Gingerbread Castle-palooza!

I had this thunderbolt of an idea a few weeks ago.

I am going to make a gingerbread version of Castle Black for our holiday party on the 15th.

The online response to the idea was great, and one reader on FB suggested holding a Westerosi Gingerbread contest. I loved the idea, so I’m extending in invitation to all of you wonderfully creative fans to come up with your own Westerosi cookie castle, and share photos online.

In my opinion, the most well known castles stack up thusly:

Simpler

The Twins
Sept at Quiet Isle

Moderate Difficulty

Riverrun
Pyke
Dragonstone
Castle Black

You’re Nuts

King’s Landing
Winterfell
The Eyrie

And if you’re not up for making a castle by yourself, why not make it a party game? Have all your guests bring an assortment of towers, walls, etc, then glue them together with icing. Bam! You’ve just made Harrenhal!

Be sure to send us the photos of your finished castles!

Salad in Castle Black

“‘From the Lord Commander’s own table,’ Bowen Marsh told them. There were salads of spinach and chickpeas and turnip greens, and afterward bowls of iced blueberries and sweet cream.” (I: 372)

Medieval-ish Salad

Our thoughts:

This salad is earthy and quite tasty. The different greens provide a wide variety of flavors; the splash of lemon from the sorrel, the refreshing crispness of the mint, and the classic tangy pairing of oil and vinegar. That said, we weren’t crazy about the oniony greens in the mix. Our big change? Swap out the mushy chickpeas for the crunchy Middle Eastern snack kind. Yum!

Make it at Home!

Pork Pie

“‘If I could fly, I’d be back at Castle Black eating a pork pie,’ said Sam.” -A Clash of Kings

Medieval Pork Pie with Currants

Thoughts:

When we began to make these, we naively thought, “Two meat pies? We’ll surely have leftovers for days!” They were gone within hours. Like many of our modern and medieval comparisons, the resulting dishes were quite different from one another. Here’s the breakdown:

The medieval pork pie is definitely in the sweet category. The amount of eggs in it makes it fluffier than the modern version, and the currants and ginger only add to the sweetness. However, it is a sweetness that really suits the pork. We might leave out an egg or two in the future, just so the meat holds together a bit better.

The modern pork pie is dense, and is very serious about being pork. It could have used a little more salt, but when dipped in either ketchup or BBQ sauce it is rendered delicious. If you do have leftovers, this pie is wonderful for a quick, cold breakfast straight from the fridge.

Bottom line? Modern is savory, medieval is sweet, but both are delicious, and will be a hit with anyone who can get their fork into one.

**NB: The cookbook contains a tweaked version of the Medieval Pie, and a much more dynamic version of the Modern Pie.**

Medieval Pork Pie

A-nother manere. Tak fayre porke y-broylid, & grynd it smal with yolkys of Eyroun; than take Pepir, Gyngere, & grynd it smal, & melle it with-al, & a lytel hony, & floryssche thin cofyns with-ynne & with-owte, & hele hem with thin ledys, & late hem bake, & serue forth. – Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books

Our changes: Instead of boiling down our own pork roast and grinding it up, we used pre-ground pork. Much easier! ALSO! This makes a great pairing with the Cream Swans, because you will be able to use the egg yolks for this, and the whites for that. Win!

Ingredients:

1 9″ pie shell with lid
1 1/2 lb. ground pork
1/2 tsp. salt
6 egg yolks
2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup currants
1/2 cup chopped dates

Brown the pork over medium heat. Let cool slightly, and mix well with all the other ingredients – The filling should be very moist. Place mixture in pie shell & add lid. Fold top dough under and pinch edges shut. Cut decorative steam holes in the top of the pastry, and bake at 375° F for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until a golden brown.

Modern Pork Pie

The new, updated, and totally delicious modern recipe is available in The Cookbook!