Share a Meal with Sherlock: Recipe Edition
Hey Sherlockians and Foodies!
Happy Sherlock Holmes Day!!! Today I’m so excited to share this fun blog collab with @princessreadsalot (Jenny) and @sushirainbow (Christina)! We made a post pairing Sherlock books with a 5-course meal! Jenny made the delicious pies because she is now a crust expert and I made the rest. She and Christina brainstormed most of the book recommendations and then the game was afoot to find some perfect recipes to pair them with. Be sure to check out all the amazing book recommendations over at @sushirainbow’s blog here.
Appetizers: Weed Soup and Cucumber Sandwiches
Soup
Jenny found a book called “The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter” and it mentions Rappaccini’s daughter who only eats plants aka weed soup. We were planning to do a soup made from kale but then we decided that seaweed looks a lot more “weedy” and used that instead. I found a recipe for Miso Soup with Tofu and Wakame and based my soup off that. I just didn’t include the strip steak because we didn’t have it. It was super easy to cook but I used the wrong type of seaweed and I thought it turned out like swamp soup. It definitely fit our call for weed soup but it wasn’t really fit for consumption 😂 I used the stem part of wakame called “mekabu” so it was very slimy, a little bit crunchy, and had a realllly strong ocean taste. My bf and his cousin surprisingly liked it but I just couldn’t get over the texture and the aftertaste would not go away even after some attempted palate cleansers 😂 I remade the miso soup without the mekabu and it tasted delicious! So DO NOT make the same mistake I did and make sure the seaweed you use is definitely wakame!
Sandwiches
This was super easy to make! If you need a quick snack or lunch then this is the recipe for you! I have always wanted to try the fancy tea cucumber sandwiches so now was my chance. Sadly I couldn’t find any watercress so my sandwich was just cream cheese, dill, and cucumbers. It tasted super yummy and refreshing though and I highly recommend it! I used a recipe similar to this one, but there are so many variations of this sandwich so you can pick and choose what works best for you and your taste buds.
Main Course: Ham and Brie Hand Pies
Recipe from https://www.eatthelove.com/ham-and-cheese-pie/
(Jenny made these look so appetizing and after I saw the pics for this I was seriously craving some homemade hand pies! These look so great!)
Ingredients
Crust
1 3/4 cup (245 g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (115 g or 1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
1 1/2 tablespoon mustard
5 to 7 tablespoon ice water
Filling
8 ounces (225 g) sliced deli ham
5 ounces (140 g) brie
2 tablespoon chopped chives, divided
1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
To Assemble
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
Directions
1. Make the crust by placing the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium sized bowl. Stir with a balloon whisk until blended. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes and sprinkle over the dry ingredients. Using your fingers and hands, first toss the butter in the flour then smash the butter into thin slivers, breaking them up as you go.
2. When the butter has been broken and flattened into small bits the size of peas, stir the mustard into the 5 tablespoons of cold water and drizzle it over the dry ingredients. Toss with a fork, then use your hands to blend the water in. Keep working the ingredients until they start to stick together. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until a dough forms.
3. Once a dough forms, place it on a piece of plastic wrap and flatten into a disk, about 1-inch thick. Wrap well with the plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour, or until the dough is firm.
4. When the dough is done chilling, preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line 2 baking sheets with silpats or parchment paper. Generously dust a large clean surface with flour then place the chilled dough on the flour. Roll the dough out to a 16-inch square. Cut the square into 4 quarters, forming 8 x 8-inch squares.
5. Place 1/4 of the ham and brie onto one side of each square, making sure there’s about a 1-inch border on the 3 closest edges. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of chives, plus 1/4 teaspoon of pepper and salt over the brie and ham. (Place the ham and cheese inside one of the squares.)
6. Brush the edges of the dough with the egg wash, then fold the empty side of the pastry dough over the ham and brie. Trim the edges if necessary and seal the edges all the way around with a fork. Move the tart to the lined baking sheet and brush the top of the pastry with more egg wash. Repeat with the remaining three squares of dough. Place 2 tarts per baking sheet. (Brush the egg wash around the ham and brie before sealing.)
7. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, then rotate and turn the baking sheets 180˚. Bake another 10 to 15 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes on the baking pan, then move tart with a large spatula, to a wire cooling rack. Sprinkle the top of the tart with any leftover chives and serve warm or at room temperature. Serve with some extra mustard if you want.
Palate Cleanser: Mandarin “Sorbet”
I found this recipe on Tiktok, I’m not sure exactly which account started it but it has become a trend. Click here for the article. Apparently when you freeze a mandarin it tastes like sorbet, and since citrus is a great palate cleanser I decided to use this frozen mandarin recipe for that. It’s super easy to make because all you do is put a mandarin in the freezer, take it out when it’s frozen, thaw it a little bit, peel it, and finally eat it. It can be a little difficult to make the first peel because the skin is pretty frozen but once you get a little bit of skin removed, the rest is easy. When I ate my mandarin I found that it tasted pretty much the same as when it’s not frozen, but that could be because I let it thaw for too long. I’m going to try making this again and eat it when it’s still a bit frozen, just pray that my sensitive teeth survive biting into frozen goods 😂
Dessert: Peach Pop Tarts
Recipe from In Jennie’s Kitchen but with a few modifications which are included below.
(Jenny’s peach pop tarts look exactly like a pop tart but a million times cuter with the heart shape and sprinkles! I can’t even imagine the effort to make the crust from scratch because I suck at making pie crusts 😂)
Ingredients
Crust
1⅓ cups (200 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
¼ cup (32 grams) cornstarch
½ cup (60 grams) Confectioner’s sugar
Pinch of sea salt
⅛ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon (1 gram) baking powder
4 tablespoons (56 grams) cold butter, cut into 8 pieces
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons (90 ml) cream
Filling/Assembling/Topping
All-purpose flour, for rolling out the dough
¼ cup Peach Jam
¾ cup (90 grams) Confectioner’s sugar
¼ to ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Colored sprinkles, optional
Directions
Combine the flour, cornstarch, Confectioner’s sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to blend.
Add the butter, and pulse 4 to 5 times until it forms a sandy-looking mixture with some pebble-size pieces.
Pour in the cream. Pulse a few times, then process 30 to 60 seconds until it comes together in a rough ball.
Place the dough on a lightly floured counter or cutting board. Gently knead a few times until it comes together into a smooth dough.
At this point, you can wrap the dough, chill it up to 2 days, until ready to use (let it soften enough to roll if you choose to do so), or continue making Peach Pop Tarts.
Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line an 11-inch by 17-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the dough on a generously floured counter or cutting board. Sprinkle more flour on top. Roll the dough out to ⅛-inch to 1/16-inch thickness, making sure to lift it off the board every few rolls to ensure it’s not sticking (add more flour (or water) as needed). You should have a rectangle about 22-inches by 11-inches when done. Trim any rough edges with a knife or pizza cutter.
Cut the rectangle into 12 even-sized rectangles OR use a cookie cutter to make cute shapes (like the heart pies in the picture.)
Place half the pastry pieces on the prepared pan. Spoon 2 teaspoons of jam into the center. Spread the jam out, leaving a ½-inch border. Cover each pastry with one of the remaining plain pieces of pastry. Use a fork to crimp the edges closed.
Bake until crisp and golden around the edges, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely (take care as they will be delicate when first out of the oven).
Add the Confectioner’s sugar to a small, deep bowl with the vanilla extract and 4 to 6 teaspoons of cold water. Whisk until smooth. Drizzle over the cooled tarts, or spread it on with an offset spatula. Decorate with sprinkles as desired. Let the icing set for at least 30 minutes before serving.
This meal ranges from an easy to mildly difficult skill level of cooking and baking but there’s something for every chef to try making based on their skill level! If you make any of these dishes, let me know how it went in the comments below or tag myself (@nessas.lair) or @princessreadsalot or @sushirainbow in an Instagram post! Also if you have any other great Sherlockian recipes or book recommendations definitely share them with us!
Happy eating 😊
