Cookbook Challenge # 17 - A Feast of Ice and Fire
I bought A Feast of Ice and Fire (Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sariann Lehrer, 2012) at the height of Game of Thrones fandom. Based on their Inn at the Crossroads blog—which I was pleased to find still exists with recent content, though you have to wade through a lot of ads to find the recipes—it takes foods mentioned in Martin’s novels and offers a version based on a historical recipe and a more modern interpretation for each. This weekend I made Modern White Beans and Bacon with 17th-Century Baked Apples as a dessert. The bean dish was okay, though not enough to add to my rotation necessarily. The apples, however, surprised me with how good they turned out. Because it was a pretty warm evening, I served them with vanilla ice cream, and all three of us loved them.
Modern White Beans and Bacon
4 pieces bacon, roughly chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 head curly endive, leaves rinsed and torn
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup dried white beans, soaked overnight, or one 16-oz can white beans
Salt and pepper to taste
If using dried beans, cook and drain.
Cook the bacon in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and set it on paper towels to drain. Add the onion to the drippings and saute until tender.
Add half the endive leaves and cover the pot, cooking until the endive is wilted, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining endive and the garlic, then cover and cook until the remaining endive has wilted.
Add the beans and bacon, cooking until the beans are heated through, stirring often. Season with salt and pepper and serve.
17th-Century Baked Apples
1 T ground cinnamon
4 T sugar
2 T unsalted butter, melted
2 firm, tart red apples
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Mix together the cinnamon, sugar, and butter.
Slice the apples in half vertically through the core. Cut out the core and seeds, then prick the inside of the apple all over with a sharp knife. Place the apples cut side up in a baking dish and pour in enough water to just cover the bottom of the dish. Divide the cinnamon filling among the apple halves, spreading it to cover the cut surface.
Cover and bake for 1 hour. Provide a fork and knife for your guests to eat the apples with, and enjoy!