Patina de Piris (Patina of Pears)

Sweet frittata-like patina of pears with classic ancient Roman flavors and sprinkled with long pepper

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City/Region: Rome

Time Period: 1st Century

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This patina de piris is one of over a dozen recipes for similar dishes in Apicius De re coquinaria, a staple for ancient Roman recipes. It would have probably been part of mensa secunda, or second meal. Not a second breakfast, it was the final course in a larger meal and usually consisted of sweets, pastries, nuts, and egg dishes, kind of like a modern dessert course.

I finally made my own true ancient Roman garum in the summer of 2023, from chopped up fish pieces and salt to clear amber umami-laden liquid. There’s no fishiness in this surprisingly sweet dish, just a saltiness and savory umami notes that complements the other very ancient Roman flavors.

As with all ancient recipes, this is my interpretation and you can change things up how you like. I separated my eggs before beating them, but you could just whisk them up whole and add them like that.

“Patina of Pears:
Pound boiled and cored pears with pepper, cumin, honey, possum, garum, and a little oil. Add eggs to make the patina, sprinkle with pepper, and serve. ”

— De re coquinaria by Apicius, 1st Century

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Ingredients:

• 1 750 ml bottle rosé or other wine
• 4 medium firm pears, peeled, cored, and cut into quarters
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1/2 teaspoon ground long pepper* or black pepper
• A large pinch of cumin
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) passum*
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Garum* to taste

*See notes below.

Instructions:

1. Pour the rosé into a saucepan and add some water so that when you add the pears, they’ll all be covered. Bring it to a simmer. Add the pears and cook for 20 minutes or until they get very soft.
2. Drain the pears. Mash them to a puree, about the consistency of applesauce. Drain off any excess liquid.
3. While it’s still warm, mix in the honey, pepper, and cumin. Let it cool to room temperature.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Move a rack to the lowest position. Lightly oil one large ceramic dish or four smaller ones.
5. Beat the egg yolks until smooth.
6. Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks.
7. When the pear mixture is room temperature, mix in the passum, olive oil, and garum.
8. Stir the egg yolks into the pear mixture.
9. Fold the egg whites into the pear mixture until there are no streaks of egg white.
10. Pour the mixture into the prepared dish(es). Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
11. When the patina is done, take it out of the oven, sprinkle it with pepper, and serve it forth.

Notes

• Long pepper was very popular in ancient Rome. It's hotter than black pepper and has a more aromatic, almost flowery quality to it that's wonderful.
• Passum is a sweet raisin wine used in ancient Rome. Use a sweet wine like Vin Santo, ice wine, a sweet Riesling, or Moscato.
• Garum was a fermented fish sauce that was used in a lot of ancient Roman cooking. You can buy a modern equivalent or use an Asian fish sauce. For this recipe, I used 1 tablespoon of my homemade garum, which is less salty than modern Asian fish sauces. If you use an Asian fish sauce, use 1 to 1.5 teaspoons.
• Link to long pepper: https://amzn.to/3ui5j5L
• Link to modern garum: https://amzn.to/3ulTKKW

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