Game of Thrones Feast 6: The North

I can’t believe the season is almost over! The final region that I had not cooked from yet in the book was The North. This includes Winterfell and other cities in norther Westeros. I think this one might have been the most delicious feast yet with so many flavorful meaty foods. I had a really hard time finishing all the food on my plate and trying everything, even though it was my only substantial meal of the day. I think my favorite things were the bacon beef pie and the oat bread. But I also really loved the roast and the other pie as well.

Buttered beets tossed with vinegar and parsley

These were an excellent side dish. They were pretty simple but beets are always a nice color addition to the table

Roast Auroch with Leeks (Top Round Roast over leeks, carrots, garlic, and herbs)

This was very good! The veggies it was sitting on top of came our really delicious as well.

Onions in beef gravy (good with the roast)

This was good served over the roast slices. The sweetness of the pearl onions is always something I look forward to.

Bacon beef pie with dates, prunes, and raisins

This was one of my favorites! I cooked the medieval pie from the cookbook but used the bacon lattice from the modern one because it looked fun. The salty meaty flavor from the gravy and stew meat pieces paired well with the sweetness of the dates/prunes/raisins and everything tastes good with bacon chunks mixed in of course 🙂

Ingredients:

12 slices bacon for the top plus another 1/2 cup diced bacon for the filling

1 1/2 lbs stew beef cut into small pieces (I cut each piece from the package into 4-6 smaller pieces)

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/3 cup prunes, chopped

1/3 cup raisins

1/3 cup dates, chopped

1 cup beef broth

3 tbs flour

dough for a 9″pie crust (only need 1)

1 egg, beaten

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 F

Weave the bacon strips into a lattice. place on a baking sheet covered in foil. Cook for 15-20 minutes in the oven. Let cool. With a sharp knife, cut the weave into a circle that will fit into the top of the pie plate.

Cook the diced bacon in a saucepan over medium heat until the fat runs from it then drain off the fat. To the bacon pan, add the stew beef, spices, vinegar, and fruits. Add the broth. While stirring, add in the flour. Simmer on low heat until the juices for a gravy consistency.

Let the meat mixture cool before adding to the dough-lined pie plate. Add the bacon lattice on top and fold the crust edges inward over the bacon edges. Bush the crust with egg.

Cook for 45 minutes, until the crust is golden.

Roasted hens with honey apple currant glaze

These turned out much tastier than the first time I made cornish game hens. They were roasted covered in butter and salt, which made for a nice skin flavor and texture and then coated with honey, apple, currant glaze which tasted excellent and seemed appropriate for the region.

Cold fruit soup

This was pretty interesting and tasty, cantaloupe mixed with basil and yogurt and some mild spices. Fruit soups are always nice and refreshing.

Venison pie with bacon, sweet potatoes, and onions

This pie did not turn out very picturesque but it was delicious! As with the bacon pie above, the sweetness of the sweet potatoes paired well with the salty bacon and meat.

Brown Oatbread

I love the flavor of this bread! You can really taste the dark molasses flavor and it was quite easy to make. It turned out very dense and it’s delicious simply on its own or with a bit of butter.

Ingredients:

2 cups boiling water

1/2 cup molasses

2 Tbs. butter

1 cup rolled oats (not the instant variety)

1 Tbs. yeast

1/2 tsp. coarse salt

3 cups flour

1 Tbs. melted butter

Directions:

Combine the boiling water with the molasses and butter, stirring to combine. Pour this over the rolled oats, and let sit for 30 minutes. When the mixture is warm to the touch, but not hot, stir in the yeast, and let sit for another 15 minutes. It should be very light and bubbly at this point. Add the salt, followed gradually by the flour. The dough still may be sticky depending on how much water your oats soaked up.

Transfer the dough to a clean, greased bowl, and brush the top with melted butter to keep from drying out. After the dough has doubled in bulk, transfer it to a bread pan, brush the top with butter, and let it rise again until doubled.

Bake at 350 for ~40 minutes, when the bread should be a nice golden brown. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes before taking it out of the pan and slicing.

Fried cod cakes

These were tasty, cod mixed with turnips, bread crumbs, and some spices.

Buttered cheesy turnips

These are like a medieval version of potatoes au gratin. I think I like the potato version more but it was fun to try it out with turnips!

Baked apples stuffed with dried cherries, brown sugar, and walnuts

Yum!

Oatcakes filled with pine nut puree or blackberry preserves

The oat cakes turned out kind of like hard cookies and they tasted wonderful especially paired with each of the fillings.