Hunger Games,' 'Game of Thrones' Recipes a Pop Culture Hit - Food News - Cooking

‘Hunger Games,’ ‘Game of Thrones’ Recipes a Pop Culture Hit

1 Comment | Written on April 2, 2012 at 1:00 pm, by Lesley Kennedy

FictionalFood.net

After waiting and waiting, the second season of “Game of Thrones“ finally premiered on HBO last night. Did it make you hungry for Dothraki blood pies, boiled mutton or squirrel soup?

You say The Hunger Games is more your cup o’ tea? Then, possibly, you’ve got a hankering for Katniss’s lamb stew with dried plumbs, roast pig or, perhaps, Prim’s goat cheese truffles.

Looking for more modern fare? Maybe the recent return of “Mad Men” inspired you to whip up a shaker full of Martinis, served with a nice quiche Lorraine or some oysters Rockefeller. (There’s even a new Mad Men Cookbook.)

Yes, today’s pop-culture icons are deliciously full of food and drink references—and while I, personally, won’t be adding any rodents or pies that have anything to do with blood to my spring menus—I’m devouring all the entertaining recipes coming from the pages and screens of our favorite books, movies, and TV shows.

Thank goodness for bloggers like Crystal Watanabe.

“Today” reports the woman behind FictionalFood.net serves up recipes for all kinds of dishes inspired by pop culture faves.

“Food really puts you into the story with [the characters],” Watanabe tells the news show. “When the Fellowship (in Lord of the Rings) gets lembas bread from the elves and they tell them how amazing it is, you can’t help but wonder what it tastes like. When the White Witch (in The Chronicles of Narnia) tempts Edmund with enchanted Turkish Delight, you can’t help but wish you could reach in and have some with him. …When Harry is on the train to Hogwarts and has money to spend on treats for the first time, you can almost taste those pumpkin pasties with him. It’s as though you share that moment of joy with them.’

And the joy is being spread. According to “Today,” HBO’s recipe for a “Game of Thrones” lemon cake became so popular the network is selling them out of a New York City food truck to promote the new season.

“I have been a fan of the books for somewhere around a decade,” Watanabe says of the “Thrones” series. “George R.R. Martin is very descriptive about his food and if there’s any other book that has put me into the story with food more than The Hunger Games, it has to be his A Song of Ice and Fire series (adapted as “Game of Thrones”).”

But it’s Katniss and her Hunger Games grub that are grabbing the most views on FictionalFood, Today reports, with the chicken and creamy orange sauce “Lunch with Cinna” recipe getting the most hits.

Watanabe tells the news show she’s eager to add more recipes from different hot books and shows to her site. I can’t wait to see what 50 Shades of Grey might inspire.