56 woman recipes

Liquamen, an ancient Roman fish sauce made from anchovies, oregano, salt, and grape juice. A quick stovetop recreation of the fermented condiment that flavored nearly every dish in ancient Rome.

Roasted pork gets bathed in an exotic cumin-spiced sauce loaded with dates, pine nuts, and aromatic spices, creating a historical Roman-inspired dish that brings ancient flavors to modern tables.

Ancient Roman casserole from Apicius layered with homemade crepes, sauced meat or fish in white and sweet wine, pine nuts, and cracked pepper. A taste of history you can actually cook.

Nicomedes' anchovy, an ancient Roman culinary trick: blanched turnip slices shaped like anchovy filets, dressed with olive oil, salt, and poppy seeds to mimic fish without fish. Brilliant vegetarian party piece.

Gnocchi di semolina is gnocchi alla Romana: rounds of rich semolina cooked with milk, butter, parmesan and egg yolk, layered and baked golden. A comforting Roman classic, nothing like potato gnocchi.

Pasta alla checca, a Roman no-cook summer pasta sauce of ripe tomatoes, kalamata olives, capers, fresh basil, and garlic steeped in olive oil for hours. No stove needed for the sauce.

Saltimbocca al Parmigiano-Reggiano: thin Italian veal cutlets sauteed and topped with prosciutto, sage, and butter, then served over parboiled lettuce with flaked Parmigiano-Reggiano and a white wine pan sauce. A Roman classic with a cheesy twist.

Note: 15 bean mixtures are available packaged in supermarkets and health food stores. If you prefer, make your own by combining equal amounts of dried blackeyed peas, red kidney beans, white kidney beans (cannellini), green lentils, split peas, black beans, yellow split peas, navy beans, cranberry (Roman, shell, or shell out) beans, great Northern beans, pinto beans, small white limas, red lentils, cow peas (field peas), and pink beans. Avoid using beans such as garbanzos and large lima beans, as these take longer to cook than other varities.