Category Archives: Cookbook

Hearthstone Drinkalong, week two – Starseeker Sour

To celebrate the launch of the new Hearthstone Innkeeper’s Tavern Cookbook, I’m hosting a virtual drinkalong. Each week I’ll post the recipe on Tuesday or Wednesday, then we’ll make the drink on Thursday (or whenever you can!), sharing the photos of our drinks online. Be sure to tag your photos on Facebook and Twitter with #HearthstoneDrinkalong, along with the name of the weekly beverage so I can add them to each week’s gallery. This should be a blast, and give you a taste (literally) of what the new recipe book has to offer.

The Roster

Week 1: Grimy Goose

Week 2: Starseeker Sour

Week 3: Tauren Tumbler

Week 4: Deathrattle

Week 5: Mystery drink?

Week 6: Mystery drink!

So, down to business. This week’s offering is a mocktail inspired by the intrepid explorer Elise Starseeker:

This one was a fun drink to put together. I started with a simpler version of a historical lemon drink, but instead of adding the sugar in with the lemon, I opted for a flavored simple syrup. Lavender actually goes beautifully with lemon, and I added a dash of food coloring for extra pizzazz.

For the photo staging, I tried to mimic the cluttered study in that image above, with surveying tools, maps, etc. You can’t tell from the picture, but those flat maps are actually of parts of Azeroth; I spent several hours one day tea-staining them all. That lovely brass doohickey on the left is an antique surveyors compass that I couldn’t resist at a flea market when I was 15, and have been holding onto ever since.

Starseeker Sour recipe

For the simple syrup, you’ll need:

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1 1/2 Tbs. dried lavender (available in many health food store bulk sections)
  • violet food coloring (gel is best for pure purple)

For drink:

  • 2 lemons
  • a little more water
  • ice
  • lemon wheel for garnish

Start everything off by making up the simple syrup: combine the sugar, water, and lavender in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until the sugar has dissolved, then remove from heat, cover, and let steep for around 20 minutes. Strain into a clean container, discarding the lavender. Add food coloring and set in the fridge to chill.

Once that’s done, you can actually assemble the drink. Combine the zest and juice of the two lemons in a measuring cup. Add enough water to get up to 1 cup, then strain into a clean pitcher. Add one part each of this lemon mixture and the lavender simple syrup to a glass filled with ice, then garnish and enjoy!

The simple syrup should keep in the fridge for at least a week. If you’d like to make a stronger version, add either plain or lemon vodka to taste.

 

 

 

 

Hearthstone Drinkalong, week one – Grimy Goose

Hey everybody!

To celebrate the launch of the new Hearthstone Innkeeper’s Tavern Cookbook, I’m hosting a virtual drinkalong. I’d happily serve you all myself, but until we actually get Wonka-vision up and working, we’ll have to make do! Each week I’ll be sharing a drink recipe, starting with several from the Hearthstone cookbook and moving on to some other quirky beverages.

Each week I’ll post the recipe on Wednesday, then we’ll make the drink on Thursday, sharing the photos of our drinks online. Be sure to tag your photos on Facebook and Twitter with #HearthstoneDrinkalong, along with the name of the weekly beverage. This should be a blast, and give you a taste (literally) of what the new recipe book has to offer.

Also, don’t forget to comment under this post for a chance to win some sweet Hearthstone prizes next week, including a couple copies of the cookbook!

Bottoms up! :D

The Roster

Week 1: Grimy Goose

Week 2: Starseeker Sour

Week 3: Tauren Tumbler

Week 4: Deathrattle

Week 5: Mystery drink?

Week 6: Mystery drink!

 

So this week’s entry is the Grimy Goose. This is a classic beverage from the heart of Gadgetzan, served up by the famous Talan in his bar:

It’s a variation of the classic vodka martini, dirtied up a little for the Gadgetzan crowd with some pickle juice. Combined with a bit of sweet vermouth, rather than the dry stuff, you get a thoroughly pleasing drink that has just enough nuance to keep things interesting. Give it a go!

For the photo, I tried to put together something that was both elegant and just a little grimy. The dishware and props are darker colors, and the background is dim to give the impression of a lengthy bar. The jars of pickled vegetables got mostly cropped out, but down on the bottom of the tray you can see a feather or two, just a little visual hint of “goose”. ;)

Grimy Goose Recipe

You’ll need:

  • 3 oz. vodka
  • 1/2 oz. sweet vermouth
  • splash of pickle juice
  • ice for shaking
  • pickles, olives, and/or onions for garnish
  • a chilled glass

Combine the vodka, vermouth, brine, and ice in a cocktail shaker (a mason jar also works in a pinch!). Shake everything together and strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with your pickled veg, and consider serving alongside an antipasto plate, fried food, and anything Italian.

Be sure to snap a photo of your delicious new drink and share it online with the hashtags #GrimyGoose and #HearthstoneDrinkalong.

 

 

 

 

Giveaways, a Drink-along, and more!

Everybody get in here! It’s Hearthstone Cookbook day!

As of today, the Official Hearthstone Innkeeper’s Tavern Cookbook is released out into the world for your snacking and imbibing enjoyment. It’s about 50 recipes with lots of delicious pub-style snacks and appetizers, plus a wide variety of cocktails and mocktails to satisfy just about everyone’s palate. This book was SO much fun to put together, and I can’t wait to share it with all of you. You can read a bit more about it here.

To celebrate, I’m fixing up some festivities and prizes for next week. I’ve got some fun Hearthstone/WoW items as well as several cookbooks to gift out, and the entry period is from now until the end of next week! I’ll do a rolling list of winners, one a day starting Monday, for the various prizes, so be sure you get your names in the virtual hat!

I’m also planning a super fun weekly drink-along using recipes from the cookbook and beyond. Stay tuned for more on that soon- Do you prefer #ThirstyThursday or #StonebrewSaturday? Weigh in here!

To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment below telling me what food or drink you’d put on the menu if you were in charge of your own tavern.

Strawberry Lemonsweet

Season three is proving to be much more ripe with food than any other season. Here’s another one from the HBO show:

Queen of Thornes

See that pitcher on the bottom right? The one with what could only be lemonsweet with strawberries in it? That’s the special at the Inn this week.

Strawberry Lemonsweet

Strawberry Lemonsweet

Now, I’ll admit that when I’m watching the show, I obsessively look at the dishware, glassware, and plates of food. When I saw this, I had to try it! I’ve used an adapted lemonsweet recipe from the cookbook for this, and the result is a perfect beverage to see you through spring and into the long days of summer. It’s sweet, with a citrus punch, but also with wonderful subtle flavors imparted by the herbs and strawberries. The longer it sits to infuse, the pinker and more flavorful it will get!

Strawberry Lemonsweet Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 orange
  • 4 lemons
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1-2 Tbs. bruised thyme, rosemary, or mint, to taste
  • 4 cups water
  • 1 pint strawberries, stemmed and sliced

Zest half an orange and half a lemon. Juice all the fruits, and add the juice, zest, sugar, herbs, and water. Whisk or pour into a bottle and shake to mix. Strain into a serving pitcher, add the strawberries. The berries will gradually add color and flavor to the rest of the beverage, making it even more delicious! Garnish each glass with an extra slice or two of strawberry, and a small sprig of herb.

Strawberry Lemonsweet

Party Planning Ebook

Many of you might wonder why all has been so quiet on the party planning front, here at The Inn. Finally, I can give you the answer, which is that I’ve been working on a Game of Thrones party planning ebook!

M

In it, I share some of the ways I use immersive fantasy to throw a winning GoT party, for a range of different skill levels. It includes ideas for invitations, activities, decor, menus, party favors and a great deal more.

Want to take a look? You can skim the first few pages HERE.

It’s currently available only for Apple readers, but I’m hoping to format versions for other readers in the near future, as well as a basic PDF.

Take the Black, NYC

When Campfire asked us to consult for HBO’s “Take the Black” event in NYC, all we knew was that it would be some sort of release party for the season 2 DVD of Game of Thrones, but that’s about it. The details were all very hush-hush almost up to the event itself, but that only piqued the curiosity of hundreds of fans who turned out for the big evening.

They were well rewarded: Northern-themed foods from Inn at the Crossroads, a performance of GoT music by Jason Yang and other musicians (I never get tired of hearing the Rains of Castamere!), and even a life-sized direwolf ice sculpture carved by Shintaro Okamoto studios. Inside Best Buy, attendees ascended the escalators past house sigil banners, and at the top came face to face with Jon Snow’s Night’s Watch blacks, and Longclaw. Around the back of the store, everyone could don a fur-collared cloak and say their words in front of a green screen. After some technological wizardry, the oathtakers appeared to be in a snowy forest. Very cool. The videos from that can be seen here.

When we arrived at the venue, an hour before people were invited to line up, there was already a line forming behind the metal barriers. Our gracious hosts at Campfire introduced us to the caterers who did a marvelous job with our recipes- especially the pease porridge and the meat pies. We designed the menu with cold weather in mind, and it was COLD; hopefully hot apple cider, warm meat pies, and peas porridge took the edge off for the intrepid fans who showed up to take the black. For the next three hours, Sariann and I chatted with fellow fans, gave interviews to some very cool people, and even signed a few cookbooks.

Those devoted enough to wait until midnight to buy the DVDs received swag bags from HBO containing GOT-themed iced sugar cookies and house-themed scarves complete with sigil. Sariann left sporting Lannister red, and I bundled up with a super-fashionable Targaryen black. I pretty much haven’t taken it off since.

Now, I’m off to go grocery shopping in my new scarf. I might buy them, or I might take them with fire and blood.

I haven’t decided yet. :)

My awesome Targaryen scarf from HBO

My awesome Targaryen scarf

Check out these sites’ additional coverage of the event!

 

mulled cider lineup
awesome Take the Black cups
menu and foods, photo courtesy of Unspoiled! Podcast
chatting with folks in line
waiting by the food booth
action shot!
finished direwolf ice sculpture
abstract house sigils
raven decals inside Best Buy, during S2 dvd launch
Jon Snow’s costume
Longclaw on display
Daenerys and her dragong
Chelsea signing cookbooks
Jason Yang performing
Sariann signing
Friend taking The Black
Tyrion has rabbit ears
My awesome Targaryen scarf
these cookies were delicious

It's Here!

A Feast of Ice and Fire, the Official Game of Thrones cookbook, comes creeping to your doorstep by mail and hits shelves today in bookstores around the world.

Go get ’em!

Then come back and tell us what you’re most looking forward to cooking or eating. Or better yet, call out of work, and spend the day eating. It’s a very Tyrion thing to do. 

Also, if you send us photos of the book in your local bookstore (with the location), we’ll add it to the gallery in this post. 

Huzzah!

A bit about the Cover…