Stale bread is an important ingredient in many traditional Italian dishes. Bread soup, in particular, called minestra di pane or in other ways, appears in several regions, prepared in different ways. One, in particular, is very similar to the recipe we are preparing today, called paneda in Emilia, and made with more or less the same ingredients of the medieval version: broth, bread, and cheese. Tuscan minestra di pane is, instead, quite different, since it generally requires the addition of cabbage and other vegetables.
It is interesting to notice that the ministrum de panibus we present this week recalls a much older recipe that we prepared in the past, the kandaulos, in the version by Hegesippus of Tarentum written in the 4th century BCE, also in this case, with almost the same ingredients. The main difference between the kandaulos and this bread soup is the use of meat, in addition to the fact that the ancient cook uses dill whereas the medieval author adds spices, as typical in the cooking of his time.
We selected this recipe for ministrum de panibus from the Registrum Coquine, a cookbook written in the 15th century by the German cook Johannes Bockenheim, who worked at the court of Pope Martin V. One of the most interesting characteristics of this source is that the author recommends the recipes to specific social classes and nationalities, for example peasants or kings, pimps or prostitutes, laics or priests. This ministrum de panibus, according to Bockenheim, is suitable for the Italics and peasants.
The author does not specify whether the cheese must be fresh or aged. If you want to use fresh cheese, we recommend caciotta or scamorza; as aged cheese, the best choice is Parmigiano or pecorino. The only spice mentioned in the recipe is saffron, one of the most used in this cookbook for all social classes, with the suggestion to add other good spices. We used cinnamon and black pepper, but other possible choices are, for instance, ginger, nutmeg, or cloves.
If you want to learn about historical bread, read our book Early Italian Recipes. Cereals, bread, pasta, and pies, where you will find historical information about cereals and their preparations from the Antiquity to the end of the Renaissance, with 114 recipes for pasta, bread, pizza, pies, and more, newly translated and explained. To know more about the source of this recipe, check out our book Registrum Coquine. A medieval cookbook. In addition, it is available our translation, commentary, and glossary of a beautiful 6th-century source, De Observatione Ciborum, written by the physician Anthimus to the king of the Franks Theuderic. This book contains some of the earliest medieval recipes, in addition to information about the diet of the Franks and the differences between their food habits and the alimentation of the Mediterranean populations, showing the passage between ancient and late-medieval cooking.
For more information about ancient food, we recommend reading Ancient Roman Cooking. Ingredients, Recipes, Sources and check out our Patreon page, in which you find several articles about historical food and the translations of ancient and medieval sources.
To support our work, you can buy us a beer or purchase our merchandise.
Ingredients
100 grams stale bread
100 grams fresh caciotta
spices (saffron, cinnamon, black pepper)
broth
Method
Grate the bread and cut the cheese into pieces. Soak the saffron in warm water and grind the pepper and cinnamon. Pour two cups of broth in a pot. When it boils, add a pinch of salt and the grated bread. As soon as it thickens, add the cheese and stir it until it melts, then the spices. Cook for another minute, remove the pot from the fire, and serve.
Original text
Ministrum pro Italicis et rusticis. Si facis ministrum de panibus. Recipe panem grattatum, et tempera bene cum brodio grasso et cum croco ac caseo et aliis spetiebus bonis, ut spissum fiat. Et erit bonum pro Italicis et rusticis.
Translation
Soup for the Italics and rustics. Make in this way bread soup. Take grated bread and mix it well with fat broth, adding saffron, cheese, and other good spices, in such a way it becomes thick. It will be good for the Italics and rustics.
Buy me a coffee
Patreon
Medieval Tuscan Recipes Playlist
Ancient Roman Recipes Playlist
Ancient Greek Recipes Playlist
Medieval Recipes Playlist
YouTube Channel
Merchandise
Books
Early Italian Recipes. Cereals, bread, pasta, and pies
Libro de la Cocina by Anonimo Toscano. Medieval Tuscan Recipes
Early Italian Recipes. Vegetables, fruit, herbs, and flowers
De Observatione Ciborum by Anthimus. Early-medieval recipes at the court of the Franks.
Registrum Coquine by Johannes Bockenheim. A medieval cookbook
Ancient Roman Cooking. Ingredients, Sources, Recipes
Translations of Historical Sources
De Agri Cultura by Cato – first part (2nd century BCE)
De Re Coquinaria by Apicius (Ancient Rome)
Apicii Excerpta by Vinidarius (5th or 6th century)
De Observatione Ciborum by Anthimus (6th century)
Appendicula de Condituris Variis by Johannes Damascenus (8th or 9th century)
De Flore Dietarum (11th century)
Tractatus de Modo Preparandi et Condiendi Omnia Cibaria (13th or 14th century)
Liber de Coquina – first part (14th century)
Enseignemenz (14th century)
Opusculum de Saporibus by Mainus de Maineris (14th century)
Libro de la Cocina by Anonimo Toscano (14th century)
Anonimo Veneziano (14th century)
Registrum Coquine by Johannes von Bockenheim (15th century)
Libro de Arte Coquinaria by Maestro Martino – parts 1-4 (15th century)
Recipes
Tuscan Chicken Soup with Unripe Grapes
Early-medieval Kohlrabi Stew
Tuscan Fried Leek Rings
Pork Ribs
Tuscan Pancakes with Wild Flowers
Hop Shoots
Shrimp – Savore de Gambari
Orange Frittata – Fritata de Pomerantiis
Tuscan Soup with Hen and Florence Fennel
The diet of the Franks – Celery Root and Beef Stew
Tuscan Fish Cakes – Salciccie di Pescio
Tuscan Stew with Pork Belly and Rutabaga
Pork and Onion Soup
Tuscan Radish Soup
The Diet of the Franks – Endive and Pork Jowl
Tuscan Fried Meatballs
The Diet of the Franks – Chicken Stew
Castagnazzi
Renaissance Stuffed Cucumbers
Pork Roast with Cherry Sauce
Renaissance Fried Tomatoes
Herbolata
The Diet of the Franks – Beef Stew
Fried Chicken Soup
Beef Roast with Garlic Sauce
Bread Soup
Salted Meat and Peas
Baghdadi Rice Cream
Chicken with White-Pepper Sauce – Piperatum Album
Indian Chickpeas and Meat
The Diet of the Franks – Pork Stew
Chestnut and Mushrooms
Lentils with Oregano and Watermint
Egyptian Bread with Pistachios and Almonds
Veal with Fennel-Flower Sauce
Pork Roast with Green Sauce
Eggs Poached in Wine
Brodium Theutonicum
Crispellae – Pancakes with Saffron and Honey
Brodium Sarracenium – Chicken Stew
Fava Beans and Pork
Erbe Minute – Meatballs with Herbs
Lettuce and Pork Soup
Zanzarelli – Egg and Cheese Soup
Turnip and Beef Soup for Servants
Cheese Pasta – Vivanda Bona
Gratonata – Chicken Stew
Chickpea Soup with Poached Eggs
Apple Fritters
Hippocras and Claretum – Mulled Wine
Pastero – Pork Pie
10th-century Goat Roast – A Langobard at the Court of the Byzantine Emperor
Romania – A Recipe Between Arabic and Italian Tradition – Medieval Chicken with Pomegranates
Emperor’s Fritters
Medieval Pizza – The Origin of Pizza
Roast Chicken with Salsa Camellina
Sweet Rice
Afrutum or Spumeum – 6th-century Byzantine recipe
A Medieval Breakfast – Wine, Carbonata, and Millet Bread
Salviata – Eggs and Sage
Tria di Vermicelli
Cabbage Soup
Frittelle Ubaldine – Pancakes with Flowers and Herbs
Saffron Cheesecake
Drunken Pork – Early Medieval Pork Stew
Medieval Monk’s Stuffed-Egg Soup
Apple Pie
Onion Soup
Gnocchi
Lentils and Mustard Greens
Chicken soup – Brodo Granato
Turnip Soup
Beans and Bacon – Black-Eyed Peas
Prawn Pie – Pastello de Gambari
Foxtail Millet Polenta and Spit-Roasted Goose
Beef Stew
Blancmange
Leek Soup
Quail Stew with Coconut
Chicken Pie
Ravioli
Almond Cream
Red Mullet Soup
Spit Roast Beef with Arugula Seeds
Walnut Bread
Lasagna
Tripe
Fried Fish
Roast Lamb with Green Sauce
Clams
Sweet and Sour Sardines
Trouts with Green Sauce
Lamb Stew
Quails with Sumac
Chicken with Fennel Flowers
Sea Bream
Historical Italian Cooking 