flipSesame itrion with honey
Sesame itrion with honey
Why this dish? To come from the lands of Corinth to face the Chimera in Lycia, Bellerophon had to travel far. The sesame and honey cake — dense, energizing, long-keeping — was the provision of Greek walkers and soldiers, exactly what a hero slipped into his pouch before the long road to the monster.
Compact cake of sesame seeds bound with hot thyme honey, hardened as it cools — a concentrated sweet energy that travels without spoiling.
He came from afar, the son of Corinth, to pick a fight with me. Do you think one crosses seas and mountains on an empty stomach? In his pouch, he had these hard sesame and honey cakes, which cling to the body and do not rot on the road. Toast the seeds until they sing, drown them in my boiling thyme honey, press hard and let harden. Bite into it, traveler — perhaps one day you too will march toward a monster.
- •Sesame seeds — a good measure (base of the treat)
- •Thyme honey — enough to bind (binder and sweetener)
Sesame itrion with honey
Compact cake of sesame seeds bound with hot thyme honey, hardened as it cools — a concentrated sweet energy that travels without spoiling.
Why this dish? To come from the lands of Corinth to face the Chimera in Lycia, Bellerophon had to travel far. The sesame and honey cake — dense, energizing, long-keeping — was the provision of Greek walkers and soldiers, exactly what a hero slipped into his pouch before the long road to the monster.
He came from afar, the son of Corinth, to pick a fight with me. Do you think one crosses seas and mountains on an empty stomach? In his pouch, he had these hard sesame and honey cakes, which cling to the body and do not rot on the road. Toast the seeds until they sing, drown them in my boiling thyme honey, press hard and let harden. Bite into it, traveler — perhaps one day you too will march toward a monster.
Ingredients (period version)
- Sesame seeds — a good measure (base of the treat)
- Thyme honey — enough to bind (binder and sweetener)
Ingredients
- Sesame seeds — 200 g (base)
- Thyme honey — 150 g (binder and sweetener)
- Sea salt — 1 pinch (contrast, optional)
Method
- Toast the sesame seeds dry in a pan until golden and nutty; set aside.
- Heat the honey in the same pan until it simmers (do not burn).
- Pour the toasted sesame (and salt pinch) into the hot honey and mix quickly and thoroughly.
- Spread the mixture on an oiled sheet or tray, press firmly to 1 cm thickness.
- Pre-cut into bars while still warm, let harden completely before separating.
How it was made : The Greeks knew itrion, a fine sesame and honey cake mentioned as early as the Archaic period, ancestor of the pasteli still sold in Greece. Sesame and honey, dense and stable, made it a travel and festival food (trogalia, sweets nibbled at the end of the meal). Without refined sugar, honey provided both preservation and sweetness.
The contemporary twist : Cut into small diamonds and offer them as "hero's rations" in a tied cloth: the ancient treat becomes a table gift on the theme of Bellerophon's quest.
Sources : Andrew Dalby, Siren Feasts: A History of Food and Gastronomy in Greece (1996) · Athenaeus of Naucratis, The Deipnosophists (sesame and honey cakes)
Chimera · Charactorium
