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Salad of Green Beans, Onions and Beets

“The wedding feast began with a thin leek soup, followed by a salad of green beans, onions, and beets…” (III:74)

Medieval Green Bean, Onion and Beet Salad


Modern Green Bean, Onion and Beet Salad

Our thoughts:

We are huge fans of beetroot, in fact they are one of our favorite veg, so we are thrilled to include them in these recipes! The color of these salads alone make them seem really impressive. They are both very similar in terms of presentation, but the taste varies.

The medieval salad tastes…well…medieval. The taste profile is somewhat weak, the strongest flavor coming from the semi-caramelized red onions. The beets taste as boiled beets should, and the green beans wouldn’t be anything without the salt we put on them. Balsamic vinegar is a must to make this dish passable.

We liked the modern salad far better, with the complexities of the thyme making the dish more interesting to eat. Broiling all the veg brought out the sweetness in each one, especially the beets and onions. The balsamic was less of a necessity on this dish, but it finishes the tastes fantastically.

Overall, if you have to choose, choose modern.

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Rock Your Premiere Party!

In honor of the upcoming premiere of Game of Thrones on HBO, we have put together a selection of foods that would be ideal for any premiere party.  We’ve included a selection of full recipes for those willing to try their hands in the kitchen, but also provided a “fake it” option for those with less time for or inclination towards preparation.

Make It!

In  this category, we’ve thrown out a bunch of options, and will leave the decisions to you!  You can choose to make one thing, or all of them (if you’re feeding an army).  Options are listed in order from left to right, more difficult to easier.

♦ A Full Dornish Dinner ♦

Stuffed Grapeleaves  ♦ Flatbread ♦ Olives and Feta

Honeyed Chicken ♦ Skewered Lamb/Goat/Beef ♦ Pork Pies

Cream Swans ♦ Lemon Cakes ♦ Spiced Honey Biscuits ♦ Baked Apples

Southron Mulled Wine  ♦  Mead

Fake It!

For this category, we have listed all the easy food stuffs you can get at most stores, and put together for your guests to nibble on.  Think of it as a tasty wayfarer’s meal, eaten on The King’s Road, between Winterfell and King’s Landing.

Loaf of Rustic Bread  ♦  Variety of cheeses (cheddar, brie, chevre, etc.)  ♦  Pickles

Big Bunch of Grapes  ♦  Slices of Blood Oranges,  Pears, and Apples in Lemon Juice

Pita and Hummus  ♦ Variety of Olives ♦ Packaged Stuffed Grape Leaves

Store-bought Rotisserie Chicken  ♦  Pre-marinated Shish Kebab Skewers

 Mead ♦ Wine  ♦ Cider  ♦  Ale

 NOTE: The trick to faking it effectively is purchasing high quality ingredients and presenting them well.  Consider visiting Whole Foods. If you want to feel like you are at Winterfell, the bread needs to be crusty and authentic and the cheese should come from some small farm in Vermont.  Serve on your largest wooden cutting board, with your most rustic looking knife.

Goat with Sweetgrass, Firepods, and Honey

Medieval Goat

“She brought back a haunch of goat and a basket of fruits and vegetables.  Jhiqui roasted the meat with sweetgrass and firepods, basting it with honey as it cooked…”  -A Storm of Swords

Modern Goat

Thoughts:

The argument was fierce over which of these dishes was better.   Although different, both were very good.  The metal skewers allowed the meat to cook perfectly so it was very tender, leaving all judgment hanging on the marinade.

The medieval goat dish was succulent and flavorful.    The garlic, salt, and pepper are a tried and true combination, and one that in this case really complimented the slight gaminess of the goat.  While it was tasty, it struck several of us as generically medieval (if such a thing is even possible).  This dish seemed more appropriate to the clansmen in the Mountains of the Moon than the nomadic Dothraki.

In contrast, the modern dish made me feel like a princess on the plains of Vaes Dothrak.  I could practically smell the sweat of horses and feel the wind blowing through grass tents.  This dish had an exotic feel that was lacking in the medieval version, and that, for me, made the difference.  The complexity of the ingredients, and the interplay of sweet, tart, savory and spicy is lovely, and I found myself tempted to lick the plate at the end of the meal.

Bottom line?  Medieval if you want medieval, Modern if you want Dothraki.

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