Barleybrew Dark & Thunder 45

Every woman loves chocolate. Every dwarf loves beer. When St. Patty's Day comes around, what is it that all the Dwarven women are brewing? Chocolate Beer of course! This was a recipe created by the Titans themselves. This brew is not for the apprentice of the kitchen, it is so delectable that it is often left to the masters to create such a work of labor. Now, I dare say that I am no Master in the kitchen, I have only ventured to increase my cooking skill to Artisan. However, with a lot of concentration, (meaning I had a babysitter and an extra set of hands to help me) I was able to recreate this beverage with amazing success. It is extremely time consuming, so if you are to venture into the craft of this drink, plan ahead. It keeps wonderfully in the fridge! And for those of us not interested in the mind altering potions of alcohol, try the Thunder 45, further down the post, for the virgin variety of the Barelybrew Dark.

Barleybrew Dark
6 Servings | Cook Time: 35 Minutes Total Time:1 Hour 30 Minutes | Master

Mats:

• 8 large Egg Yolks
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 Irish Beer (15 oz)
• 3 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
• 7 oz Bittersweet Baking Chocolate Pieces (72% cacao)

Craft: In a large mixing bowl, mix together the egg yolks and sugar, set aside. Open the beer and pour into a 4 cup measuring cup. Pour the beer down the side of the cup to reduce foaming. Pour 1/2 of the beer into a saucepan. Add 2 1/4 cups cups of cream and whisk together over medium heat. Continue whisking until bubbles form at the edges of the saucepan, then remove from heat and add chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Slowly pour the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, stirring constantly, to avoid curdling. Return the mixture to the saucepan and place on the stove again over moderately low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. Pour into a blender and blend on high for 1 minute. Divide pudding among 6 glasses and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled and set, between 30 minutes and 1 hour.

Meanwhile, poor the remaining beer into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to a simmer, uncovered, until reduced to 1 tbl of syrup, approximately 20 minutes. Pour syrup into a bowl and let cool. In a separate bowl, beat remaining cream until soft peaks form. Add beer syrup and beat until combined. Divide between the 6 glasses of pudding and serve.

This recipe was developed by Shane Philip Coffey, the chef at Alias restaurant on New York City's Lower East Side. It has been slightly modified for our purposes.

Strategies: You can use any beer you like for this recipe.

LFM: Good side dish options

Cost:

• Eggs $0.98
  
• 1 Irish Beer $6.95 (6 pack) $1.16 (1)
• Heavy Whipping Cream $2.45
• Baking Chocolate $2.15

Total Cost: $6.74
Cost Per Serving: $1.12

Category: Snackage, LFG, Hardcore, Phat Loot, OOM

And for those of us who don't drink alcohol...

Thunder 45
6 Servings | Cook Time: 35 Minutes Total Time:1 Hour 30 Minutes | Master

Mats:

• 8 large Egg Yolks
  
• 1/4 cup Sugar
  
• 1 can Soda (16 oz)
• 3 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
• 7 oz Bittersweet Baking Chocolate Pieces (72% cacao)

Craft: In a large mixing bowl, mix together the egg yolks and sugar, set aside. Open the soda and pour into a 4 cup measuring cup. Pour 1/2 of the soda into a saucepan. Add 2 1/4 cups cups of cream and whisk together over medium heat. Continue whisking until bubbles form at the edges of the saucepan, then remove from heat and add chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Slowly pour the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, stirring constantly, to avoid curdling. Return the mixture to the saucepan and place on the stove again over moderately low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. Pour into a blender and blend on high for 1 minute. Divide pudding among 6 glasses and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled and set, between 30 minutes and 1 hour.

Meanwhile, poor the remaining soda into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to a simmer, uncovered, until reduced to 1 tbl of syrup, approximately 20 minutes. Pour syrup into a bowl and let cool. In a separate bowl, beat remaining cream until soft peaks form. Add soda syrup and beat until combined. Divide between the 6 glasses of pudding and serve.

Strategies: You can use any soda you like for this recipe.


Cost:

• Eggs $0.98
• Soda $0.75
• Heavy Whipping Cream $2.45
  
• Baking Chocolate $2.15
  

Total Cost: $6.33
Cost Per Serving: $1.06

Category: Snackage, LFG, Hardcore, Phat Loot, OOM, Critical Hits

Boomkin & Brussel Sprouts

I'm an OCD mount collector. I've done the Argent Tourny grind. I did all the rep grinds (back when they were hard!). I've spent hours in AQ, ZG, HSethekk, and UK. I know the agony of opening eggs every week and getting yolk. Then opening bags every day just to get a snowball instead of a mount! So lo and behold I found myself doing the thing I hate the most....PvP....just to get enough honor points and tokens to buy more mounts. /facepalm. What was I thinking?

I don't mind PvP when I'm playing my priest. I actually enjoy the challenge of PvP healing. But my paladin is my mount collector and I don't care for the style of paladin healing. Ugh. PvP-ing with my paladin is painful. I'm terrible at it. Sometimes I can get lucky and kill a few people but most of the time I spend crying in a corner, begging for the game to be over.

There was one particularly bad game in Warsong Gulch that had me sitting as a ghost at the GY and just hitting cancel every time the option to rez came up. There was a particular boomkin that I swear was out to get me. It's like he knew me or something! Maybe I gave him bad directions in a guide once and it totally ruined his day so he was out for revenge. Well anyway, I never lived longer than 30 seconds in that game before this guy was on me. I still cringe whenever coming up against a well-played boomkin.

So this recipe is dedicated to you, random-anonymous-horde-boomkin! For making my mount grinding just that much more horrible to endure. I hope you DIMO (Die In My Oven!) so I can eat you with a side of brussel sprouts. And your little pet too! Ehehehwahahahahahehehehahhhahahah!!

Boomkin & Brussel Sprouts

4 Servings | Total Time: 1 hour 15 min | Master

Mats:

• 2 Roflpwnt Boomkins (or Cornish Game Hens)
• 1 Large Red Onion
• 1 1/2 lbs of Brussel Sprouts
• 2 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Pepper
• 2 tsp Dried Thyme
• 2 tsp Dried Oregano
• 2 tsp Dried Basil
• 1 Tbl Butter
• 2 Tbl Olive Oil
• 1/4 cup White Cooking Wine

Craft: Preheat oven to 375°. Roughly chop the red onion and set aside. Trim the hard ends off the brussel sprouts and set aside. In a small bowl, mix salt, pepper, thyme, oregano and basil. Remove giblets from the hens, if included. Trim any excess fat or skin. Loosen the skin over the breast and thighs then rub 1/4 of the seasoning mixture under the skin of each hen. Truss with kitchen string so wings are tightly against the body and legs are bound together.

Heat butter and oil in a large pan over high heat. Place hens in the pan, breast side down. Cook for 2-3 minutes on every side until skin is browned. Remove the hens from the pan and place in a 9x14 casserole dish. In the same pan over medium heat, saute the chopped red onion for 3 minutes, carefully scraping up any browned bits from the hen. Add onions to the casserole dish.

Bake for 10 minutes then add the brussel sprouts and sprinkle the rest of the seasoning mixture over the sprouts. Bake for 35 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into a thigh registers 165°. Transfer the game hens to a large cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile pour all veggies and juice into a large pan over medium heat. Add white cooking wine and cook, stirring occasionally for 8-10 minutes. Using a large, heavy knife, cut each hen in half down the breastbone and serve with 1/2 cup of veggies with sauce.

Strategies: If you have a large roasting pan you can brown the birds and saute the veggies at the end all in the same pan over two burners. Less dishes to wash = yay!

LFM: This is a self contained meal but if you want you can serve this with mashed potatoes and make your own gravy by adding another 1/2 cup of cooking wine to the veggies. Just pour the extra sauce over the potatoes!

Cost:

• Cornish Game Hens $4.00
• Red Onion $0.50
• Brussel Sprouts $2.50

Total Cost: $7.00
Cost Per Serving: $1.75

Category: Hardcore, Critical Hits, Troll Fuel

*This meal contains staple items such as spices that you may or may not have in your pantry so your cost may vary.

Alterac Manna Biscuits w/Galv's Favy Gravy

I don't know about you but there are some times when I just want to say forget the diet and gimme some good ol' fashioned biscuits and gravy. Ooey gooey, salty, fatty, scrumptious goodness! Nothing is more filling than that. It sticks to your ribs so you have plenty of energy to take down (or protect) Captain Galvangar and grind out your AV rep so your twink can have those tasty health/mana biscuits. (Those were the bomb in vanilla!)

And the great thing about biscuits and gravy is that there's two ways to make it. You can take your time and make them from scratch for a homemade deliciousness that can't compare. Or if you're short on time or don't trust your cooking skill level yet you can get some cheating help from the store and still make some pretty leet tasting biscuits and gravy. So below you'll find two recipes. One that's made-from-scratch and one that's totally cheating.

Alterac Manna Biscuits w/Galv's Favy Gravy
4 Servings | Total Time: 35 min | Master

Mats:

• 2 1/4 cup Flour, divided
• 3 3/4 cup Buttermilk, divided
• 1 12oz tube Mild Ground Sausage
• 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 8 Tbl Butter (if using unsalted butter, add 1/8 tsp salt)
• Cooking Spray

Craft: Preheat oven to 450°. Slice butter into small pieces and set aside. In a medium bowl combine 2 cups of flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt (if using unsalted butter). Cut in butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal. This step can also be done by hand but will take a little longer. Add 3/4 cup of buttermilk and stir until just combined. Add more buttermilk, 1 splash at a time if needed to make sure all the dry ingredients get moist.

Turn out dough on a lightly floured surface and pat out until roughly 1 inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter or round cup to cut out biscuits. Place biscuits on a lightly sprayed cookie sheet. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray then bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. (Makes 12 biscuits)

While the biscuits cook, brown the sausage in a large saucepan. When it's done, remove from the pan and set aside. Using the same pan over medium heat, whisk together 3 cups of buttermilk and 1/4 cup of flour. Scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook, stirring constantly for 5 minutes or until the gravy has thickened. Add the meat to the pan and stir until combined.

Pour 2/3 cup of gravy over 3 biscuits and serve hot!

Strategies: The key to good biscuits is to keep the butter and the dough cold so you must work with it quickly. You also need to handle the dough as little as possible so it doesn't get tough. No kneading after the buttermilk is added and no rolling pins allowed.

LFM: This is a very hearty and filling meal but it does go very well with fresh fruit if you're looking to fill up the corners!

Cost:

• Flour $2.00
• Buttermilk $1.50
• Mild Ground Sausage $2.50
• Butter $3.50

Total Cost: $9.50
Cost Per Serving: $2.38


Leet'n'Cheatin' Biscuits & Gravy
4 Servings | Total Time: 20 min | Journeyman

Mats:

• 1 pkg Refrigerated Biscuits
• 1 pkt or jar of White Gravy
• 1 cup Milk or Buttermilk
• 1 12oz tube Mild Ground Sausage

Craft: Bake biscuits according to package instructions. Meanwhile, brown sausage in a large saucepan. When it's done, remove sausage from the saucepan and set aside. Using the same pan over medium heat, cook the gravy according to package instructions. When the gravy is done, add 1 cup of milk or buttermilk and cook another 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add meat back to the pan and stir until combined. Pour 1/2 cup of gravy over 2-3 biscuits and serve hot!


Strategies: If you like more gravy than your average person, get an extra jar or packet of white gravy.


LFM: This is a very hearty and filling meal but it does go very well with fresh fruit if you're looking to fill up the corners!


Cost:

• Refrigerated Biscuits $1.50
  
• Buttermilk $1.50
  
• Mild Ground Sausage $2.50
  
• Gravy Mix $0.50
  

Total Cost: $6.00
Cost Per Serving: $1.50

Category: Raid Night, Casual, Journeyman, Master, Critical Hits, Cheat Codes, Rez Plz

*This meal contains staple items such as spices that you may or may not have in your pantry so your cost may vary.

AFK Dinner Features

All of our recipes on AFK Dinner have a few different categories attached to them that you'll be able to search by according to what your current food needs are. Here are our categories:

• Rez Plz - Food for the dead of morning
• Troll Fuel - Lunches to nom between forum topics
• Raid Night - Dinner in less than 20 minutes
• Casual - Dinner when time is of the essence (20 min-1 hour)
• Hardcore - Dinners when time matters not (1 hour or more)
• Expansions - Side dishes to boost your mealtime xp
• Snackage - A quick bite for the bio break
• LFG - For the LAN PARTY
• Phat Loot - The guilty pleasures
• Critical Hits - Author’s favorites
• Cheat Codes - Fantastic meal ideas with little work required
  

You will also be able to search for recipes according to your skill level in cooking. These skill levels are indicated in color just below the recipe name. Here they are from easiest to hardest:

• Training
  Recipes marked with this are indicative of a recipe that will teach you how to cook something that people might take for granted! It’s a great way to level up your cooking skills from Apprentice to Journeyman or Artisan to Master!
• Apprentice
  Anyone who knows how to operate a microwave or has basic stove top skills can handle these recipes. Just because you haven’t been grinding your cooking tradeskill doesn’t mean you can’t eat tasty food too!
• Journeyman
  You’ve actually dabbled in raising your cooking profession. You’ve figured out how to use the oven and the broiler! And dagnabit if you ain’t pretty decent at it too! No microwave nuking needed here! Unless you’re a mage, then nuke away. Recipes here will prove to be no challenge and they give decent XP too!
• Artisan
  Stuff always tastes better baked, fried or grilled and you know how to do all that. You can multi-task like an AoE tanking pro! Recipes in this section will require a little bit more knowledge of spices and the cooking 1337sp34k but you’ve got all that nonsense covered!
• Master
  There’s not a word in this cookbook that you wouldn’t know the meaning to. Truss a chicken? Pfft, please. You know how to saute, souffle, filet, and melee. You’d game in the kitchen if you weren’t concerned about how to get sauce out of your controllers.
  

It can be hard to feed yourself and your family nutritious and delicious meals when you're living on a budget. To help you keep an eye on your gold pieces, you will find at the bottom of every recipe we've included a general pricing list of all the ingredients and how much the recipe should cost you per serving. Please keep in mind that your actual price will vary a little according to where you live and where/how you shop. (i.e. buying off-brand vs. brand name items.)

Lastly, inside all our recipes you will find two more helpful sections- Strategies and LFM. In the Strategy section you will find alternative ingredients or alternative ways to cook the recipe. Sometimes you will also find time-saving tips! In the LFM section you will find optional side dishes that will compliment your meal nicely. These side dishes are not included in the mats list nor are they included in the pricing list.

If you have any suggestions on other helpful features you'd like to see included on AFK Dinner Recipes please let us know in the comments section! We'd love to hear from you!