Editor's note: This recipe and the introductory text below are from Cooking Apicius: Roman Recipes for Today by Sally Grainger.

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　　This soup combines two separate recipes attributed to the agriculturalist and linguist Varro. As a remedy it could be drunk to aid the digestion, and it also served as a soup with the chicken included. I choose to leave the meat in, to give some texture to the soup. The dish is quite unusual in not using fish sauce. The sweet/savoury balance is surprisingly good.

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Ingredients

　　500 milliters (2 cups plus 4 teaspoons) white wine

　　500 milliters (2 cups plus 4 teaspoons) water

　　100 g (3.6 ounces or about 1/4 cup) honey

　　1 leg and thigh of a large chicken

　　2 tablespoons olive oil

　　4 medium-sized raw beetroot

　　salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

　　Combine the wine, water and honey in a medium-sized saucepan. Add the chicken and bring to heat slowly. (Were you making a larger quantity, you would use a whole chicken.) While the stock is simmering, peel and grate the beetroot. Add to the soup and top up with more wine or water as it reduces. Cook for about 1 1/2 hours. Take out the chicken, skin and shred the meat from the bone and return some or most of it to your serving bowl. Skim the fat from the surface of the soup, season with salt and pepper, pour over the meat and serve.

　　Cook's Notes:

　　Beetroot is an English term for beet.

　　Cooking Apicius: Roman Recipes for Today