LOTR 7 MILLION SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL INSPIRED BY LORD OF THE RINGS

For the Salted Pork

Start by making a cure of kosher salt to sugar along with a couple of handfuls of peppercorns (or juniper berries) and mix together.

Remove the thin layer of skin off the pork belly and cut into manageable pieces.

Into a food-safe container start to layer the salt and pork - making sure every square inch of pork is covered and packed into the salt mixture. Refrigerate for at least 4 days.

After 4 days, remove the pork from the container, brush off the salt, and cover with cold water to desalinate and place back in the fridge overnight.

Remove from fridge and prepare as desired.

For the Lembas Bread

Into a large bowl goes all-purpose flour, water, and kosher salt. Mix together until it forms a thick dough.

Place the dough onto a well-floured surface and roll out thin, dust with additional flour if necessary, and trim off the edges.

Cut the dough into squares, then place shallow X shape cuts in the squares.

Once all cut and shaped, place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and place into an oven at its lowest temperature for 2-3 hours.

For the Honey Cakes

Into a stand mixer bowl, combine unsalted room temperature butter, eggs, and honey. Cream on medium speed for 3 minutes until nice and smooth. Pause only to add vanilla extract and the lemon zest. Cream together for an additional minute.

In a separate bowl, combine all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt.

After mixing together, dump the dry ingredients into the stand mixer and mix on medium-low speed for 1-2 minutes until it forms a cohesive dough.

After the cohesive dough has formed, remove from the mixer and form the dough into two evenly separate logs.

Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush with a beaten egg and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.

Put the logs into a 350°F oven for about 20 minutes until lightly blonde and beginning to crack.

Once the logs have cooled enough to handle, take off the parchment paper and slice into pieces.

Return the cakes to the parchment-lined baking sheet and continue to bake, but this time at 300°F for an additional 20 minutes until lightly toasted firm. Flip once halfway through baking.

After fully baking, place onto a wire rack to cool before topping with the honey glaze and optionally garnishing with slivered almonds.

For the Honey Glaze

In a large bowl combine and whisk powdered sugar, honey, and little splashes of skim milk until the desired consistency is reached.

For the Minced Pie

Into a bowl combine dried fruit and small cored, peeled, and finely chopped baking apple.

In a large saute pan, melt butter before adding in the apples and dried fruit along with muscovado sugar, lemon zest, ground cinnamon, clove, ground ginger, and freshly grated nutmeg.

Add in the desired nuts (flaked almonds in this case) before mixing, covering, and simmering for 10 minutes.

Once the fruit has softened and the liquid has thickened, kill the heat and allow it to cool completely before adding a splash of sherry brandy (or cognac). Mix to combine.

Place into an airtight container and let rest at room temperature up to 6 months.

For the crust

In a food processor combine all-purpose flour, sugar, and a pinch of kosher salt. Pulse until thoroughly combined before adding in cubed butter.

Pulse the mixture together until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs then dump it out into a large bowl and top with cold water.

Gently toss together using fingers and a wooden spoon until it starts to clump together at which point turn it out onto a non-floured surface, kneading until a cohesive ball of dough is formed.

Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, ideally 2 hours.

Remove the dough from the fridge onto a well-floured surface and pound it out with a rolling pin. Then roll out the dough until it’s 6 millimeters thick.

Using a pastry cutter, cut the dough into separate round pieces and place into a muffin tin. Optional - cut flower shapes to decorate the tops. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes before baking.

After 30 minutes, place about a tablespoon of the minced meats into each muffin tin, pat it flat, and top with the decorative flower. Brush with egg yolk and a sprinkle of turbinado sugar.

Place into a preheated 400°F for about 15 minutes before popping out of the muffin tins and letting cool completely on a wire rack.

For the Seed Cake

Into a small bowl goes all-purpose flour, baking powder, kosher salt, caraway seeds, and ground almonds. Whisk together.

In the bowl of the stand mixer, add room temperature unsalted butter and granulated sugar. Beat together for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in eggs and vanilla extract.

Once beaten to a relative smoothness, add in the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until a thick batter forms.

Generously butter a loaf pan and line with parchment paper. Add the cake batter then smooth it out before topping with extra caraway seeds and flaked almonds.

Place into a 375°F oven for 50-60 minutes until it emerges slightly cracked, golden brown, and a toothpick inserted to its thickest point emerge clean.

Let it cool off in the pan for 10 minutes before removing it onto a wire rack and allowing it to cool completely.

For the Apple Tart

Into a large bowl goes all-purpose flour, sugar, and kosher salt. Whisk to combine. Add in melted salted butter.

Mix with a rubber spatula until crumbly dough forms.

One-piece at a time, pat out into a 20-centimeter tart pan.

Once the dough has been pressed into every crack and crevice and the top edges have been trimmed off, dock the pastry using a fork all over the surface.

Put on a rimmed baking sheet and place in a 350°F oven for about 30 minutes until golden brown.

Peel and core Honeycrisp apples. Quarter and cut those quarters in half and each of those halves in half…making 4 evenly sized slices. Rinse and repeat with the remaining apples.

In a large saute pan with melted butter, add the sliced apples. Cover and cook over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally until flexible and translucent.

Remove from the heat and place onto a rimmed baking sheet. Allow to cool completely.

Peel and core more Honeycrisp apples. Quarter and cut those quarters into slices and then chopping those slices into 1” pieces.

In a large saute pan with melted butter, add the chopped apples. Add in apricot preserves and mix until evenly distributed.

Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, until the apples are soft. Mash the apples into a mash then cook for an additional 5 minutes until nice and thick.

Dump the apple mash directly into the prepared tart shell and smooth it out so the surface is nice and even.

Begin to decorate with the apple slices starting from the outside, with the wider side facing up and layering the apples on top of each other, working towards the middle until they resemble a flower.

Place onto a rimmed baking sheet and put in a 350°F oven for about 20 minutes until the apples are completely soft.

While the tart is cooking, in a small pot heat up apricot preserves until runny, then straining out the solids into a small bowl.

After removing the tart from the oven, give it a nice brush of the apricot syrup. Once generously coated, place back into a preheated broiler for about 5 minutes, rotating frequently.

Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before serving.

For the Tea Loaf

Into the bowl of a stand mixer goes bread flour, granulated sugar, instant yeast, kosher salt, unsalted room temperature butter, whole milk and water.

Fix a dough hook to the stand mixer and knead on medium speed for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the dough and stretch into a smooth, taut ball then place back into the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof at room temperature for 60-90 minutes or doubled in size.

For the Filling

Into a medium bowl combine cranberries, raisins, glazed cherries, ground cinnamon, and grate in the orange zest. Mix to combine.

Dump the berries mixture into the bowl with the dough, then lift and drop the dough on top of itself in order to incorporate the fruit.

Once the fruit is fully incorporated into the dough, turn the dough out onto a non-floured work surface and pat into a rectangle, folding onto its messiest side.

Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and cover with oiled plastic wrap and rest at room temperature for 1 hour or doubled in size.

Once risen, place into a 425°F oven for 25-30 minutes or until deeply brown, and its deepest point registers 200°F. Set on a wire rack to cool.

For the Icing.

Add and whisk together confectioners sugar and 45 grams of low-fat milk.

Make sure the loaf is completely cooled before coating with icing. Spread over top and let the icing naturally drizzle down the sides.

For the Salmon Dill Quiche

In a food processor combine all-purpose flour, sugar, and a pinch of kosher salt. Pulse until thoroughly combined before adding in cubed butter.

Pulse the mixture together until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs then dump it out into a large bowl and top with cold water.

Gently toss together using fingers and a wooden spoon until it starts to clump together, at which point turn it out onto a non floured surface and knead until a cohesive ball of dough is formed.

Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, ideally 2 hours.

Remove the dough from the fridge onto a well-floured surface. Pound it out with a rolling pin and then roll it out until it’s 6 millimeters thick.

Unravel the crust onto a 9” tart pan then gently lift and drop the dough, pressing into the corners, trimming off the edges, and leaving a 1” overhang. Dock the dough using a fork. Line with aluminum foil and fill with pie weight of choice.

Place into a 375°F oven for 30 minutes, then trim off most of the overhang. Place back into the oven for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the filling cut leek in half and thinly slice before sautéing in melted butter for about 10 minutes, tossing frequently and cover if necessary until nice and soft, but not brown.

For the Egg filling

In a large bowl goes large eggs, half & half, and chopped fresh dill.

Beat together before adding in the cooled cooked leek slices, season with freshly ground pepper, and a generous pinch of kosher salt before mixing gently.

Pour the mixture into the bottom of the prepared tart crust. Place into a 375°F oven for 20-25 minutes. The center should firm to the touch yet still jiggly. Let cool completely on a wire rack.

Cut strips of salmon and lay them on top of the quiche.

For the Tomahawk Rib Roast

Start by removing the meat from the rib rack and generously season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.

Place back on top of the rib rack set in a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drippings. Place in the fridge overnight.

The next day, remove from the fridge and let rest at room temperature for 2 hours.

Tie the roast to the rib rack using butcher’s twine.

To catch all of the drippings of the roast, in a roasting pan lay down a layer of roughly chopped onions, a few cloves of garlic, and cover with chicken stock and dry red wine with a few optional sprigs of rosemary and thyme, as well as a couple of bay leaves.

Place the roast and rib rack onto the roasting pan and place in a 300°F for 3-5 hours until its thickest point registers 120°F. Place onto a wire rack to cool.

Strain out the drippings from the roasting pan into a large bowl and allow the fat to rise to the top which should take 15 minutes.

Skim off all of the fat into a separate bowl that can be saved and used later as beef tallow. What remains should be a roast beef jus.

Cover the roast beef with aluminum foil and let rest for at least 30 minutes and up to 90 minutes before slicing and serving.

For the Brace of Coneys

Start by trimming any excess fat off the rabbit and cut into stew size chunks, leaving the bones intact. Seasoning lightly with kosher salt.

In a pot, saute the rabbit scraps for a few minutes until a few tablespoons of liquid fat appear. Remove the scraps of fat from the pot.

Brown the separate pieces of the rabbit in the pot. Sear on each side until lightly golden brown. Do this is in batches - it’s easier.

After searing the rabbit pieces, remove from the pan. Dump in a bowl of sliced wild mushrooms and season generously with kosher salt and saute. Stir occasionally.

Once the mushroom liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms begin to brown, add in two small chopped shallots and saute for 2 additional minutes.

Add crushed cloves of garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Deglaze with dry white wine, chicken stock, a sprig of thyme, and medium parsnips, peeled and chopped.

Nestle in the seared pieces of coney into the stew, bringing the whole thing to a simmer and letting it stew for 90 minutes, until the rabbit is tender.

For the Potatoes

Cut Yukon gold potatoes into 1” pieces (leave the skin on). Dump them into a large stockpot and cover with cold water. Add a generous pinch of kosher salt.

Bring to a boil and cook for 15-20 minutes or until completely tender.

Drain the potatoes, then add in melted butter and half & half. Then season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and mash with a potato masher.

Taste for seasoning before serving the stew with the mashed potatoes on the side.