Hunger Games: Potato Soup with Soda Bread

I told you this whole week was going to be Hunger Games, so I made a whole meal that I feel like reflects the series relatively well.

I was originally going to make this meal during St. Patrick's Day week, but I decided to wait since I already had enough food to last a whole week. And when I thought about it, this meal is kind of rustic and reminds me of something you'd find in District 12. It seemed fitting to me, I mean, most of the districts are poor, and they made do with what they have. It isn't a fancy meal, or an expensive one, but it produces a lot of food. Also, just think of buying that big loaf of soda bread from the Mellark's bakery. It turns out a little crusty on the outside but really soft on the inside - delicious. And most of the ingredients in the soup are vegetables I would imagine you could get in the Hob if you swapped the rabbits you just killed for them.

First, the soup originally comes from MyRecipes.com. I added 1 can of vegetable stock to replace one of the cans of chicken stock and my soup turned out to be a brown color as opposed to the typical white colored potato soup, but I felt like that made it more rustic looking. And I would imagine in Panem vegetable stock would be easier to come by.

District 12 Potato Soup

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 3 leeks, sliced
• 3 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 2 cans chicken broth
• 1 can vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• Optional Toppings: shredded Cheddar cheese, crumbled cooked bacon, chopped fresh chives
• Preparation
• 1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat; stir in onion and leek. Cover and cook 20 minutes. Stir in potato; cover and cook 15 minutes. Stir in broth, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes or until potato is tender. Remove from heat, and cool slightly.
  2. Process soup in batches in a blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides; return to saucepan, and cook over medium heat until thoroughly heated. Serve with desired toppings.
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  Now, for the soda bread. It is so delicious I can't even explain to you. It has this kind of sweet taste, and I'm thoroughly planning on dunking it into the soup. I can see Peeta now baking up something like this. The recipe originally came from AllRecipes.com.
  
  
  Mellark's Bakery Soda Bread
  
  
  Ingredients
  
  
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 tablespoons white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup margarine, softened
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk
  
  
  Preparation
  
  
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet.
  2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and margarine. Stir in 1 cup of buttermilk and egg. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead slightly. Form dough into a round and place on prepared baking sheet. In a small bowl, combine melted butter with 1/4 cup buttermilk; brush loaf with this mixture. Use a sharp knife to cut an 'X' into the top of the loaf.
  3. Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 30 to 50 minutes. You may continue to brush the loaf with the butter mixture while it bakes.

  
  

  
  

  You could finish the entire meal off with sugar cookies from the Mellark bakery. Of course they say "The Hunger Games," "Team Katniss" and "Team Peeta." If you're from District 12 you have to show support for your tributes. They aren't decorated so that they look rustic, too. The recipe is the same one I used for the St. Paddy's cookies. Except I added a teaspoon of almond extract into these.

  
  

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  • Does this all make me a huge dork? Yes, I believe it does.