Strawberries and Sweetgrass

“Tables and benches had been raised outside the pavilions, piled high with sweetgrass and strawberries and fresh-baked bread.” -A Game of Thrones

Strawberries & Sweetgrass

Thoughts:

The first taste of summer, for me, has always been strawberries. If there were a way to further improve upon their juicy goodness, this incredibly simple recipe is it. Each flavor enhances that of the strawberries without treading too heavily. Both lemongrass and ginger are distinct, but work together to compliment the basic goodness of fresh fruit, making strawberries and sweetgrass a winning dessert in my book.

Served alongside a glass of iced mead or cider, this is an instant favorite for warm summer evenings on the porch, or for a winning contribution to a picnic.

Strawberries & Sweetgrass Recipe

Total Prep Time: 10 minutes Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup mead or hard cider
1 tsp. grated ginger
1 Tbs. minced lemongrass
1 lb. strawberries

Combine all ingredients except the strawberries in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat for just long enough for the honey and mead to meld together, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Prepare the strawberries by removing the leafy tops, and slice into a large bowl in an assortment of shapes and sizes. Pour the sauce over the sliced fruit and toss to coat. Serve either at room temperature, or chilled. It is especially good with a glass of the same mead or cider with which you made the sauce.

Map of Westeros – In Progress

This is the second round of a Game of Thrones-themed art project. I did the first copy of such a map over a year ago, but wasn’t entirely happy with the way it turned out. This is a segment of that map: inked details, and tea-stained for depth. I love the way it pops, but the rest of the map was not in keeping with the scope of the project.

The next map will include illuminated letters, more detail, and appear to be more authentically used. I would also like to do smaller scale regional maps, such as those that might be carried by military captains on campaign.

Mint Sun Tea

“There was much more than she’d asked for: hot bread, butter and honey and blackberry preserves, a rasher of bacon and a soft-boiled egg, a wedge of cheese, a pot of mint tea. And with it came Maester Luwin.” -A Game of Thrones

Mint Sun Tea

Our Thoughts:

We know the text doesn’t call for mint sun tea, but no one should have to live without this recipe. This is one of our go-to drinks for summer. As sort of tea aficionados/addicts, this fills our needs for both tea and sunshine. Sun tea is a fantastic way to get your caffeine fix without having to use the kettle on a hot day. If you plan far enough ahead, you won’t have to ever go inside again! Also a great recipe to use when camping. And you always look cooler drinking from a Mason jar!

Make it at Home!

Oxtail Soup

Medieval Oxtail Soup

“This evening they had supped on oxtail soup, summer greens tossed with pecans, grapes, red fennel, and crmbled cheese, hot crab pie, spiced squash, and quails drowned in butter. Each dish had come with its own wine. Lord Janos allowed that he had never eaten half so well.” (A Clash of Kings)

Modern Oxtail Soup

Our Thoughts:

Rich and savory, this is the medieval-soup version of brisket. The recipe is different from other oxtail soups in that it doesn’t have New World tomato in it, so it lacks that distinctive acidic tang. The broth is very savory and beefy with a bite from all the spices, while the meat is tender from long boiling. It is delicious with a slice of buttered bread and a mug of ale.

This modern twist, an oxtail and Gruyère ravioli in a clarified oxtail stock, is elegant and fantastic. The cheese melts into the oxtail, adding just a slight bite to the flavorful meat. The stock, though similar to that in the medieval recipe, has a more intense flavor, due to the additional simmering time, and is simply beautiful in presentation.

The best part about these recipes is you don’t have to choose- simply use leftovers from the medieval recipe to cook the modern!

Make it at Home!

Magister Illyrio’s Dubious Mushrooms

“Mushrooms,” the magister announced, as the smell wafted up. “Kissed with garlic and bathed in butter. I am told the taste is exquisite. Have one, my friend. Have two.” -A Dance with Dragons

Black Mushrooms, take 2

Our Thoughts:

This dish proved to be more of an adventure than we anticipated.

We looked in several markets for black mushrooms, without success. Then, brilliance. I went to our local Asian supermarket, and cast about until I found an entire aisle filled with dried mushrooms. This, surely, was the perfect place to obtain suitably sketchy mushrooms. The winning bag reads, “Superior Quality Dried Fungus”, and beat out both the “AAA Dried Fungus” and the merely “High Quality Dried Fungus”.

Having obtained my dubious black mushrooms, I returned home to experiment.

They were horrible. I tried to prepare them many different ways, only to be met with the incontrovertable fact that the texture is simply unbearable. The butter and garlic just slipped right off the rubbery mushrooms, leaving us with a wholly unappetizing dish.

The second take is what you see above, and is wholly delicious. They might not have the same dubious backstory to go with them, but the trade off for great flavor is well worth it. Plump mushrooms bursting with butter and garlic- does it get better?

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The Hound’s Ideal Meal

Unlike our previous character themed meals, there was a lot of consensus about the Hound’s ideal meal: Nothing fancy, a cheap cut of meat, bitter drinks, and possibly a lemoncake or two for dessert. Kathleen summed it up well, stating that the meal “should be charbroiled, unpretentious, and drowned in a sea of wine”.

We liked where a lot of you went with game meat, what with Sandor being a “hound”. The subtle poetry of hound and quarry was too appealing to resist. So, game meat it was, and we chose venison and rabbit. True, in our Middle Ages, only the nobility could hunt, but are you about to stand between the Hound and his meal? Didn’t think so.

Our grill was recently stolen, right off our porch. Otherwise we’d do a spit roasted rabbit to go with the meal. Barring that, though, we swapped in some oven roasted rabbit legs alongside the venison sausages.

A big question was whether to sear the meat, or no. Personally, we liked the idea, but could see how the Hound might not. So, we hedged our bets, searing the lamb, then hiding the evidence by braising. :) We also liked the idea of lamb, because while Sandor might be a Hound, he’s also more than a bit wolfish. Lamb shank it was, then.

Both Kate Quinn and Irian suggested bone marrow, which we loved. It evokes the image of a big mastiff gnawing on a bone in front of the fire, and also ties in with Random’s thought that “Joffrey would probably find it amusing to throw his dog a bone.” Ours is topped with applewood smoked salt.

For smaller sides, we liked Frank’s suggestion of beans thick with molasses, and Duckchick’s of sharp cheese with apples, for the Hound’s sharp words.

Our final bill of fare: black bread, bone marrow, leg of lamb, venison sausages, rabbit legs, savory beans and sharp cheese, wilted greens, and rustic lemoncakes.

Our Thoughts:

Good Lord. Or the Seven. Or any other deity the Hound probably doesn’t believe in…

This is a fantastic meal.

It is obviously very heavy on the meat, but given the fighter’s lifestyle that the Hound leads, this makes sense. The three meats- lamb, venison, and rabbit- all give amazingly rich flavors to the meal. Of course, it helps that we braised the lamb and then the rabbit in mead and molasses. The venison sausage already has port in it, so each of the meats has essentially been cooked in/with booze. Even the vegetables have been braised in mead, along with the lamb, so they’re incredibly tender and tasty. And the bread! Also made with beer.

The rustic lemoncakes are a much lighter finish to a very heavy meal, and you’ll probably only have room for a couple of them.

Our drinks consultant recommends a beer made with juniper to pair with the meat dishes, in the style of a traditional Finnish Sahti. A couple good examples of this are Huvila Arctic Circle Ale and Lammin Kataja. Another interesting pairing would be a rauchbier, such as Spezial and Schlenkerla, given that the smokiness would pair particularly well with the molasses beans and cheddar.

Honorable Mention:

Chris’s suggestion of black and white truffles to represent the duality of his nature (only if you’re buying!)
Wildling, Selkie, and Julia’s suggestions of “little birds”. We’ve got something else planned for those, though… ;)
Irian’s list of other cheap meats, including like black pudding, head cheese, ox tongue, lard, goose fat and bacon
Richard’s suggestion of “Black Dog” wines, especially if served on a yellow tablecloth
roussefolle’s wonderful ideas, just exotic enough to be Westeros, amazingly delicious
Verity’s suggestion of Baked Alaska for dessert, first for the irony of a flambe, and also because they can be made to look like a mountain, and the Hound would enjoy symbolically demolishing and devouring a Mountain

Sept Holiday Buns

Sept Holiday Buns

This one is a suggestion for the next book, as they’re delicious, historical, and really cool looking. I wanted to find a Westerosi holiday that they could feasibly be baked for, but shockingly, GRRM only lists one holiday: Maidens Day.

That didn’t seem to fit my vision, so if he should read this, I’d suggest not only including these buns, but also a holiday for The Seven. King’s Landing needs all the celebration it can get!

The buns are fluffy, light, and quite rich, especially given the relatively small amount of butter in the recipe. They make a delightful breakfast bun, and are at their very best when still warm from the oven. The combined icing and currants sweeten the deal, while the density of the bun makes it a great way to start one’s day, or celebrate your fave deities.

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Bread and Salt

“…[Once] a maiden girl could walk the kingsroad in her name-day gown and still go unmolested, and travelers could find fire, bread, and salt at many an inn and holdfast.”

Thoughts:

Bread and Salt are a staple of Westerosi culture and courtesy. They are the physical manifestation of the guest-right tradition, whereby anyone who receives such in a castle, inn, or home cannot be harmed while under that roof.

My version is loosely based on a traditional Russian bread. The salt is poured directly into the hollow of the bread, and each guest may tear off a piece of bread and dip it into the salt. The bread is like Easter bread (bring it to family gatherings!) in flavor and texture, but the taste with the salt is reminiscent of soft pretzels.

The inspiration credit for this goes to reader and commenter Random.

NB: Any spoilers related to this post will be deleted.

Bread and Salt Recipe

makes 2 large loaves

Ingredients

5 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoon salt
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1 1/3 cup milk
4 tablespoons butter
4 eggs, 2 left whole for baking into the dough
1 egg, beaten, for glaze

In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour, sugar, salt and yeast; stir well. In a small saucepan, melt the butter, then add the milk. Remove from heat before it becomes hotter than warm; if too hot, it will kill the yeast.

Gradually add the milk and butter to the flour mixture while stirring. Add two eggs and 1/2 cup more flour and beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.

Lightly grease a large bowl, put the dough in, and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into three equal size rounds; cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Roll each of the pieces into long rolls about 1 1/2 inches thick. Using the three long pieces of dough, form a loose braid. Divide this braid in half, then form each half into a round, sealing the ends together and tucking them under.

Cover your two whole eggs with butter or oil, then slip them carefully into the middle of each loaf. They should be tucked in about halfway. These whole raw eggs bake in the oven right along with the bread.

Place loaves on a greased baking sheet and cover loosely with a damp towel. Place loaf in a warm place and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Brush risen loaves with beaten eggs, and bake in for 45 to 55 minutes, or until dark golden.

Once the loaves have cooled somewhat, you can pull the egg out of the middle and fill the remaining divot with 1-2 Tbs. salt. The whole eggs will be somewhere between soft and hard boiled, and delicious with the freshly baked bread!

Rats on a Stick (not really!)

Rats on a Stick

Our Thoughts:

I’ll be honest. When I was browsing food blogs and came across this, all I could think was “Rat”. It’s something about that thick corn cob tail…

Contrary to the name, these “rats” are actually quite good. The flavor is savory, the taste of the onions noticable, as is the parm. Cheesey, chivey potato pancake in flavor, but the consistency is more like a samosa or onion bhaji- soft, but holds together well. It’s extra delicious when served with a salsa or other chili sauce.

But the best part? It’s vegetarian, and could easily be adapted to be fully vegan or gluten free. They’re a fun addition to any party spread for guests who can’t eat meat, as well as for those who can.

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Plan your Premiere Party

With just over a week to go before the premiere of Season 2, it’s time to nail down your party plans.

For starters, be sure to check out our page for Planning a Party. There, we have great ideas for foods both simple and daring, as well as templates for invitations, party favors, and much more. Our personal favorites are the Heraldic Banner Cake toppers, the very impressive Weirwood Tree Cake, Mulled Wine, Pork Pie, and Elizabethan Lemoncakes.

What foods are you planning to make? Are you decorating? Coming in costume? What’s the craziest Game of Thrones superfan thing you’ve done? Let’s make sure everyone watches Season 2 in style!

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