Quest 14: Mmmmm Hmmmm. . . This is some tasty meat!

As we explore the many areas on our adventure in Oracle of Ages, we are bound to end up on Crescent Island. Here we meet the Tokay, a bunch of cute little green dudes that inhabit the island. Through the usual trading that is the Zelda series you can exchange the stink bag for the tasty meat here. (We'll get to the stick bag eventually). Well on this quest, we will be making our own tasty meat, and it is tasty.

Gear . . .
2 pounds of beef sirloin roast.
1 teaspoon each of:
fennel seeds
peppercorns
course salt
cardamon
paprika
dried parsley
15-20 sprigs of thyme

The Quest . . .

Preheat the oven to 275 degree F.
Place your roast on a sheet pan that has been covered in aluminum foil.

You will want to pat dry the meat with paper towels.
This will help the spices stick and also help develop good color on the meat.

In a mortar and pestle, mix together fennel seeds, salt, peppercorns, cardamon, paprika, and dried parsley.
Mix until the seeds and peppercorns are well broken down and everything is mixed together evenly.

Brush the roast with garlic olive oil. Then rub with the seasoning mixture.
Coat all sides of the meat.
Don't have garlic oil? Here is a link on how to make it!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/garlic-oil-recipe/index.html

Spread the Thyme sprigs all over the meat.
Tie up the meat using butcher's twine to hold in place.
Brush thyme with more garlic oil.

Roast in the oven for about 2 hours. You can use a meat thermometer to get you
to the level of doneness you like best.
I like mine medium so I will cook it until the center reaches about 140 degrees F.

Remove the roast from the oven and wrap it in the aluminum foil that is underneath the meat.
Let rest for 20 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy!

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Quest 13: Deku Nut Trail Mix

While playing Ocarina of Time the other day, I realized that I under utilize the Deku Nuts that are so instrumental to helping out the Great Deku Tree free itself from the evil that Ganondorf has bestowed about it (blinding Gohma so you can stab her to death). So this got me thinking about what we can do to celebrate the Deku Nut. Which got me thinking about Trail Mix. Which of got me thinking about camping. The best things about camping is the hiking into the wilderness, but even if you are more of a pull-through camper, this trail mix is for you. I have decided that hazelnuts look the most like Deku Nuts, but if you have another favorite nut, feel free to use what you like.

Gear . . .
1 cup Whole raw hazelnuts (filberts)
1/2 cup Raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup Dried Blueberries
1/2 cup Dried Cranberries
1/2 cup Dark Chocolate Chips

The Quest . . .

Start by toasting your hazelnuts. Use a non-stick pan over medium heat.
Swirl the pan around like when you make popcorn. It will keep the nuts from burning.
Note: Do not add any oil to the pan.

As you heat the hazelnuts the outside skin will begin to crack
and naturally peel off. You can remove these with a spoon if you wish.

When the hazelnuts have become lightly toasted, smell lovely and most of the
peeling have come off on their own, they are done. Add them to a bowl and set aside.

Next we will use the same pan to toast the raw pumpkin seeds.
Use the same swirling motion as before to keep them from burning.

When they are lightly toasted, removed from heat and add to a bowl with hazelnuts.

Take your dried blueberries and cranberries and combine.

Add the dried fruit to the warm nuts and seeds and mix together.
The warmth of the nuts and seeds will wake up the fruit.

Now add a freezer pak to the mixture to cool it down
without adding moisture. This should take about 10 minutes.

When the mixture is completely cool, return the freezer pak to the freezer.
Then stir in dark chocolate chips.

Ta-Da!!

Enjoy!!

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Quest 12: The Hunt for Secret Seashells

Questing got you down? Well, take a little side quest for secret seashells. These fancy little things come to you from Link's Awakening. Twenty-six in total, this side quest is definitely worth working on throughout the game. Hunting all these down will earn you the Level 2 sword. To make our own at home, we are going to make a really simply crab dip that is mighty fine by itself baked in the oven with breadcrumbs on top, but to make them a little more special, we will roll them up in crescent rolls and can be served as an appetizer or finger food at parties. Best part!? They are really, REALLY easy and it makes it look like you did a lot with so little. Sorry, this recipe is not GF yet!

Gear . . .

1 (6 oz) can lump crab meat
1/2 cup canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp Worcestershire
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 tsp fresh chopped parsley
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. paprika
Salt & pepper to taste
1 can Grands Crescent Rolls

The Quest. . .

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Let's start with the filling.
Take your canned artichokes and chop them
into bite sized pieces.

Ta-da!

In a bowl, mix all the ingredients (except the crescent rolls) together.
This will form a paste like mixture.

On a ungreased cook sheet, unroll the crescent roll and
lay out so they are not laying on each other.
You may have to do half the roll and then the other.

Spread the mixture evenly on the crescent rolls.
Make sure that there is good coverage over the enter roll.

See that nice coverage?

Roll up the crescent rolls like you normally would.
If you want it to look more seashell-like, roll it so it is more tubular.
See the picture above.

Arrange on the cookie sheet so they have room to grow.

Bake until golden-brown and delicious. Serve Warm.

These will be a big hit at your next party and everyone will think it took all day.

Hope you enjoyed this quest for the secret seashells.

Get the printable version of this recipe here!

Enjoy!

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Quest 11: Rupees, Rupees Everywhere!

Rupees may not make the world go around, but let me tell you - they sure do help. The only LOZ game that actually doesn't utilize the currency is The Adventures of Link, but let's face it, collecting those leveling up points were hard enough w/o worrying about money. I know I find myself side-questing for money at some point in almost every title. Today, we are going to counterfeit our own rupees out of cake to create Petits Fours. These uber sweet treats will leave you tweaking in the corner. Enjoy!

Gear . . .

Cake

2 cups gluten free all purpose flour xanthan gum

1 1/2 c. sugar

3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 c. shortening (Crisco - plain not butter flavored)

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 egg whites

Filling

Raspberry Jam

Icing

2 pound bag of confectioner's sugar (sifted)

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. light corn syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

Let the quest begin!

Let's begin by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour the bottom of a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 x 1 inch jelly roll pan.

Separate your egg yokes from the whites in two separate bowls. Set aside
You don't need the yokes for this recipe, so you can make an omelet or even some custard, if you are ambitious enough.

In another bowl, mix together (using an electric mixer) flour sugar, baking powder, salt, shortening, 2/3 c. of milk and the vanilla on low speed for about 30 seconds. Scrap the bowl and beat on high for 2 minutes, scraping occasionally. Add the remaining milk and egg whites and beat on high for another 2 minutes.

Ta-da!

Pour into the prepared jelly roll pan and spread out until even using a spatula.

Nice and even. Bake for 25 minutes. No more, no less.

As you can see, the cake is done, but not very brown.

See, pulling from the sides.

When the cake is completely cooled, you can start cutting your shapes. I am using a rectangle shape and then later I will trim the corners to make the rupee shape. If you can find the right shape, let me know.

All cut out.

Trimming.

Now that everyone is cut out and trimmed, I am going to heat up a half pint jar of Raspberry Jam on medium low.
This will melt the jam and make it easier to apply to the cakes.

Make sure the cakes are bottom side up before you start. Then with a brush, paint each on with the melted jam.
It will soak in.

To make the icing, start by putting together a double boiler. Basically a saucepan with about 1-2 inched of water with a metal or glass bowl on top. Add the all the ingredients for the icing (confectioner's sugar, water, corn syrup, vanilla and almond extract). Heat until luke warm DO NOT OVERHEAT!!!

Remove from heat. This is the part where you would add some food coloring. I use Wilton cake frosting colors, but use whatever works for you. I started with blue and later I will make the remaining frosting green.

I should note here that I have my cakes set up on a cooling rack that is set on top of of 13 x 9 x 2 pan. This creates drainage so that you can scoop up and reuse the icing.
Pour the icing over the cakes. You can spread it out a little with a spatula.
When you are done with half of the cakes, scoop the icing back in the bowl, dye it green and pour over the rest.

To add the 3D look to our rupees, I am using a Wilton white frosting squeeze bottle thingy. You can find them in the cake decorating section of the grocery store.

Let them dry. This could take an hour or so.

Aren't they cute!! I hope you enjoyed this quest for rupees. When you come down from your sugar high, come see us again!

Get the printable version of this recipe here!

Enjoy!

Please leave me a comment if you have ideas

or if you enjoy The Zelda Gourmet!