Welcome back, Geeky Gluttons, to another episode of Munchies & Minis!
For those just joining us, Munchies & Minis is my tabletop RPG-inspired live cooking show. Once a week, I make a snack or meal to pair with a side of dice rolls. You can catch me on Twitch or Facebook Live (unless indicated otherwise on social media) Wednesday nights at 7 pm EST.
Last time I posted the video for spinach and cheese frittata rolls inspired by Dungeon & Dragons‘ Forgotten Realms campaign. This week’s video, we serve up some lamb ribs and creamy polenta inspired by Pathfinder RPG‘s famous chef, Vido Caldoveri.
A Delicious Dalliance
Vido Caldoveri is the executive chef of Dalliance, a fine dining establishment in the Ustlav city of Caliphas. Known for its sumptuous Taldan cuisine, exotic ingredients, and nightly-changing menu, Dalliance is the it-spot for the exorbitantly wealthy and fashionable. Did I already mention that the menu changes each night? Yeah, it’s so exclusive that not even the DM God can find a copy.
That’s ok, though, because we have research and our imaginations. Vido Caldoveri, whose name means “I give you true hotness” in Italian (or something to that effect), serves Taldan cuisine. From what I gathered of Pathfinder’s Taldor, it’s culture is very similar to the Byzantine Empire‘s near its collapse. Eastern Byzantine gastronomy combined Roman and Greek style with a flair for imported spices given its place in the trade routes. Garos (fish sauce) and barley-based murri seasoned dishes, whether grilled or boiled. And honey-soaked sweets dominated the Byzantine palate, pairing with their potent dessert wines.
Only the rich, though, ate lamb. So that is the base of today’s dish. I admit I also chose it for Caldoveri’s restaurant’s location. Caliphas is the capital city of Usatlav. And Ustlav reads like a Victorian horror novelist’s idea of Romania. Given, a restaurant, no matter how snooty, needs to appeal to its locale. So it made sense to me that they’d blend in Ustslav elements to appease even the most stubborn meat-and-polenta diner.
So that’s what I made, a honey and fish sauce roasted rack of lamb. I threw in some Romanian additions: grainy mustard, feta-filled polenta, and fresh dill. Meat and mamaliga for the Usatlavs. While a drizzle of sweet white wine and kalamata olive sauce brings a taste of Taldor to Caliphas.
Want to learn how to make Lamb Caldoveri for your adventuring party? Watch the video or find out how to get the recipe card below!
Lamb Caldoveri
Get the Recipe!
This video will always be around to cook along with. But I also have the 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.
I hope that this episode inspired you to start a culinary campaign of your own. Next week, I’ll continue the second season of Munchies & Minis with a recipe chosen by my Patreon subscribers!
Make sure to join me live Wednesday on Twitch or Facebook from 7 pm – 9 pm EST. OR you can catch the archived episode on YouTube.
