One of my favorite sections in the whole entire library is the cookbook section. I get super excited whenever anyone stops by the desk and asks where the cookbooks are. At home I enjoy watching all the food shows on Discovery Plus and experimenting in my own kitchen. One of my favorite kind of cookbooks to play with in the kitchen are the themed cookbooks. In recent years there has been an uptick in cookbooks based off of TV shows or movies. There are even cookbooks based off of videogame worlds! I am only going to cover the ones I have actually cooked from in this post, but will include a bonus list of other titles we own at Mead Public Library at the end!

Tasting History by Max Miller

This themed cookbook is not based off of some fantastical made up world, but pulls recipes from our very own human history. Some readers may recognize Max Miller from his youtube show also titled Tasting History where he cooks up good eats from times long past. This book contains selected recipes all assembled in one volume. The cookbook is broken into chapters ranging from the ancient past to just a few decades ago. Max Miller takes you from recipes written on ancient Babylonian tablets to good old cafeteria pizza from the 90s. If you cannot get enough of the recipes in this book and are curious to embark on more culinary time travel-check out the website https://www.tastinghistory.com/ where there are many more recipes featured.

My featured recipe from this volume is straight off a Babylonian clay tablet and helpfully translated for us by Max Miller: Babylonian stew of lamb. I have always been a history buff. One of my bachelors degrees is in history. I feel like eating what the people of the past ate brings us a step closer to understanding who they were and how they lived. The author also includes a historical lesson with every recipe so that you can better understand the food you are eating. For this recipe I also found the video on his website so I could watch what he did before attempting as I was a bit nervous.

In addition to watching the video and reading through the history lesson (learning about the flat tailed sheep was interesting) I prepared by looking online as to where I could order Persian shallots. We do not have anything like them in America which is a shame. They have a very nice spicy taste as if they are a cross between a radish, garlic, and onion. I ended up ordering them from Amazon (a fellow reader of Tasting History left a review that made me feel confident in my choice of purchase.) I then went shopping to assemble the rest of my ingredients. I decided on a mix of beef and lamb even though the recipe calls for lamb. The author says you can substitute if you wish. Leeks also feature prominently in this recipe (I did unfortunately not take my husband on this shop so I missed out on his leek puns).

The cook. This stew is traditionally served with rinatsu (a crouton like cookie or bread prepared with olive oil). You are to serve this as a crouton over the stew and mix some of it in ground for texture. The crumbled portion is needed for the stew. However, it is optional if you want to eat your stew with the rinatsu croutons on top. (My husband liked them more than I). I was nervous about the taste as there is no seasoning in the recipe. Surprisingly, the Persian shallots more than made up for it! Their flavor sure packs a punch and hits all the right notes on your tongue. I wish they were available at my regular shops. All you need to do is soak them in water to rehydrate them for 30 minutes or so as they come dried. I then stuck them into the food processor to mince them down. The rest of the cook was rather straightforward and just a matter of following the directions. If you have made soup before the cook will seem a familiar dance. All in all this ancient recipe was a fun learning experience and a rather tasty meal. I can now say I have eaten like an ancient Babylonian! My husband also gave a thumbs up on this recipe which is saying a lot as he can be rather picky!

Click HERE to request Tasting History!

The Star Trek Cookbook by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel

Dear readers, I take you from the past and deposit you into the final frontier of cookbooks! For years I have been looking for a decent Star Trek cookbook that delivers on the culinary delights of the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta Quadrants. The Star Trek Cookbook delivers! Have you ever wondered how to make the colorful morsels that we see Kirk and crew eating in the Original Series? Have you ever wanted to taste Romulan Ale for yourself? Perhaps you wondered what Klingon Gagh, Bajoran Hasperat or Vulcan Plomeek soup taste like? This is the book for you! Star Trek has always been filled with culinary delights from exotic cultures and species, this book gives you the chance to taste them! Admit it, you have always wanted to know what spatchcocked tribble tastes like.

I have only just started to dabble with this cookbook so I only have two recipes that I would like to highlight. My first favorite recipe is for Fettran Sauce. This recipe originates from the vacation planet Risa and was created to please human vacationers from the Federation. “Fettran” is the Risan word for Federation. You will find this sauce as an option on any Risan buffet. It comes in sweet or savory. I chose to make the savory variety. This sticky savory/sweet sauce is a delicious marinade on a variety of meats. My husband and I eat a lot of salmon. For my first experiment with this sauce I served it over salmon. It was absolutely delicious. Another time I was having his family over for dinner and was making a pork loin in the oven. I marinated the pork loin in the Fettran sauce and then used some of the left over sauce to coat the pork loin. His family LOVED it. My mother-in-law says that I need to make this recipe again! The only possibly odd ingredient you will need for this sauce is miso paste. I keep miso paste on hand in my fridge anyway. You will find it a lovely addition to soups, ramen, and Asian dishes.

I could not just choose one recipe to feature from this book. I have strong feelings about both of these and was having a hard time choosing. My second favorite is Kavarian Olive Oil. This oil hails from the planet Kavaria off the Bajor-Deon trade route. The olives are a favored food of Kavaria’s native tiger-bat. Humans in the Federation like to drizzle this oil over their pizza. As that is how humans of the future eat Kavarian Olive Oil, that is how I chose to serve it. I found that making the oil itself was very similar in process to how we would make a pesto. I made my recipe for chicken alfredo pizza and served the oil on top. I will include the recipe for my pizza below:

You will need:
-A pizza crust. I usually just purchase one from the store.
-One jar of alfredo
-A pound of boneless chicken breast
-About 2 bags of shredded Italian cheeses with an addition of fresh parmesan for topping
-Fresh spinach
-(optional) sliced black olives
-Kavarian Olive Oil

Assembling the pizza: Prepare the Kavarian Olive Oil according to the recipe. Set aside. Cut the raw chicken breast into small cubes/chunks on a clean cutting board. Cook the chicken breast in a pan with a bit of regular olive oil and Italian seasonings such as oregano or a mixture. Set the cooked chicken aside. (Make sure you keep your work area clean so as not to contaminate your pizza with raw chicken. Take time to clean up from the chicken prep). Get your pizza crust ready and spread it with the alfredo sauce (you may not have to use the whole can, you do not want it drenched.) Sprinkle a bit of the shredded cheese on the alfredo layer. Now spread your cooked chicken pieces over that layer. Add the rest of the shredded cheese (As much as you want. This is Wisconsin, I do not hold back.) Chop the fresh spinach and put as much as you would like on the top of the cheese layer, but not so much that it overtakes the rest of the flavors. Sprinkle the chopped black olives on top of the spinach layer. Grate some parmesan over the top. Make sure the oven is preheated to 425 degrees. Once the oven is ready put in your assembled pizza and bake for 8-12 minutes (before taking it out check to see if the cheese is all melted. This is how you know it is ready). Once you remove the pizza from the oven lightly sprinkle your Kavarian Olive Oil on top. Cut and enjoy!!!

NOTE: I tried this recipe with Kavarian Olive Oil and a second time with store bought pesto. The Kavarian Olive Oil is indeed superior!

Click HERE to request The Star Trek Cookbook!

The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook by Dinah Bucholz

So, there are two Harry Potter cookbooks in our catalogue. There is The OFFICIAL Harry Potter Cookbook and The UNOFFICIAL Harry Potter Cookbook. I will post a link for both of these below so that you can explore to your pleasure! My dad bought me The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook for Christmas a few years back, hence I have cooked more from that tome. Each recipe featured in this book is based on a scene or mention from the Harry Potter book series.

The world of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts is a delightful and magical one. So too are the recipes found inside this cookbook. While I have baked and cooked quite a number of recipes from The Unofficial Harry Potter cookbook, there is one that has practically lodged itself in my psyche. I have eaten many chocolate cakes in my life. But no cake has quite compared to Harry Potter’s Old Fashioned Buttermilk Sheet Cake. This is the best chocolate cake I have ever eaten. In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Harry mentions that his babysitter, Mrs. Figg, bakes a chocolate cake that he thinks tastes “ancient”. Apparently Mrs. Figg is either not baking it right or she does not store her cake properly as this recipe is worth making from scratch. All you need are the listed ingredients, a 9×13 pan, and an oven. Decorate this magnificent creation how you wish. I made it for a Christmas party so decorated accordingly. I openly admit my cake decorating skills have much to be desired. Too bad a wizard could not just wave a wand and magically place the frosting and sprinkles. Regardless of your cake decorating skills-the finished product (when the recipe is followed correctly) is sure to be pure magic.

Click HERE to request The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook!

Click HERE to request The Official Harry Potter Cookbook!

The Wizard’s Cookbook by Aurelia Beaupommier

In keeping with the wizarding theme of the above cookbook, I bring you The Wizard’s Cookbook. In these pages you will be transported to the culinary worlds of Aladdin, Bewitched, Dungeons and Dragons, The World of Warcraft, Narnia, Middle Earth, Oz, and many other cherished magical stories. I have made quite a few recipes from this book (all of them I have tried have been good). In paging through to reignite my memory for this post I realized I had cooked more from here than I thought. The thing is, only one sticks in my memory as something I now crave. That recipe is: Souk Cigars.

The Souk Cigars recipe comes to us from the world of Aladdin. This recipe calls to mind the bustling markets of the city of Agrabah. As you peruse the finest fabrics and smell the 1,000 spices wafting through the air you may stop at a humble food merchant’s stall and purchase this cheesy, spinachy delight held together by the flakiest of pastry and sprinkled with a delightful crunch of sesame seeds. Eat this finger food while watching the fire dancer juggle his batons and leap through the burning hoops in the most dangerous of dances as the cheese melts on your tongue.

Ok, out of the markets of Agrabah and back to the kitchen. This is a great recipe as an appetizer, a snack, or a dish to pass at a potluck. It is healthy and tasty all in one. Phyllo dough can be easily found in your freezer section of the grocery store. It comes in sheets that can be flaky. You just need to be careful while rolling the cooked spinach and the feta in them. Honestly my “cigars” turned out to look more like wands and were probably two or three portions in one! They tasted good though and that is what matters! Personally I LOVE spinach and the addition of the feta and sesame seeds was just heavenly. I very much recommend giving these a try! (Bonus: great way to get kids to eat spinach!)

Click HERE to request The Wizard’s Cookbook!

The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel

The world of The Elder Scrolls (Tamriel) is my comfort world. When I am feeling stressed one of my favorite things to do is jump into the Skyrim videogame. Food has always played an important role in the cultures of Tamriel. I even have a mod for my Skyrim game that makes it more advantageous to cook homemade meals. I enjoy spending my time browsing the markets and fish stalls across the land looking for ingredients for the recipe I want to make. If you get married in the game your spouse can cook for you (while sweet and handy, he or she is only programmed to make one recipe: the “homecooked meal” that looks like a pie or something.) If you build your own house in game you can add on a kitchen complete with a baking oven. From there you can be the best medieval mom and make delicious pastries for your adopted children.

For those of us who want to try recipes from this wonderful world in our real kitchens we have The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook featuring recipes from Skyrim, Morrowind, and all the lands of Tamriel. I have tried quite a few recipes from this book and have settled on two that I would like to highlight. Those are: Mushroom and Vegetable Risotto and Leek and Cheese Crostata.

Mushroom Vegetable Risotto: If anyone here has ever watched a Chef Ramsey show you know that he is VERY particular about his risotto. It seems the chefs on his show can never get it right for him. The rice is always over done or under done and too crunchy and then the chefs have to redo it. As such, I approached this recipe with a level of nervousness. Really it was not that difficult, just follow the recipe and you will be fine. I have faith in you! This dish is prevalent across Tamriel, but much loved by those in the cold winter clime of Skyrim. This was the first risotto I ever made and the first risotto that I have ever eaten. I see now what the fuss is about! This made an absolutely delicious meal. I did not find the recipe hard to follow and what resulted was a warm and hearty dinner. If you have never made risotto before and want to try or you are a lover of the dish give this recipe a try! This risotto recipe will make you feel like you are in a Jarl’s hall on a cold winter’s day!

Leek and Cheese Crostata: If you have played Skyrim before you probably noticed that leeks and cheese are found everywhere in this country. I admit to a hoarding tendency to cheese wheels in the game myself. I mean, they look so delicious and inviting. I wish I could reach inside the screen and grab one. In real life I absolutely love leeks (this is the second entry of this blog featuring a leek themed recipe.) I am going to confess though-I cheated on this recipe…I bought a pie dough from the premade section of the grocery store. Everything else I made from scratch as the recipe dictates. What resulted was a delicious dish that was warm and comforting. My husband and I each had a slice for dinner and found it to be quite filling. This leek and cheese crostata felt like a recipe made for Wisconsin. Growing up in the Kettle Moraine it was common to come across wild onions and cheese has always been incorporated into many different meals. This was a very comforting dish.

I recommend both of these recipes for a cold day when you are craving something warm and comforting. I also recommend these recipes for when you want to pretend you are living in Skyrim, sitting before a roaring fire either in a Jarl’s Hall or in your own cozy cottage.

Click HERE to request The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook!

A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Companion Cookbook by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sariann Lehrer

If you have read George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire (popularly knows as The Game of Thrones series) you are familiar with the vast array of food described in the books. George R.R. Martin addresses this in an introduction inside this cookbook. He says that he wanted his readers to feel that they could taste and experience the food. This is why Joffrey’s wedding feast took up about 4 pages complete with in depth depictions of what was served. Well, with A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Companion Cookbook you can taste dishes from across Westeros for yourself! What I find most fascinating about this book is that it splits the recipes up by region. Food in Kings Landing has a different feel than food in the North. Food at The Wall also has a different feel. If you want really exotic fare, check out the chapters featuring cuisine from the lands beyond The Waking Sea. (This is the only cookbook I own with a recipe for honeyed crickets. I do not know if I will ever be brave enough for that one.) Crickets aside, I have found a few go-to recipes in this book that I have been using over and over. All of my favorites come from the North in Westeros (the fare there suits a Wisconsinite’s cravings I find).

Apple Cakes: One thing I like about this cookbook is that it presents each recipe two ways. You have the medieval version of the recipe and the modern version of the recipe. For the Apple Cakes I made the modern version which is more like a muffin. I have seen people online make the medieval version and that looks tasty as well. The modern version has gone onto my Fall “What to Bake with Fresh Apples” list as I love it so much. I have also made them for multiple family gatherings. My biggest note: Don’t forget to make up the crumble topping and put it on top BEFORE baking. I have accidentally messed up a few times and have placed my muffins in the oven before putting the crumble on top. It does not melt in a heavenly fashion if you bake before hand. Apple Cakes were a part of a breakfast on The Wall. These were usually served alongside blood sausage to the Brothers who served there.

Crusty White Bread: This recipe comes to us via The Great Hall of Winterfell. Game of Thrones starts off with the Starks preparing for a visit from King Robert and his family. The smell of baking breads along with roasted meat filled The Great Hall in preparation for the great feast. This was a very easy and basic bread recipe. It makes three loaves so you will have some to share or freeze. This was my first introduction to bread making and has become my go to bread recipe when I am in the mood for fresh baked bread. This recipe is best to make when you have some time on your hands as the wait time on the bread rising can take a few hours. Once baked, this bread is perfect served with soup, butter, jams, or cheese.

Click HERE to request A Feast of Ice and Fire!