thyme, chopped
½ tsp freshly-ground black pepper
80ml red wine vinegar
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Method:

Combine all the ingredients in a food-processor (but reserve 2 tbsp of the oil). Pulse to chop then run the motor until you have a smooth purée.

If you are using hazelnuts, roast them first under a hot grill (broiler) for 5 minutes to release their nuttiness, turning them frequently to avoid burning. A version with 50% pine nuts and 50% hazelnuts works well.

Taste and add more vinegar and a little if desired (note that the original recipe does not call for salt).

Transfer the purée in a serving bowl and garnish with a swirl of the reserved extra-virgin olive oil.

Serve accompanied by crusty bread or flatbreads for spreading.