[Sca-cooks] A Cheesy Question - Answered?

[Susan Fox-Davis]

Whilst I thank Christianna for the thought, I'm not sure how much cheaper it
would be all in all.  Certainly it is strong stuff and people won't want to eat
gobs at a time [with the possible exception of my friend Thomas, who thinks that
Garlic needs more Garlic].  Portion control could be suggested by rolling it
into little balls of cheesy goodness and suggesting ONE at a time.

How I made this stuff:

8 oz. or 250 g. or whatever premade package is closest to it, of Mexican queso
fresco.  Feta will work if you are not in a Mexican food zone, but it's more
pungent and salty.  Something with a fine grain and crumble-able. Crumble it up,
put into mortar [or food processor] with:
1 whole head of garlic [peeled],
a large handfull of parsley, enough to make the mixture "neither green nor
white."
a large handfull of basil [which I substitute for rue for 3 reasons:  first,
availability; second, that rue, while it makes men more "Manly", it also brings
on "untimely birth" in pregnant women and I don't want to risk anybody's health
here, so third, basil was considered a headache cure in the same time period,
therefore good for the "love life" too right?]
Coriander seed to taste, I add only about 5, you might want more
salt to taste - won't need it if you are using feta cheese

Pound these things in a mortar [wherein the reason for the name Moretum] or
whizz in food processor. Actually, for the demo I used a suribachi!  Add some
olive oil and a tiny tot of vinegar.  Add some sour cream if you like to make it
smoother.

And while I did not make the quip about Moreta, I like it!

Selene Colfox
selene at earthlink.net

-=-=-=-

Christine Seelye-King wrote:

> In going through my salad file, I found this, which might be an interesting
> variation on one of the cheese choices, and could be made more inexpensively
> than chunks of cheese.
> Christianna
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: sca-cooks-admin at ansteorra.org
> [mailto:sca-cooks-admin at ansteorra.org] On Behalf Of Susan Fox-Davis
> Sent: Tuesday, June 26, 2001 12:02 PM
> To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org
> Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] tapenade, moreta, pesto
>
> > > Moreta is a combination of cheese and garlic and herbs [?]
> > > pounded together into a paste which is then used as a dip.
> >
> > I think, rather, that the combination of cheese, garlic and herbs is a
> > moretum, of which there are more than one type.
> >
> > > Unfortunately I lost my apicius list files when the last computer
> > > fried, but you could probably do a websearch and find the recipe.
> > > margali
>
> http://virgil.org/appendix/moretum.htm
>
> Here's a translation of Virgil's poem MORETUM wherein Symilus the rustic
> husbandman prepares this dish of garlic, parsley, rue, coriander, salt and
> cheese, pounded in a mortar and sprinkled with olive oil and vinegar,
> which he forms into a ball, packs it up with bread for his lunch and goes
> back to work.
>
> Re Moreta, Weyrwoman of Pern:  a were-woman, a man who turns into a woman
> when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright?  Kinky.
>
> Selene