flipShepherd's Provision: Fresh Goat Cheese and Dried Figs
Shepherd's Provision: Fresh Goat Cheese and Dried Figs
Why this dish? The Arcadian shepherds who led their flocks on the slopes of Cyllene carried cheese and dried figs, provisions that keep and transport well. Hermes, son of Maia, is the very god of these shepherds and of those who travel the roads.
A fresh goat cheese, lightly salted and drained in a rush basket, accompanied by sun-dried figs and a handful of walnuts: the Arcadian shepherd's satchel, which keeps and is eaten on the trail.
My Cyllene is not a gentle mountain, and those who lead goats there know one does not go far without provisions. They let the milk curdle, drain it in a rush basket, salt it lightly so it lasts the journey; they take figs that the sun has candied on the tree, and a few walnuts. This is enough to last a day on the heights, where my son watches over the flocks and travelers. Eat like a shepherd, mortal, and you will understand the happy frugality of Arcadia.
- •Curdled goat's milk (rennet or fig sap) — according to the herd (fresh cheese)
- •Sea salt — a pinch (preservation and flavor)
- •Sun-dried figs — a handful (sweetness, energy)
- •Walnuts — a few (fat and staying power)
- •Wild thyme — a sprig (fragrance)
Shepherd's Provision: Fresh Goat Cheese and Dried Figs
A fresh goat cheese, lightly salted and drained in a rush basket, accompanied by sun-dried figs and a handful of walnuts: the Arcadian shepherd's satchel, which keeps and is eaten on the trail.
Why this dish? The Arcadian shepherds who led their flocks on the slopes of Cyllene carried cheese and dried figs, provisions that keep and transport well. Hermes, son of Maia, is the very god of these shepherds and of those who travel the roads.
My Cyllene is not a gentle mountain, and those who lead goats there know one does not go far without provisions. They let the milk curdle, drain it in a rush basket, salt it lightly so it lasts the journey; they take figs that the sun has candied on the tree, and a few walnuts. This is enough to last a day on the heights, where my son watches over the flocks and travelers. Eat like a shepherd, mortal, and you will understand the happy frugality of Arcadia.
Ingredients (period version)
- Curdled goat's milk (rennet or fig sap) — according to the herd (fresh cheese)
- Sea salt — a pinch (preservation and flavor)
- Sun-dried figs — a handful (sweetness, energy)
- Walnuts — a few (fat and staying power)
- Wild thyme — a sprig (fragrance)
Ingredients
- Fresh goat cheese — 200 g (base)
- Sea salt — 1 pinch (seasoning)
- Dried figs — 6 to 8 (sweet accompaniment)
- Walnut halves — a handful (crunch)
- Fresh thyme — a few leaves (fragrance)
- Olive oil — a drizzle (finish)
Method
- Drain the fresh cheese in a sieve lined with cheesecloth to firm it up.
- Lightly salt it and sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves; drizzle with olive oil.
- Arrange around it the dried figs (split if large) and walnut halves.
- For a true traveler's spirit, wrap the cheese in a leaf (vine, fig) and tuck everything into a satchel.
How it was made : Goat or sheep cheese was the most common ópson in the Greek countryside, often curdled with fig sap; figs, cheese, and walnuts form the archetypal pastoral snack, cited from Homeric epic to comedies. Sun-drying and light salting allowed them to be stored for long summer grazing.
The contemporary twist : Roll the fresh cheese into small balls and coat in crumbled thyme: 'shepherd's pearls' to serve on a board with the figs, Arcadian mezzé style.
Sources : Homer, Odyssey, Book IX (the Cyclops' cheese, fig sap) · Andrew Dalby, Food in the Ancient World from A to Z, Routledge, 2003 (entries 'cheese', 'figs')
Maia · Charactorium
