Fresh Cheese with Honey and Dried Figs
Fresh goat cheese drizzled with honey and accompanied by dried figs and walnuts. The quintessential Greek sweetness, without refined sugar—which did not exist—but carried by honey and fruit.
Fresh goat cheese drizzled with honey and accompanied by dried figs and walnuts. The quintessential Greek sweetness, without refined sugar—which did not exist—but carried by honey and fruit.
The meal finished, I have fresh cheese brought, golden honey, and figs that the sun of Cyrene has dried. It is the hour for wine and fine words: we pick, we taste, we stop before satiety—for pleasure, you see, fades as soon as one abuses it. A fig, a sip of wine mixed with water, an exchanged idea: that is my definition of happiness.
- •Fresh goat cheese — a lump (creamy base)
- •Mountain honey (thyme, flowers) — generously (sweetness)
- •Dried figs — a handful (sweet fruit)
- •Walnuts — a few (crunch)
- •Dried thyme — a pinch (aroma)
Fresh Cheese with Honey and Dried Figs
Fresh goat cheese drizzled with honey and accompanied by dried figs and walnuts. The quintessential Greek sweetness, without refined sugar—which did not exist—but carried by honey and fruit.
Why this dish? When the deipnon ended and the wine began to circulate, the tragemata were brought—sweet treats to nibble while talking. For Arete, whose school made present pleasure the goal of life, this moment of shared sweetness illustrated the art of enjoying with moderation.
The meal finished, I have fresh cheese brought, golden honey, and figs that the sun of Cyrene has dried. It is the hour for wine and fine words: we pick, we taste, we stop before satiety—for pleasure, you see, fades as soon as one abuses it. A fig, a sip of wine mixed with water, an exchanged idea: that is my definition of happiness.
Ingredients (period version)
- Fresh goat cheese — a lump (creamy base)
- Mountain honey (thyme, flowers) — generously (sweetness)
- Dried figs — a handful (sweet fruit)
- Walnuts — a few (crunch)
- Dried thyme — a pinch (aroma)
Ingredients
- Fresh goat cheese (or drained fromage blanc) — 200 g (creamy base)
- Thyme honey — 3 tbsp (sweetness)
- Dried figs — 6 (sweet fruit)
- Walnut halves — a handful (crunch)
- Fresh or dried thyme — a pinch (aroma)
Method
- Mound the fresh cheese in a shallow bowl.
- Generously drizzle with warmed honey so it flows well.
- Arrange the dried figs (whole or cut) and walnuts around.
- Sprinkle with a pinch of thyme and serve to share, with small spoons or for picking.
How it was made : The Greeks did not know sugar: all sweetness came from honey, fresh and dried fruits (figs, grapes). Cheese with honey (like the later Roman tyropatina) was a table classic. Figs were so abundant and prized that exporting the best Attic figs was, it is said, regulated.
The contemporary twist : Lightly torch the honey on the cheese for a caramelized crust, 'melitatyros revisited', and serve with a glass of sweet wine from Cyrene evoked by a muscat.
Sources : Athenaeus of Naucratis, Deipnosophistae (on tragemata and cheese with honey) · Andrew Dalby, Siren Feasts: A History of Food and Gastronomy in Greece (1996)
Arete of Cyrene · Charactorium