Reading and cooking with this collection
Follow the story
to the food.
Historical evidence and modern cooking have different jobs here. The story explains what survives; the recipe gives measured instructions for a household kitchen.
Start with a chapter
Each chapter follows a person, event and source trail. A surviving menu, a reported request and scientific evidence of food eaten establish different things. Specific uncertainties are explained where they matter.
Cook the companion dish
Ingredients, equipment, timings, portions and storage instructions belong to the modern recipe. Substitutions are explained. Follow its complete method and the relevant ingredient labels; an illustration does not establish doneness.
About the illustrations
Original AI-generated chapter illustrations interpret the subject; they are not historical photographs or recovered place settings. Separate recipe illustrations depict the new cooking adaptations. Their roles are stated beside the stories.
A collection in development
Twenty-three stories and twenty-five modern companion recipes are currently prepared for this edition. The collected book is still being developed. Earlier standalone pages remain accessible as clearly marked archive material.