Savillum

A recipe from Cato the Elder, 160 BCE

Origin: Roman Empire

From the journey of Cinnamon.

Savillum is one of the oldest recorded dessert recipes in Western food history, documented by Cato the Elder in De Agri Cultura around 160 BCE. The original is a baked honey and fresh cheese tart, finished with more honey and poppy seeds. By the time cinnamon became widely available in the Roman Empire (around 100 CE), it was priced at more than fifteen times its weight in silver and added to recipes as the ultimate luxury spice. This recreation bridges Cato's original formula with the cinnamon-enhanced versions described in Apicius (the first Roman celebrity cookbook) where cinnamon appears in both savoury sauces and sweet baked goods.

Ingredients

Base

  • 400 g ricotta or fresh curd cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 tbsp raw honey, plus extra for finishing
  • 2 tbsp spelt flour or plain flour

Spice

  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 pinch ground black pepper

Lining

  • 4 fresh bay leaves, for lining the tin

Topping

  • 1 tbsp poppy seeds, for topping

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Lightly oil a 20cm round cake tin or ovenproof dish. Line the base with fresh bay leaves (or baking parchment if bay leaves are unavailable).
  2. Beat the ricotta or curd cheese in a bowl until smooth and free of lumps.
  3. Add the eggs, honey, flour, ground cinnamon and black pepper. Beat together until a smooth, uniform batter forms.
  4. Pour the batter over the bay leaves in the prepared tin. Smooth the surface gently.
  5. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the savillum is set, slightly puffed and lightly golden on top. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean.
  6. Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. The cake will deflate slightly as it cools: this is normal.
  7. While still warm, drizzle generously with raw honey. Scatter poppy seeds over the surface.
  8. Serve warm directly from the dish, or unmould carefully onto a plate. The bay leaves on the base are decorative and not eaten.

Notes

Savillum is intentionally simpler and less sweet than modern cheesecake. It is closer in texture to a set ricotta tart. Serve with additional honey for drizzling. The black pepper is subtle but historically accurate: the Romans used pepper in sweet dishes as a flavour enhancer.

The Gastrographer

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