Duncan Idaho said Spice Beer is the "bes' damn stuff ever tas'ed," but we just had to find out for ourselves... LET THE SPICE FLOW! All credit for the recipe goes to The Geeky Chef, Cassandra Reeder. Check out "The Geeky Chef Cook Book" and see even more awesome real-life recipes for your favorite fantasy foods!
Cooking the Book Ep. 2 - We Have Always Lived in the Castle & Interview with a Vampire
In the spirit of October, here is a special episode of Cooking the Book that we just recursioned, I mean recovered, from a long past dead memory…
Uncle Julian’s Rarebit
INGREDIENTS:
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 drops hot pepper sauce (like Tabasco)
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup porter or stout beer (we used Guinness)
• 1/2 pound white cheddar cheese, grated
• 4 slices of your preferred bread, toasted
DIRECTIONS:
You’ll notice in our video that we doubled this recipe. We had A LOT left over, so don’t feel the need to double unless you plan on making this for more than 4 people... or if you really want leftovers, though we can’t attest to how well it reheats. It also made an excellent dip.
Melt your butter in a large saucepan over low heat.
Blend in your flour, salt, pepper, mustard, Worcestershire and hot pepper sauce.
Continue cooking and stirring until the mixture is smooth and bubbly; about 5 minutes.
Don’t forget to toast your bread! After it’s toasted, lay it out on a pan for the final step. We used aluminum foil for easier clean-up.
Remove your mixture from heat to gradually stir in the milk. Then return to heat, still stirring, until the mixture comes to a slight boil.
Slowly pour in beer, cooking another minute while stirring continuously.
Time to melt the cheese! Add your grated cheese in small portions to the mixture until all is completely incorporated and melty.
Remove cheese mixture from heat, spoon over your toast, and broil until cheese starts to lightly brown.
Serve to friends you trust not to poison you... and dive in!
The Sweet & Boozy Interview
INGREDIENTS:
• dark chocolate syrup (for the rims of your glasses)
• 2 ounces whipped cream vodka
• 1 ounce vanilla vodka
• 1 ounce Crème de Cacao
• 1/4 ounce Aperol
• 1/2 ounce grenadine
DIRECTIONS:
Stick your martini glasses in the freezer to chill.
Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice.
Measure out your whipped cream & vanilla vodkas, Crème de Cacao, Aperol, and grenadine.
Shake until well blended, or your arms get tired.
Take your martini glasses out of the freezer and carefully “dribble” your dark chocolate syrup around the rim to look like blood drips.
Strain your martini mixture evenly (whoops) into the two glasses.
Serve & sip!
Optional: Drink an additional glass of water and take 2 ibuprofen before going to bed.
Cooking the Book Ep. 1 - The Night Circus
One thing we can all agree on is that we loved Erin Morgenstern’s descriptions of the delicious treats in The Night Circus. Talia was so inspired that she cooked up this splendid recipe for Bailey’s Chocolate Mice. We hope you enjoy as much as we did!
“As he continues to walk around the circus, Bailey’s path leads back to the courtyard. He stops briefly to watch the sparkling bonfire and then at a vendor to purchase a bag of chocolates to make up for his mostly uneaten dinner. The chocolates are shaped like mice, with almond ears and licorice tails.” – The Night Circus
Bailey’s Chocolate Mice
INGREDIENTS:
1 box of Chocolate Cake Mix (plus whatever ingredients are needed like eggs, oil, and water)
1 container of Chocolate Frosting (16 oz)
Licorice or Twizzlers for the tails
Sliced Almonds for the ears (Make sure they are slices and not slivers!)
Chocolate Candy Coating / Candy Melts
Sugar Pearls (or Candy Beads) for the eyes
Wire Rack
DIRECTIONS:
MAKE A CAKE. Grab your preferred box of chocolate cake mix and get to baking! Just follow the directions on the back.
ALLOW CAKE TO COOL. THEN CRUMBLE AND MIX WITH ICING! Set your cake aside to completely cool before breaking it up in a large mixing bowl. Dump in the container of chocolate frosting, mix it all together, and you’ve got the “clay” for your mice!
FORM THE MICE BODIES AROUND THE LICORICE TAILS. You’re going to want the licorice tails to be very secure in the bodies of the mice so you can dip them into the candy coating by their tails. Be sure it runs through at least half the length of your mice, in the very middle.
ADD ALMOND SLICES FOR EARS! Pick the cutest (and most unbroken) almond slices for your mouse ears and lightly press them in behind the “face” of your mouse.
CHILL YOUR MICE! AND TAKE A WELL-DESERVED BREAK. Refrigerate your mice for a couple hours. I placed ours on wax paper on cookie sheets so they’d be easier to pull up later. You can also put them in the freezer if you’re pressed for time.
MELT THE CHOCOLATE CANDY COATING. Once your mice are cold and solid, prepare the chocolate coating. Just melt them according to the instructions. Make sure you’re using candy melts for coating and not chocolate chips. Chocolate chips will not harden when they dry. Also… *Spray your wire rack with nonstick spray!*
CAREFULLY COAT YOUR MICE. A SPOON HELPS! Gently grab a mouse by the tail and dip it in! I used a spoon to help scoop the coating over the top of the mouse and around the ears. Carefully spin them to get rid of the excess coating, and then place them on the wire rack. I also put wax paper underneath the rack to catch all the extra dripping chocolate.
GIVE YOUR MICE EYES IMMEDIATELY! THE CANDY COATING DRIES FAST. Before the coating hardens completely, add some sugar pearls or candy beads for your mouse eyes.
Ta da! You have your own nest of magical chocolate mice, sure to enchant anyone!