SC - questions aboutHOT LENTIL SALAD WITH SUMAK & the recipe & quest. about peas

[Decker, Terry D.]

Didn't we discuss that moretarium was a general class of mushy foods made in a
mortar which ca include moretum, pesto and some of the other 'sauces' in the
cookbook attributed to apicius? I just romped through relly quickly and noticed
a lot of sauces that are pounded in a mortar. Many of these are complex
combinations of herbs and spices with a liquid..
margali
also on the apicius list

> Okay, perhaps I missed this, although I remember having exactly the same
> questions after watching the moretum thread go by on the Apicius list.
>
> To get back to the original topic of discussion, there's a lot of
> evidence to suggest pesto is very old indeed. Its relationship to
> moretum is pretty obvious, but I think the nature of the relationship of
> both of these to sala cattabia is, well, a bit tenuous, and perhaps
> could be either more clearly explained, or thought out differently. It
> appears, from what I've seen, at least, that there's a chance that you
> may be seeing a clear sequential relationship, or perhaps solidifying a
> nebulous one, because you want it to be that way. Please don't take this
> as criticism; it isn't intended to be, but it appears you're basing some
> fairly heavy conclusions on some pretty weak premises. Unless there's
> more evidence than you've mentioned.
>
> Adamantius