Witchy Kitchen

Tag: game of thrones

  • Rosy Lemon Cakes

    Rosy Lemon Cakes

    I had a very specific image of Sansa’s favorite treat in mind as I was reading Game of Thrones, so it took a couple of tries to get them right! I had a vision of small, almost bite-sized cakes on a platter, decorated prettily. I wanted them very dense, barely leavened, so I melted the butter and cooked them at a very low temperature. There are a million lemon cake recipes floating around, so I’ve tried what I imagined as regional variations. This one is inspired by Highgarden. I used rosewater in both the lemon curd and the lemon cakes; the Tyrell’s sigil is the Rose, which I thought was fitting as Marjorie was a decent ally for awhile to Sansa.

    As a variation, I also made a Queen in the North version: Rosemary Lemon Cakes with rosemary and candied lemon.

    Rosy Lemon Cakes

    For the rosy lemon curd
    Adapted from Ina Garten

    • 16 tablespoons (2 sticks) butter
    • 1 1/2 cups sugar
    • zest of 3 lemons
    • 4 eggs
    • juice of 2 lemons
    • 2 tbsp rose water
    • 1/8 tsp salt

    Cream the butter, then beat in the sugar and lemon zest. Add the eggs one by one, then the lemon juice, rosewater, and salt.

    Pour into a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring, until thickened (10 minutes or so, mine took longer). Remove from heat and cool completely. Can save in the fridge.

    For the lemon cakes

    • 6 tablespoons butter, melted
    • 1/3 cup honey
    • 3 egg yolks
    • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
    • 2 tablespoons rosewater
    • pinch safflower for color (optional)
    • 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour (spoon very lightly into measuring cups to measure)
    • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • powdered sugar, rosy lemon curd, and optional rose petals to decorate

    Heat oven to 275°

    Whisk together well butter and honey, then whisk in egg yolks one at a time. Whisk in lemon juice, rosewater, and crumbled safflower.

    In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt, then stir into wet ingredients until just combined. Spoon into greased mini muffin cups, and bake for 15-17 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

    Cool for a few minutes in the pan, then overturn onto a plate to cool the rest of the way. Before serving, sprinkle with powdered sugar, dollop with lemon curd, and garnish with a few sprinkled rose petals.

    This is kind of an amalgam of these:
    Fine Cakes translated by Gode Cookery
    Medieval Lemon Cakes by Inn at the Crossroads
    Lemoncakes from Geeky Chef (this is my favorite presentation, I may try the ones above again with just little lemon slices in the muffin cups)

    This dish was first posted for Fiction Kitchen Episode 1: GAME OF THRONES in which Carrie and Diana discuss characters, regions and cuisines of Westeros and Essos, salt rite, food styling, and blood and boobs.

  • Game of Thrones Potluck: Winterfell

    As I’ve probably mentioned, I’m completely obsessed with Game of Thrones, as are my sisters and friends. We’ve been watching the show, reading the books, and most recently we (and the rest of our potluck people) have been cooking the food!

    Our first potluck was in dreary January at my sister’s house, and the wintery food of Winterfell sounded like a good place to start. She set her table beautifully with white and silver – Stark house colors! – and we loaded it up with delicious Northern fare.

    winterfell

    Winterfell – The Menu

    Thanks to all the dear friends who contributed!

    Onion Tarts
    (Recipe coming)

    Turnip Soup
    (Recipe modified from A Feast of Ice and Fire – they were supposed to be mashed turnips but they came out very thin so I added broth and made them into a soup)

    Roast Aurochs with Carrots, Garlic, and Leeks
    (Recipe from A Feast of Ice and Fire)

    Buttered Beets
    (Recipe from A Feast of Ice and Fire)

    Mixed Greens, Blackberry and Walnut Salad with Mustard Seed Vinaigrette
    (Recipe coming)

    Kumquats
    (Hot tip: you eat the skin! News to us ignorant peasants)

    Baked Apples
    (Recipe from A Feast of Ice and Fire)

    My friend craftily made wine labels which I got a kick out of: Arbor Gold and Dornish Red. A lovely time was had by all.

    We had our next potluck, Across the Narrow Sea, just last weekend at House Rashid, so I will be recapping our spicy exotic menu soon (as well as the recipes above).

    We’ve been using several sources for inspiration. My sister gave my other sister and I A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook for Christmas, and we’ve been cooking medieval fare from it quite a bit. The authors’ blog Inn at the Crossroads is also a wealth of recipes straight from the books. We’ve also been just cooking whatever we feel is appropriate and mixes in well with the rest of the dishes, whether we get the idea from somewhere or just feel inspired to experiment in our own kitchens.

    The Game of Thrones themes have managed to revive potluck – the group has taken a few years’ hiatus with a lone potluck thrown in here and there, but now we’ve already have had two and we have two more scheduled in the coming weeks. Besides an excuse to get together with good friends, it’s a fun way to learn more about medieval cooking, and a delicious way to get our Game of Thrones fix until the next season starts!