Twitter 
“I want bread, two of those little fishes, and a mug of dark beer to wash it all down.” So declares famished warlord Tyrion Lannister, one of the many colorful characters in HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”
The series, based on the bestselling novels by George R. R. Martin, is a violently epic medieval fantasy about warring families, vying for power over the mythical land of Westeros.
But in between the bloody battles and palace intrigue, characters get hungry, and in his books Martin goes into great detail about what they eat and how they eat it — from a rack of lamb surrounded by turnips swimming in butter, pigeon pie, creamed swans, honeyed locusts and Dornish Snake with Fiery Sauce.
The descriptions in Martin’s novels inspired two roommates from Allston, Massachusetts to cook the dishes, then blog about it. The blog became so popular, they published a book, “A Feast of Ice and Fire.”
Elizabethan Lemon Cakes
From “A Feast of Ice and Fire”
Elizabethan Lemon Cakes. (Courtesy Random House)
Makes 36 small cakes.
Prep: 5 minutes, Baking: 15 minutes
2 1/2 cups flour, plus more as needed
1 egg
2 cups granulated sugar 2 egg yolks
6 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
Grated zest from 2 lemons 1 1/2 teaspoons milk
Preheat the oven to 350˚F and grease a large baking sheet.
In a large bowl, combine the flour and granulated sugar. Cut in the butter, then add the
zest and the whole egg and yolks. Mix thoroughly, adding more flour as needed, until the dough
is no longer sticky and can be easily shaped by hand.
Roll the dough into balls about 1 inch across and place them on the prepared baking sheet
at least 2 inches apart, giving them room to spread as they bake.
Bake for 15 minutes, until the tops are just slightly golden. Allow the cakes to cool for a
minute before moving them to a cooling rack.
Mix the confectioners’ sugar and milk to a smooth consistency. Once the cakes have
cooled, use a spoon to drizzle the icing over the cookies.
Recipe excerpted from “A Feast of Ice and Fire,” copyright (c) Random House.
Guests:
- Chelsea Monroe-Cassel, co-author of “A Feast of Ice and Fire”
- Sariann Lehrer, co-author of “A Feast of Ice and Fire”
