I consulted archeological and historical periodicals to assemble these recipes and show what life 50,000 years ago might have been like. Warning, I am not a cook. For safety’s sake (and your taste buds’ sake) consult a food expert before attempting these recipes.

Neanderthal Porridge

Ingredients:

Handful of wild barley

Handful of emmer wheat (AKA farrow), a wild wheat

Handful of einkorn wheat, another wild wheat

Handful of sorghum seed

Handful of pistachios or chestnuts

Handful of dates (Neanderthals in colder climes might have used cherries)

Directions:

Heat water in a birch bark tray, being careful to keep it out of direct flames to avoid a fire.

Mash wild barley, emmer wheat, einkorn wheat, and sorghum seed; add to the boiling water

Hull and crumble nuts, then add to boiling mixture

Pit dates or cherries and add to the boiling mixture to sweeten

Boil until the porridge is soft

Neanderthal Cattail soup

Ingredients:

Half dozen of cattail flowers, pollen, & roots

Handful of chicory leaves & roots

Handful of dandelion leaves

Wild lentils with husks

Directions:

Heat water in a birch bark tray, being careful to keep it out of direct flames to avoid afire.

Add wild lentils with husks to water, allow husks to dissolve and release the lentils

Peel & pound cattail roots, remove the fibers

Add chicory roots & cattail roots to boiling water

Add chicory leaves & dandelion leaves to boiling water

Finally add cattail flowers & pollen to boiling water

If meat is necessary (Neanderthals ate what they had), add small animals or birds

My novel takes place in the present, so you might call these old (very old) family recipes.

Neanderthals in the 21^st century? What’s going on? Neanderthal Protocol, thriller, Musa Publishing, eBook. ctsuddeth.com

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