020 - Nobody Wants to Say "Farewell to Lorien"

Figuring out our Lembas bread equivalents, Gimli has his first crush, and Pat gives out presents for his birthday. This week we discuss book 2, chapter 8, "Farewell to Lorien", from The Fellowship of the Ring.

Today's "Food For Thought": Elven Lembas Bread

Yes!! I finally get to make Lembas bread! Probably one of the most recognizable foods from LOTR. I reviewed probably 15 different recipes before I found one that felt right: https://insanelygoodrecipes.com/lembas-bread-from-lord-of-the-rings/#wpzoom-premium-recipe-card. Spoiler: they're cookies. Also, I made a 2nd batch with half almond flour which was EVEN BETTER!

2.5 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temp
1/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 425F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Sift or whisk dry ingredients together in a large bowl or stand mixer bowl.
Add the butter and sugar, and beat into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Be prepared for a huge mess if you don't start slow and/or cover the bowl.
Add the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
Roll out the dough about 1/2" thick. I put down some parchment paper and floured that to avoid making a huge sticky mess on my table. Then I added more flour, another sheet of parchment, and rolled over the parchment. Mess averted (mostly)!
Cut out 3-inch squares of dough, transfer to cookie sheet, and press two diagonal lines across the top of each to make an "X".
Bake for 12 minutes. Breads should be set and golden in color. Cool before serving. Wrap in banana leaves? Or green paper?

Notes: These tasted fabulous and held their shape but were very dry, likely by design. I wanted to make another batch subbing some almond flour for some of the wheat flour to make them a little more flavorful. I used half of each flour, but I didn't reduce the liquid (cream) to account for less wheat flour to absorb it. My almond flour dough was too wet and the breads spread out when I baked them... but the taste was amazing. I suggest reducing the cream by half, but I haven't tested this yet.

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Welcome to the Fool of a Took Podcast — the show where deep lore meets even deeper nonsense! Here's the catch - 2 of the 4 hosts have never read the books before! Join Chris, RJ, Pat and Laura as they dive headfirst into the world of Tolkien.

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