Welcome back, Geeky Gluttons, to another episode of Munchies & Minis!
For those just joining us, Munchies & Minis is a live Twitch cooking show where I make a tabletop or Dungeons & Dragons-inspired snack and then paint a miniature. To kick the first season off, I decided to start @RaineRysa‘s #52WeeksofDnD fanart challenge. Three weeks ago, we made some Phyllo-Baked Brie for the challenge word “Halfing.” Two weeks ago’s challenge word was “Flora/Herbalism.”
For this dish, I wanted to do a fun mix of thematic flavors and visuals. A simple salad would not do, so why not base the recipe off a creature that encompasses the concept of “Flora/Herbalism” so much that it literally hurts? This is where the Shambling Mound comes in.
A Shambling Mound is an intelligent, carnivorous plant-hemoth that resembles a moss and vine-covered gingerbread man from hell. Try to escape this mushroom-capped monstrosity. Death awaits you in its marshy grasp!
With that in mind, I decided on a piquant pesto soba noodle dish containing basil, cilantro, pistachio, and sesame oil. As a carnivorous plant monster, though, the Shambling Mound is still likely to taste of what it ate. That’s also why I included red wine vinegar and cheddar cheese – ingredients likely found in an adventurer’s trail rations. And finally, since no Shambling Mound would be complete without a smattering of mushrooms, I sauteed some meaty shiitake mushrooms to fit the bill.
Sing for your supper!
Since I stupidly didn’t export my Twitch video before it expired, there is no video this week. HOWEVER, you can find this recipe by just scrolling down. If you hate scrolling and reloading, though, I do have a printable PDF recipe card available for my Ko-Fi and Patreon supporters.
This week both my blog post and Munchies & Minis recipe cards are available in exchange for a $2 donation on my Ko-fi page.
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If you join my Patreon community at the “Kitchen Twitch” ($5/month) level or higher, you will not only get access to ALL of my Munchies & Minis recipe cards. You’ll also get blog-post Spotify-playlists, community-polls, random digital and physical-swag surprises, AND a welcome gift of my Lord of the Rings recipe cards and playlists.
Shambling Mound Soba
Shambling Mound Soba
Equipment: Food processor, stovetop, saucepan, strainer, skillet, and mixing bowl.
Ingredients:
- 4 bundles of buckwheat soba noodles
- 4 cups of fresh basil leaves
- 4 cups of fresh chopped cilantro
- 1/2 lb shiitake mushrooms, sliced into 1/2″ pieces
- 1/2 cup shelled pistachios
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons of sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- kosher salt
Instructions:
- Add the basil, pistachios, cheese, and half of the cilantro to the bowl of the food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
- Pour in 1/4 cup of sesame oil and one tablespoon of red wine and process until smooth. Add kosher salt until slightly oversalted.
- Heat the skillet over a medium flame on the stovetop. When hot, add the mushrooms and toss until slightly browned. Add the remaining oil and stir to coat with a pinch of kosher salt.
- After a minute, pour in the remaining red wine vinegar and stir until the liquid completely absorbs. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Cook the soba noodles according to package directions. Reserve a 1/2 cup of pasta water before straining the cooked noodles and transferring them to mixing bowl.
- Toss the noodles in the mixing bowl with the pesto and pasta water until thoroughly coated. Portion the noodles onto plates and top with mushrooms and the remaining cilantro before serving.
I hope that this episode inspired you to start a culinary campaign of your own. Tonight, I’ll be tackling the #52WeeksOfDnD challenge word “Wisdom” with a recipe called “Druid’s Delight.”
Make sure to join me live tonight or Wednesday on Twitch from 7 pm – 9 pm EST. OR you can catch the archived episode on YouTube.
