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 (unless indicated otherwise on social media) Wednesday nights at 7 pm EST.
In our last video, we simmered up a pork stew and griddled some cheese sandwiches inspired by D&D’s Elfsong Tavern. This week delve further into Baldur’s Gate‘s culinary scene by hitting up the Helm & Cloak Inn for some crispy-skinned lemon salmon!
“We’re not running a tavern, m’lord…”
You know those fancy boutique hotels that pepper all major cities? Not the ones covered in gold faux finish and emblazoned with the owner’s name. I’m talking about the ones the old moneyed folks of refinement prefer to spend their time without harassment. The Helm & Cloak is perhaps the most elegant place to eat and sleep in all of Baldur’s Gate.
As the bard Volo describes in his Guide to the Sword Coast, “The Helm is the fashionable place to dine and chat, much favored by those of power. Many an important business deal or alliance has been negotiated in its luxurious alcoves.” Perhaps in my haste to introduce the video, I managed to flub up some things while recording. I happened to mention this place as gaudy. It is far from being so.
It was probably because my efforts went more into figuring out the food. And you can see why. As Volo describes, “Food at the Helm means jellied eels, fresh fish in hot lemon sauce, glazed and stuffed fowl, and fried and candied meats. The fried onion-and spiced-tubers stuffing is especially delectable. It’s all cooked in wine, served by the platter, and is uniformly fine.” The Helm is famous for its food — like those swanky steakhouses your boss takes clients to when he wants to impress them by picking up the check.
Food all cooked in or with wine happens to fit the profile for two prominent European cuisine styles: French and Italian. Baldur’s Gate sits between Waterdeep and the country of Amn along the Sword Coast. I’ve seen a couple of sources that compare Baldur’s Gate to either San Francisco or Mediterranean port cities. Fried onion and potato stuffing fits closer to French cooking, so I decided to aim towards a Provencal style dish.
With that, I fried up some crispy skin salmon and served it with some roasted potato and fennel, cherry tomatoes, and kalamata olives. Then I combined lemon juice and vermouth with butter for a tangy buerre blanc sauce. Since this is a medieval fantasy setting, I also threw in some poudre fort — a period spice blend of warming spices such as cinnamon, black pepper, and nutmeg.
So fry up a batch. Your home may not be the most refined inn in Baldur’s Gate. But the recipe for this Helm & Cloak favorite will certainly transport you there!
Want to learn how to make Helm & Cloak Lemon Fish for your adventuring party? Watch the video or find out how to get the recipe card below!
Helm & Cloak Lemon Fish
Sing for your supper!
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, 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 third season of Munchies & Minis with a recipe chosen by my Patreon subscribers!
Make sure to join me live Wednesday on Twitch from 7 pm – 9 pm EST. OR you can catch the archived episode on YouTube.
