Lamb Stew with Dried Plums - The Hunger Games

Katniss' Favorite Lamb Stew with Dried Plums

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! It's always an amazing celebration when fireworks are involved! I unfortunately didn't have a great haul. I bought around $35 worth and this is all I got! :'( prices of fireworks really went up a lot from the last time I bought them! $7 for 2 roman candles?! At least I can save them for my birthday and new years! 

This is the second 4th of July my family has celebrated at our new house. Previous to that, we used to have great parties and invited everyone we knew. It was awesome. Bingo, halo-halo...it was just fun all around. As opposed to now, we don't do anything.

Our neighbors have a small get-together though. It was really amazing once everyone started lighting their own fireworks. Most of my neighbors had aerials! (Surprising because you can't buy them here). It was super pretty being under those! :) 

So I made lamb stew Hunger Games style! This is Katniss' favorite lamb stew. It's the stew that she loved eating in the Capitol and that was sent to her by Haymitch during the games. It's also what she says she was most impressed by about the Capitol during her interviews before the games. 

It was a bit sweet for my tastes, even with the cut-down of sugar, but still good. I'm not much of a lamb person though, too game-y. I doubt i'll be making this again unless I find myself having a Hunger Games themed party. Hah.

Recipe Adapted from The Hunger Games Cookbook by Emily Baines.

Katniss' Favorite Lamb Stew with Dried Plums:
Yield 8-10 servings

Ingredients:
5 pounds lamb fillet, shoulder or leg, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
½ cup water
4 cups beef stock
1 teaspoons brown sugar
3 cups diced carrots
1 cup diced zucchini
1½ cups diced celery
2 large onions, diced
3 potatoes, cubed
2 cups halved dried plums
2 teaspoons dried thyme
3 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
2 bay leaves
1 cup ginger ale

Directions:

1. Place lamb, salt, pepper, and flour in a large mixing bowl. Toss to coat meat evenly.
2. Heat olive oil in a large pan and brown the meat, working in batches if you have to.
3. Remove lamb to a side plate. Pour off fat, leaving ¼ cup in the pan. Add the garlic and onion and sauté until the onion becomes golden. Deglaze frying pan with the ½ cup water, taking care to scrape the bottom of the pan to stir up all of the tasty bits of meat and onion. Cook to reduce liquid slightly, then remove from heat.
4. Place the lamb and garlic-onion mixture in a large stockpot. Add beef stock and sugar, stirring until sugars are dissolved. Bring mixture to a boil, cover, and simmer for 1½ hours.
5. Add the vegetables, dried plums, herbs, and ginger ale to the pot. Simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until meat and vegetables pierce easily with a fork.

District 4 Bread - The Hunger Games - Attempt #2

District 4 Seaweed Bread

So I tried to make the District 4 Seaweed Bread again. (find the recipe HERE) This time, it came out perfect! Everything I read in the book came true! It resembles the book's bread almost to par...it's actually tinted green with seaweed! I'm so happy with it. It tastes a lot like seaweed and they're so soft and amazing.

Make sure to boil the seaweed until it is soft. This is so it will blend together well. Make sure that you make a paste with the seaweed. You should use all of the 1/2 cup. I also used the water that I boiled the seaweed in to proof my yeast. I think it gave it somewhat of a stronger seaweed flavor. If you like seaweed, this step is a must.

It really does turn out amazing!

District 4 seaweed bread before putting it in the oven

They actually look like fish this time!

District 4 Seaweed Bread Fully Baked!

Enjoy! :D

Peeta's Raisin and Nut Bread - The Hunger Games

My sleep schedule has been way off lately! This is why I do like having classes during summer. When I have nothing to do, I tend to sleep late catching up on lost TV and movie time. Yesterday, I actually caught up on Love in the Wild and Smash! I love reality shows and shows that pertain to talent and broadway. *Ahem, Glee*! I guess you could say I've been on a late night baker's schedule? I sleep at around 6am and wake up way too late. But there are upsides to it! Like this bread that I made!

When anyone thinks of food from The Hunger Games, it's usually either the Katniss' favorite lamb stew from the Capitol or some kind of bread.  Bread it is! Haha! I'll try to make the lamb stew some time in the future! 

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This bread that I made today was the raisin and nut bread that Peeta burned and tossed at Katniss that eventually saved her life. This act of kindness that Peeta showed towards Katniss gave her the sense of hope and the willingness to continue living and make her life better. 

The version I made of his bread was a bit dense...i'm still thinking about what it was from, possibly the oatmeal I added. Maybe it was because I cheated on the rising time? (*most likely) Ahh, the curses of being an amateur baker; you don't know what you're doing wrong! I used half white flour and half whole wheat flour. I didn't have any raisins on hand so I used dried cranberries and dates instead. Additionally, I added a bit of orange zest for an extra zing. It's not exactly like the book describes it, but I wanted to make something that my whole family would eat! This is definitely a hearty bread! It's full of protein and fiber! It actually tasted great! The dates and cranberries added a lot of sweetness.

The next time I make this, I will try to make it a more slender loaf. I'll also try to let the dough rise a lot longer, maybe 5-8 hours. I've been too impatient lately, but I'll make sacrifices to make good bread!

Peeta's Raisin and Nut Bread

Peeta's Nut and Raisin Bread:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cooked oats

1 cup water

1 tsp white sugar

1 1/2 tsp yeast

1 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 1/2 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup chopped dates

1/2 cup raisins, or dried cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Cook oatmeal until done, about 3 minutes.
2. Proof the yeast: Dissolve sugar in warmed water. Add yeast to mixture. You know your yeast is active if it forms bubbles. 
3. Mix cooked oats, vegetable oil, honey, salt, dates, raisins, and walnuts into the yeast mixture.
4. Sift together whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour.
5. Combine flour and yeast mixture until well incorporated.
6. Knead the dough on a floured surface until smooth.
7. Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover loosely. Set in a warm place and let rise for around 2 hours.
8. Punch dough down and divide into 2.
9. Form long loaves and dust with flour. Place on a dusted cookie sheet. Cover loosely and let rise for another 2 hours. 
10. Preheat oven to 400F
11. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until loaves are a nice brown color.

Peeta's Raisin and Nut Bread Slices!

District 11 Bread - The Hunger Games

District 11 Bread

Hello! So as promised, I made District 11 bread! Their main industry is agriculture and you can tell because of the descriptions of the fields of crops, orchards, and dairy cattle that are in the book. They produce all the crops that go to the capitol. District 11's bread is described as a crescent-shaped roll made from a dark ration grain that's sprinkled with seeds. Naturally, I thought of sunflower seeds since there are fields of wildflowers spread throughout the district. District 11's bread plays a huge significance in the first book, although it's not prevalent in the movie adaptation.

For the bread, I used part rye flour and part whole wheat flour to give the bread a characteristic dark shade.  I incorporated seeds on both the inside and the outside of the bread. The bread was very sticky, so I had to add a lot of extra flour when kneading. It will take a bit longer to rise because rye flour has a very low gluten content, hence me adding whole wheat flour along with it. I also used agave nectar instead of the honey. While making the bread, I kept thinking about nutrition since most of my family members are trying to eat healthier. Therefore, I tried to make it as healthy as I could. It's a huge list of ingredients, but the end results are amazing! They were a little dense, but they were still good! Would be a great dinner roll, especially since it's such a hearty loaf! I adapted this recipe from Pippis in the Kitchen Again.

District 11 Crescent Rolls:
Yields approx 17 rolls

Ingredients:
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup milk

2 1/3 cup warm water
1 package yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
1 tbsp white sugar
3 tbsp honey, or agave nectar
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp salt

3 cups whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups rye flour
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 1/2 tbsp poppy seeds
2 tbsp ground flax seed

1 egg (egg wash)
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 tbsp poppy seeds
1 tbsp flax seeds

Directions:

1. Cook the oatmeal in the boiling water for about 3 minutes. Let cool. Mix in milk.
2. Proof the yeast: Dissolve sugar in warmed water. Add yeast to mixture. You know your yeast is active if it forms bubbles.
3. Mix in cooled oatmeal, honey, vegetable oil, and salt once the yeast is proofed.
4. In a separate dish, add whole wheat flour, rye flour, sunflower seeds, poppy seeds, and ground flax seeds. Mix together until well combined.
5. Mix in flour mixture to yeast mixture 1 cup at a time until all the flour mixture is well incorporated.
6. Knead the dough on a floured surface until smooth. This might take a bit more flour than anticipated.
7. Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover loosely. Set in a warm place and let rise until doubled, around 1 1/2 hours.
8. Punch dough down and let rise for another 30 min.
9. Preheat oven to 375F.
10. Punch dough down again and divide into even pieces. Form each piece into a triangle and roll into a crescent shape. Start from the wide end and roll towards the tip.
11. Cover loosely and let rise for another 15 min.
12. Brush egg wash onto each roll and cover with a combination of sunflower, poppy, and flax seeds.
13. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden brown, rotate half way through.
14. Remove and let cool for 5 min, then transfer to a cooling rack.

District 11 Bread, sprinkled with seeds!

District 4 Bread - The Hunger Games

District 4 Bread

**EDIT: I made this bread again and it came out perfect - Click HERE for the results**

Hey all! So recently I've been overly obsessed with The Hunger Games! I read the trilogy in only two days because I couldn't put the books down! They're amazing! I see myself constantly checking pages again and again! I even had to read the ending around five times! I was so surprised I was able to get through them, especially since I haven't picked up a book willingly for around 9 years! (I know, so sad!) These books have definitely inspired me to read more! TEAM PEETA x1000000gazillioninfinitybeyondforever!

I was actually one of those people that haven't read the book before watching the movie! But lemme tell you, they're both equally amazing...even though I have yet to watch the first half of the movie (due to an incident with my friends and I)! I was just sad that the movie didn't have a lot of aspects that were in the book! But I'm just judging on the part that I did watch. (Don't worry, no spoilers)

So anyways, one of the main themes in the book is bread! Each district has a specific bread they make based on their industry. The bread that I liked reading about the most was from the fishing district, District 4. In the book, District 4's bread is described as a salty, fish-shaped loaf that's tinted green with seaweed. I loved the seaweed!

I used fresh seaweed that came from my family in the bay area. If you don't have that on hand, other recipes use re-hydrated dried wakame which you can find at any local Asian market. Unfortunately, my loaves did not look enough like fish and I did not get enough seaweed flavor for my tastes! I was also unable to get the green tinge that I wanted (probably because I used fresh seaweed), but I'll definitely attempt this recipe again; it was a hit with my family and friends.

Recipe adapted from The Magic Kitchen.

District 4 Seaweed Bread:
Yields approx 15 rolls

Ingredients:

• 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 tbsp instant yeast 
• 2 tbsp sugar 
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups fresh boiled seaweed, or 1/2 cup dried wakame
• Water to brush on dough
• Coarse Sea salt

Directions:

1. Boil the seaweed. Drain and cool. Once cool, put in a blender or food processor until it has the consistency of paste.
2. Proof the yeast: Dissolve sugar in warmed water. Add yeast to mixture. You know your yeast is active if it forms bubbles.
3. After the yeast is proofed, mix in oil and salt.
4. Mix in seaweed until well combined.
5. Mix in flour and knead until smooth. Add flour one tbsp at a time as needed.
6. Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover loosely. Set in a warm place and let rise until doubled, around 1 hour.
7. Preheat oven to 400F.
8. Punch down dough and let rise again for another 1/2 hour.
9. Punch down dough and shape dough into a fish and let rise for another 15 min. Score the top of the bread with a sharp knife.
10. Brush each fish with water and sprinkle the sea salt.
11. Bake in oven for 20 min or until golden brown, rotate half way through.
12. Remove and let cool for 5 min, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Best served warm!