Today, we continue Tolkien Feast Week with Day 3: The Feast of Gildor. After their first scary encounter with a Black Rider, the Hobbits luckily cross paths with some Elves, lead by Gildor, who invites them to join for a meal in the greenwood.
Pippin afterwards recalled little of either food or drink, for his mind was filled with the light upon elf-faces, and the sound of voices so various and so beautiful that he felt in a waking dream. But he remembered that there was bread, surpassing the savour of a fine white loaf to one who is starving; and fruits sweet as wildberries and richer than the tended fruits of gardens; he drained a cup that was filled with a fragrant draught, cool as a clear fountain, golden as a summer afternoon.
Sam could never describe in words, nor picture clearly to himself, what he felt or thought that night, though it remained in his memory as one of the chief events of his life. The nearest he ever got was to say: “Well, sir, if I could grow apples like that, I would call myself a gardener. But it was the singing that went to my heart, if you know what I mean.”
The Fellowship of the Ring, Chapter 3: Three is Company
The prompts for this day of Tolkien Feast Week are: white bread, apples, cold mead or white wine, berries and fruit. After dark, if it isn’t cloudy, we appreciate stars: the Pleiades (Remmirath), Betelgeuse (Borgil), and Orion (Menelvagor).
Since we already enjoyed these meals during the last years, I decided to try something different (but always in an elvish mood) for today. So, I baked a flax seed bread and I combined it with white grapes and raspberries. This is a simple meal, but it fits with both the Hobbits and the High Elves, especially if it’s combined with a bottle of MIDDLE-EARTH™ Chardonnay, that will bring you the tastes of the past Summer.
I have to admit that I’m a lazy Hobbit, so I baked the flax seed bread with the help of my bread machine. The following recipe is very easy and it’s good for a clumsy Hobbit like me!
Flax Seed Bread Recipe (for bread machine)
- 1 1/3 cups warm water
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/2 cups white bread flour
- 1 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup ground flax seed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
Place all ingredients into bread machine, in order listed.
I set to basic bread cycle and a medium crust color.
Tolkien Feast Week continues through Monday, September 29, with members of the Middle-earth News staff posting the designated meal for that day and sharing them with you. So, stay tuned!
