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 21st century? What’s going on? Neanderthal Protocol, thriller, Musa Publishing, eBook. ctsuddeth.com
C. T. Suddeth 