A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook (A Song of Ice and Fire) (35 page)

Chop all the peppers roughly. Take a colorful mixture of these pepper pieces and mince enough to make about 3 tablespoons; set this aside. Likewise, mince 3 tablespoons of the onions and set aside.

Pour 4 or 5 tablespoons of olive oil into a pan over medium heat. Add the coarsely
chopped onion and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes, until the pieces are just starting to soften. Add the coarsely chopped peppers, and additional oil as needed to keep the peppers from burning. Sauté for another 3 minutes over medium heat, stirring often. Reduce the heat to medium low, add the ice cube, cover the pan, and steam the vegetables for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the peppers are somewhat softened. Transfer the vegetables to a plate and keep them warm.

In the same pan, sauté the reserved minced onions and peppers over low heat for about 1 minute. Add the eggs, but do not stir. Sprinkle the cheese over the eggs as they begin to cook, then add the salt and about 1 teaspoon pepper. Then scramble the eggs, keeping them moving in the pan until the whites cease to be runny. The moment this occurs, immediately remove the pan from the heat.

Serve the eggs and peppers side by side. Grind a little more black pepper over the eggs for presentation.

Cook’s Note:
We’ve listed the peppers that we used to make this dish, but you should improvise according to your spice sensitivity. Still, we would insist on including at least one orange or yellow bell pepper. These are sweet rather than spicy, but will pick up some of the heat of the other peppers in the pan.

This is a traditional Turkish recipe and could easily grace a table in Dorne. It results in a wonderfully soft and addictive bread that is equally good with honey, hummus, or a meat course.

To make the sponge, heat ½ cup of the water until it is just warm, then dissolve the yeast and sugar in the water and let the mixture stand in a warm place for 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in ½ cup of the flour, cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise for 30 minutes.

Heat the remaining 1 cup water until it is lukewarm. Put the remaining 3½ cups flour in a large bowl, make a well in the center, and add the sponge, salt, olive oil, and lukewarm water. Gradually work this into the flour to make a soft, sticky dough.
Knead the dough on a floured surface for 15 minutes, then put the dough in a buttered bowl, cover loosely, and let rise for 1 hour.

Punch the dough down and divide it into quarters, shaping each into a ball. Then loosely cover the balls and let them rest for an additional 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 550°F.

Wet your hands and shape each piece of dough into a circle by flattening the dough and stretching it to about a ½-inch thickness. Glaze the round with a generous amount of egg and sprinkle it with seeds, if desired. Press your fingertips firmly into the dough, creating indentations over the whole surface. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes, or until golden. The bread is best served warm with honey, but will keep for several days in an airtight container.

This is a straightforward recipe for pita bread and is easy to make. Each piece comes steaming hot from the oven, easy to split open and stuff with your choice of filling.

Dissolve the yeast in ½ cup of warm water. Add in the honey and stir until dissolved. Let the mixture sit for 10 or 15 minutes until the water is foamy.

Combine the flour and salt in large bowl. Make a small depression in the middle of flour and pour the yeast mixture into the depression.

Slowly add the remaining 1 cup of water, and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber
spatula until the dough is elastic. Then place it on a floured surface and knead for 10 to 15 minutes. When the dough is no longer sticky but is smooth and bounces back after being poked, it has been successfully kneaded. Place the dough in a greased bowl. Turn the dough upside down so the surface is thoroughly coated. Cover and allow it to sit in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until it has doubled in size.

Punch the dough down and roll it out into a rope; pinch it into 10 to 12 equal-size pieces and form them into balls. Place them on a floured surface, then let them sit, covered, for 10 minutes.

Set the rack at the very bottom of the oven, place your pizza stone or baking sheet on it, and preheat the oven to 500°F.

Using a rolling pin, roll out each ball of dough into a round 5 or 6 inches across and ¼-inch thick. On a pizza stone or preheated baking sheet, bake each pita for just a few minutes, until the bread puffs up and slightly browns. Then turn it over and bake for another minute. Depending on the size of your baking surface, you can bake several pitas at once. Remove each pita with a spatula from the baking sheet and replace with additional disks of dough for baking. Use the spatula to gently press each of the baked pitas flat, taking care to avoid the escaping steam. Devour while still warm.

Cook’s Note:
Baked pita bread can be stored for up to 1 week in airtight bags, and up to 1 month in the freezer. Be sure to use freezer bags when storing in the freezer.