A Tasty Treat To Try - Golden-Brown Treats - made by hobbits for hobbits et al

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Questions/Author Comments for myself

Name of Food or Beverage
Golden-Brown Treats

Overview
Golden-Brown Treats, a staple of hobbit kitchens for centuries, have been introduced to the wider Santharian community in recent times by Helmondsshire chef Jaemeyo Livyre as well as other halfling chefs. These small, tasty biscuits are golden brown, sweet and just the right size to fill the gaps between the major meals of a day for hobbits. Made on oats, flour and maple syrup, together with an optional ingredient of the dried fruit of the tropical bombox palm, Golden-Brown Treats are a healthy part of the diet of hobbits of all shires and ages.

Description
Typically, Golden-Brown Treats are found on plates or platters or in glass jars located in hobbit holes in their shires throughout Santharia. In more recent times, Golden-Brown Treats have received a wider audience, particularly in places where hobbit chefs and bakers work. One such example is the Boyzinna Fellowship Hall kitchen. Without exception, these tasty snacks are served cold, and allowed to cool, typically in front of an open window. As these circular biscuits are rather crunchy, hungry hobbitlings and others attempting to sneak one, two or more of these delectible delights are almost certain to be caught by the alert baker or chef. The senses typically respond favourably to this treat: the cooking sends up a sweet aroma that attracts hobbits as well as members of the big races towards the source of the smell emanating from a nearby kitchen; the golden maple syrup combines with the <oats> to entice the eyes of the consumer; the oats provides a rough, uneven texture to the Golden Treats when picked up and touched, as well as a circular shape that sits nicely in the palm of the hand of a halfling; the sweetness of the maple syrup and <sugar> balances the <blandness> of the <oats, coconut and butter> and creates a veritable taste explosion within the mouth of the lucky individual who choses to eat one or more Golden-Brown Treats.

Providing a first hand account, Boyzinna Fellowship member <First Name> <Last Name> said, "Golden-Brown Treats are yummy! Jaemeyo is such a great cook, even though I'm already taller than him. It is fun trying to sneak some of his Golden-Brown Treats from the jars while he's cooking other things. He's gotten me across my bum with the rolling pin on more than one occasion. But he normally always lets me have them anyway."

"Though we'd never let the boys know this," Kyranian master tanner <First Name> says, "the Golden-Brown Treats are actually rather healthy for them. With oats and flour and maple syrup in them, we're doing our bit to help them grow up well. Many of the boys don't like porridge, and these are a useful way for the boys to get what they need to grow up big and strong."

"Golden-Brown Treats filled me up when I was a wee hobbitling growing up, and even today, I love their sweet goodness." Chef Livyre said from his kitchen, where he had just removed a tray of these biscuits from the oven, "they are filling as well, and really, I don't mind if the lads attempt to sneak them. However, it is expected that'll try to keep them from doing so and I am always happy to oblige. If you'll excuse me ..." Jaemeyo at that point turned, rolling pin in hand as he swung it towards the hand of one of the boys reaching for one of the treats, shouting "get out of here you ... you rascals!" as he did so.

Usages/Effects
Golden-Brown Treats, as the name implies is a snack enjoyed at many times during the day and night by hobbits of all ages. It can be used as a reward after a job is well done, as a replacement for porridge for stubborn hobbitlads and hobbitlasses, as well as for human children, or as a dessert while listening to the stories of Gaffar Klas and Mian Longfellow. This food item is never served heated.

Origin of the Food or Beverage
Helmondsshire --> when hobbits left to form other shires they took receipt with them as well. Almost all hobbit holes have a version of Golden-Brown Treats, with the changes made to the versions of the basic receipt due to the particular ingredients available in the different places around Santharia.

Hobbitlore states the receipt was started during the time of the Battle of Four Swords as a basic food made by nervous hobbit wives and matriarchs when their husbands and sons went off to fight. They used common ingredients around them to ensure their men folk were able to eat on the go. After this battle, according to hobbit tradition, Golden-Brown Treats became more widespread amongst the hobbits of the shire. The Helmondsshire

Mullogs?

Method of Preparation
The following receipt was kindly provided to the compendium by Jaemeyo Livyre and we give thanks to him for making it available for publication. ₁

Jaemeyo Livyre's Golden-Brown Treats
Change earthern measures to Caelereth measures
INGREDIENTS
1 cup parritch oats
3/4 cup dried bombox fruit
1 cup golden rain flour
1 cup foridite
125g (4oz) milchbutter
2 tablespoons maple syrup or malisehoney
1/2 teaspoon Saleratys
1 tablespoon water (boiling)

Preheat oven to 300F (150C)

PROCEDURE
Mix parritch oats, golden rain flour, foridite and bombox fruit together.
Melt maple syrup/malisehoney and milchbutter together.
Mix saleratys with boiling water and add to melted milchbutter and maple syrup/malisehoney.
Add these wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Spoon 1/2 tablespoonfuls of mixture on baking tray (allow room for spreading as these expand during baking).
Bake in oven for 20 minutes. These are done when the top of them is hard, golden brown and rough.
Loosen them from the baking tray while warm, cool on plates in front of an open window to let the wind cool them.
Once cool, place the Golden-Brown Treats in bottles or on plates as desired.
Serve unheated.

NOTES
This is enough to make 70 - 80 hobbit sized Golden-Brown Treats. If larger treats are desired, increase the size of the spoonfuls to one tablespoon each. Different fruits can be used in the mixture in place of the bombox fruit. Apples, heathberries, bananas and pears are some of my personal favourites. If you do use a different fruit, they will need to be sliced and diced finely. If you don't want to use fruit for some reason, feel free to leave it out, but I believe that will result in imperfect results both in terms of the quality of the receipt and the enjoyment of the eaters of the Golden-Brown Treats.

Importance
A halfling staple, the Golden-Brown Treat was started by halfling mothers and wives to ensure their mensfolk had sustainable food with them when going off to fight in the Battle of Four Swords during SW II.

Footnotes
₁ The reader should note that the receipt and the notes were provided in written form by Jaemeyo Livyre and that his words appear in this entry unedited.