Food and Fandom: Achillides Amygdalota

I’ve been greatly neglecting many things, including this poor blog, but here I am, coming from the woodwork on this chilly–but lovely–Easter morn to talk about food that I ended up making out of the fiction I’ve been reading!

So I finished Lore by Alexandra Bracken some days ago, and I would be remiss if I didn’t do any Greek-related food afterward. I really have my eye in trying this honey baklava recipe, but the word for almond cookie totally threw me and I wanted to try my hand at it!

tl;dr

(click on almond cookie recipe here)

The Achillides had brought out their most cherished ceremonial bowls and wares, and all overflowed with a vivid assortment of fresh fruits. Beside it were silver platters of thin-shaved meat and fish, cheese, pastries, and heaps of stuffed olives.

Lore – Alexandra Bracken

So the thing about Lore by Alexandra Bracken is that it’s completely Greek mythology-based. In one scene of the book, Lore actually steps into a party that celebrated the traditions of ancient Greek gods and such. At least, that’s what it seemed to look like (rather than it just being one massive toga party…though I felt like this applied as well).

To be honest, there were several things I wanted to try solely on this page alone, but I ended up gravitating toward the amygdalota since the word itself sounded really cool. Also, baklava seemed like a much harder–and more expensive–option (though trying to buy almond flour isn’t a cake walk in the park either). In any case, not pictured or focused on in this blog post is my accompanying lamb moussaka, which I had done for a previous food and fandom post for the Bridgerton series (you can check up on that here).

Anyway, once I’d gathered up the ingredients, it was easy going from there. This pretty much goes in the way of making actual cookies, just without any baking soda or baking powder. The cookies themselves don’t leaven, and don’t do what I did…which was forget the second batch after being in the oven for a few minutes longer than they should be… (ROOKIE MISTAKE I KNOW. And I’ve been baking for how long now?!)

Overall Verdict: Not bad! I’m not a big fan of almond cookies, but this didn’t strike me as overly sweet, and the almonds are toasty. Baked correctly, the inside remains soft even with the crunchy outside, which is something I love about these cookies, compared to the amygdalotas I’ve had before, which were just sad, crunchy cookies with no differing texture on the inside. Anyway, if you’re into almond cookies, and would love to try this little gem, it’s really easy and a crowd-pleaser! (Unless, of course, you’re allergic to almonds.)

Recipe: Amygdalota