U Ever In Such A Bad Mood U Feel Urself Turning Evil?

[video by aidenarata. original caption: it's a good spoon]

my final letter to the king himself~

i think what really hurt the most after watching the 'so long nerds' video.. was the realisation that techno's diagnosis was terminal this whole time. his dad said they had been discussing a final video 'for months' and his mom said he was always focused on beating what he knew were almost impossible odds.. even as he told us his doctors are amazing and that he's getting some of the finest healthcare around.. the entire time he knew. and i think that speaks extraordinary volumes about the kind of person that techno was.

his announcement video was essentially a goodbye video. and i think he just didn't want us to know that because it would have meant everyone would have spent this past year in a state of grief and sadness, rather than coming together and focusing on pure positivity, focusing on motivating him, sending him all of our wishes and strength and love. technoblade never dies - and i honestly did not have a single doubt about his recovery even for a second, because that's the kind of strength and courage he has put in me from the very beginning.

i cannot imagine how hard that must have been. i cannot even fathom how tough this past year has been for him and all of his loved ones. but what i do know, is that i will be eternally grateful to you technoblade. because you have always loved and cared, and you had the strength within you to put hope in people's hearts while knowing the universe was not kind enough to return the favour. i am in awe of the person that you were, and it has been a BLESSING to be able to support you these past few years. you have played the game well. now it's time for you to rest.

technoblade never dies 🐷👑

please do not forget to give whatever you can to the sarcoma foundation, in honour of technoblade

Activists in Tasmania have stuck up more honest promo stickers inside Coles & Woolworths stores, the two dominant supermarket chains in Australia.

Meal’s End

“[...] this refreshing dish is quick to concoct and easy to serve by the bowlful, requiring no baking. While there are subtle variations of “meal’s end” based on region and culture, the version with chopped persimmon or plum in lieu of field berries is quite seasonal and thus recommended.” - Heroes’ Feast, p. 79

Honestly, I'm going to start calling the whipped heavy cream, greek yogurt, vanilla extract combo that creates the base of Meal’s End “better whipped cream”. The rich sweetness of the cream and vanilla is both enhanced and offset by the addition of the greek yogurt in a way I still struggle to describe.

To make it even better, because the meringues melt quickly in your mouth, they add fantastic texture while not disturbing the overall smoothness of the dessert!

Rich without being heavy, Meal’s End from Heroes’ Feast is the perfect light dessert to have after any meal!

See below for my notes on the results and for some helpful tips and tricks when making this yourself! Get Heroes’ Feast here: https://dnd.wizards.com/heroes-feast

Prep: 10 mins                Cook: 10 mins                 Total: 20 mins

Ingredients - serves 4 parfait glasses:

3 cups (430 g) fresh strawberries, rinsed and hulled (or a mix of berries)

Sugar as needed

1 ⅓ cups (315 ml) heavy cream

⅓ cup (80 ml) plain Greek yogurt (preferably whole milk) or crème fraîche*

¼ tsp. (1 ml) pure vanilla extract

2 ounces package (50 g/half the package shown) or homemade cocoa or vanilla meringues, coarsely crumbled (about 1 ⅓ cups)

* I used 2% plain Greek yogurt.

Coarsely chop 2 cups of the strawberries. In a bowl, mix the chopped strawberries with sugar to taste. (top-left bowl)

Slice or quarter the remaining 1 cup berries. In a small bowl, mix these strawberries with sugar to taste. (top-right bowl)

Using an electric or handheld whisk, beat the heavy whipping cream until it is softly whipped, adding 1 tbsp. of sugar once the cream has thickened.

This will take 1 to 1 ½ minutes with a stand mixer at high speed.

TIP: To make the cream whisk faster, put the bowl you are using in the fridge or freezer for 10 minutes until chilled. Also, keep the cream cold in the fridge until you’re ready to whip it.

Fold in the yogurt and vanilla just until blended.

Fold in the chopped berries and crumbled meringues.

Divide the mixture among four serving dishes, top with the sliced berries, and serve all at once.

NOTE: Time is not kind to the texture of the meringues. Serve Meal’s End immediately after making it. However, leftovers can be kept covered in the fridge and eaten later.

Overall, I would give this recipe a 5/5. Like I said in the intro, the meringues and berries compliment the smoothness and incredible flavour of the whipped cream mixture perfectly!

I would highly recommend eating this after a fish dinner, but it’s also a great dessert after heavier foods like steak.

Although eating it immediately after making will preserve the texture of the meringues, save any leftovers you’ve got from this! The flavour of the meringues will combine with the whipped cream and make a delicious dessert later too!

The problem with putting s’mores as a technical challenge is that baking your own s’more from scratch defeats the purpose of s’mores which is of course to spend ten minutes trying to get a crappy store bought marshmallow the perfect golden brown color before going “fuck it” and letting it catch fire then frantically putting it on a graham cracker with hershey’s chocolate before it falls off of the stick you found on the ground

Elven Marruth

“Sometimes reductively referred to as “root pies” by dwarves and humans, marruth are incredibly hearty closed-faced canapés that are filled with spiced and herbed mashes of vegetables (carrots, potatoes, and carrots) and then lightly baked in a flaky, buttery crust.” - Heroes’ Feast, p. 64

Eating seasonal foods is a popular option because it helps local growers, tastes fresher, and makes you feel more connected to the season. Now, this is all well and good if you live in a climate with longer or all-year growing seasons; but what can you expect to be growing when you’re knee-deep in snow?

Believe it or not, there are winter seasonal vegetables! (rip fruit, you’ll be missed until spring)

Elven Marruth from Heroes’ Feast is a great use of hardy winter-season produce. The small pastries make for a great snack alongside a warm bowl of soup or, thanks to their nutritious filling, a great meal on their own!

These small pastries also hold a special place in my heart for being the first recipe I ever made from Heroes’ Feast (alongside Underdark Lotus with Fire Lichen Spread on p. 93)!

Check out below for my process in creating the house and for some helpful tips and tricks when making this yourself! Get Heroes’ Feast here: https://dnd.wizards.com/heroes-feast

Prep: 15 mins + pie crust, if making                 Cook: 2h 30 mins

Total: 2h 45 mins

Ingredients:

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped*

1 small Yukon gold potato, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces

2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped*

2 cups (300 g) packed finely chopped green cabbage*

3 tbsp. (44 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tsp. (3 g) finely chopped fresh thyme, plus 1 ½ tbsp. (4 g) picked whole thyme leaves**

¾ tsp. (4 ml) soy sauce

¼ cup (4 g) chopped fresh dill

All-purpose flour for dusting

Pastry for 2 double-crust pies, thawed if frozen

1 egg

* To cut down on prep time, roughly chop the onion, carrot, and cabbage and then process them together in a food processor. You’ll need about 15 pulses get them all finely chopped.

** To pick the whole thyme leaves, pinch a stem of thyme and run your fingers down the opposite way the leaves are pointing.

First, preheat the oven to 375℉ (190℃) with the racks in the upper-middle and lower-middle of the oven. Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick (silicone) liners.

Then, in a bowl, combine the onion, potato, carrots, cabbage, and olive oil and toss to coat the vegetables with the oil (top-left). Add ½ tsp. salt and a few grinds of pepper and toss to distribute (top-right).

Transfer the mixture to one of the prepared baking sheets, spreading it into a thin, even layer (set the bowl aside) (top-left).

Roast the vegetables on either rack until tender, 25 to 30 minutes, stirring and turning the vegetables two or three times (top-right).

NOTE: I misread the instructions so I spread the mixture over both sheets.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven, add the chopped thyme, and stir to incorporate it. Spread out the mixture and allow to cool to room temperature for about 20 minutes.

Leave the oven on for more baking and return the cooled veggies to the now-empty bowl. Stir in the soy sauce, dill, ¾ tsp. salt, and pepper to taste. Adjust the seasoning as necessary, and set aside until needed.

If making the filling ahead of time, turn off the oven, transfer the cooled mixture to a tupperware, and put it in the fridge until needed.

Replace the parchment paper on the baking sheet or wash the non-stick liner and return it to the baking sheet. Have a small bowl of water handy.

Dust a large piece of parchment paper or a clean work surface with flour. Working with one ball of homemade pastry at a time, or one sheet of store-bought pastry, roll the dough into a 12-inch (30 cm) circle (top-left).

Sprinkle half of the whole thyme leaves evenly over the pastry, cover with a piece of parchment paper, and roll lightly to help the thyme stick (top-right).

Flip the pastry over so the thyme leaves are on the bottom, and set aside. Repeat with the remaining pastry and remaining whole thyme leaves.

With a 4-inch (10 cm) round biscuit or cookie cutter, cut at least six circles out of each pastry round.

TIP: To keep the pastry as chilled as possible for maximum ~flakiness~ while baking, work with and cut out circles from one ball of pastry at a time. Place each cut circle on a plate covered with cling film and put in the fridge until needed.

Keep the scraps from the first dough ball in the fridge and combine with the scraps from the second dough ball. Roll out the combined scraps for extra circles.

NOTE: My pie crust recipe gives quite a bit of dough, so you’ll end up cutting out way more than the six asked for by Heroes’ Feast.

Working with as many of the pastry circles as you feel comfortable with to keep the dough chilled, place 1 ½ tbsp. (one slightly rounded tbsp.) of the vegetable mixture in the center of each round, leaving a ½-inch border around the edge.

Working with one piece of pastry at a time, moisten the edge of the pastry circle and fold over the pastry over the filling to make a half-moon shape. Press out any trapped air, press the edges firmly to seal, and crimp the edges using a fork to secure the seal.

Transfer the crimped pastries to a separate plate and keep in the fridge until ready to cook.

Repeat with the remaining pastry rounds and filling.

Once all of the pastries are ready, transfer them onto the prepared baking sheets.

In a small bowl, beat the egg with 1 tbsp. water and brush the tops and sides of each marruth with the mixture (top-left).

Bake until the marruths are light golden brown and crisp, about 25 minutes, rotating the sheets 180 degrees and switching racks halfway through baking (top-right).

Set the baking sheets on wire racks, cool the pastries for about 5 minutes, and serve hot.

NOTE: Despite the recipe only being supposed to make 12, I’ve always gotten somewhere between 18-22 marruths from the filling.

NOTE: You’ll notice the BIG marruth I’ve made on the tray. I was trying to see if I could make a larger version of this recipe since I’d made smaller ones of the Hand Pies (p. 21). However, the consensus was that the smaller ones were better. Expect 4-5 more marruths than shown if not making the big one.

Overall, I would give this recipe a 5/5. I’m usually not a huge fan of vegetable-based dishes, but these veggie turnovers are awesome. I’ve made them for weekend lunches and many a movie night and they’re always a massive hit!

The vegetables really work together with the soy sauce and herbs to create a great flavour with a texture reminiscent of a spring roll. If you’re looking for a more savoury turnover, this one’s for you.

MAKE SURE TO EAT THEM WARM though. It might just be me, but they don’t really work if they’re any colder than room temperature.

I would also recommend making the filling and pie crust on one day and assembling them the next day. It makes the cooking time a lot less daunting and not eat up your free time :)

P.S. You can make these for someone who doesn’t like onion by leaving it out. I’ve made them like this before and they said they were great!

The sheer number of kids who are straight up putting their real names and ages and location in their bios like "Natasha | 14 | Minor | New York, NY!" and occasionally putting their actual school or city in their tags just terrifies me like no stop stop stop remove that right now I cannot emphasize how unsafe that is for you I am begging you for your sake remove thst shit right now

"Orc" Bacon

“No, it isn’t made from orcs - but for orcs.” - Heroes’ Feast, p. 156

Until I found this recipe, I’d never thought of trying to dress up bacon. After all, bacon is bacon! However, “Orc” Bacon brings a tasty spin to this popular classic.

Coated with a savoury-sweet glaze and absolutely the easiest thing to make in Heroes’ Feast so far; this tasty treat is a great snack to prepare for a table of hungry adventurers or for yourself when life gets busy!

Try snacking on them with a side of the Yawning Portal Buttermilk Biscuits to really immerse yourself in that tavern vibe!

See below for my notes on the results and for some helpful tips and tricks when making this yourself! Get Heroes’ Feast here: https://dnd.wizards.com/heroes-feast

Prep: 1 min               Cook: 30 mins*               Total: ~30 mins

* Varies based on how crispy you like your bacon.

Ingredients (serves 4 as a snack):

1 lbs. (450 g) thick-cut bacon*

3 tbsp. (38 g) light-brown sugar

½ tsp. (1 g) freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp. (2 g) garlic powder

2 tbsp. (30 ml) orange juice

* I used regular cut bacon instead of thick-cut with no issues.

Start by preheating the oven to 375℉ (190℃) with a rack in the middle of the oven. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil. Coat a large wire rack with nonstick cooking spray and set it in the foil-lined pan.

Next, arrange the bacon slices on the rack, laying them tight against each other so the entire pound fits (top-left).

Roast the bacon strips until they render some of their fat and shrink a bit, about 12 minutes (top-right).

NOTE: I struggled to fit all of the regular cut bacon onto the rack even after cramming everything as tight as possible (rip those pieces at the top). This may be different for thick-cut but I ended up having three extra slices to spare.

While the bacon renders, in a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, pepper, garlic, and orange juice.

Lightly brush the rendered slices with about half of the brown sugar mixture (top-left).

Continue roasting until the brown sugar adheres to the bacon and the bacon appears glossy, about 7 minutes (top-right).

Using tongs, turn over the pieces.

Lightly brush the slices with the remaining brown sugar mixture and continue roasting until the brown sugar mixture adheres to the bacon and looks glossy, 5 to 7 minutes.

Transfer slices to a serving plate and serve warm.

NOTE: For this last part, feel free to roast the slices for as long as it takes them to your preferred crispness level. The slices above roasted for about 11 minutes.

Overall, I would give this recipe a 5/5. I couldn't personally see myself eating these with eggs in the morning (clashing flavours) but it does make for a nice sweet and savoury snack!

Like I mentioned in the intro, the flavour and ease to throw it together make it a good choice to bring to a D&D session or make as a nerdy snack for yourself when you’re busy, no matter what level your cooking skill is at.

Watch out though! They’re super sticky so make sure to have plenty of napkins on hand.