Sweet Cheese Cake but not as we know it....

You will need:

130 grams plain flour

250 grams ricotta cheese

1 egg

4 bay leaves

4 tablespoons of clear honey

Serves 4

Libum to be made as follows: 2 lb cheese well crushed in a mortar; when it is well crushed, add 1lb bread-wheat flour or, if you want it to be lighter, just half a pound, to be mixed well with the cheese. Add one egg and mix all together well. Make a loaf of this with leaves under it, and cook slowly in a hot fire under a brick

Cato on Agriculture 75

Cheese was generally salty in Roman times and while the recipe above does not state it, other sources for libum contain honey. The combination of a salty cheese and a honey finish would not go down too well; as such, a soft-cheese substitute has been chosen to make a ‘sweet’ cheese cake based on the recipe above.

Instructions

• Sift the flour into a bowl. Beat the cheese until smooth.

• Combine the flour, cheese and egg into a soft dough. It will be quite sticky.

• Split the dough into 4 and place on a grease-proof papered baking tray with a bay leaf pressed to the underside of each ball.

• Place them in the oven for 30 minutes, oven setting 220 degrees Celsius, until golden brown on top.

• Score and pour warmed honey over them.

• Leave to cool for 10 minutes and serve.

Recipe formed part of Bel's Tuesday Timetable event - What did they eat?