An early lasagna recipe says the dish was eaten with what utensil?

An early lasagna recipe says the dish was eaten with a small pointed stick. This detail comes from the early-14th-century Liber de Coquina, one of the oldest surviving European cookbooks to record a lasagna-like preparation.

That recipe was much simpler than the layered baked lasagna familiar today. It described fermented dough flattened into thin sheets, boiled, sprinkled with cheese and spices, and then eaten with a small pointed stick. The utensil detail reflects medieval dining practices, when forks were not yet standard table tools in Western Europe and diners often used their hands or simple implements.

Later medieval recipes changed the dish further. Some recommended cooking the pasta in chicken broth and dressing it with cheese and chicken fat; Lenten versions substituted walnuts. The modern form—stacked sheets with fillings such as ragù, béchamel, vegetables, and cheese—developed through later Italian regional traditions rather than appearing fully formed in the earliest recipe.