#the silent spy
Recipe 114 - Black Bun
“Black Bun” is the ninth recipe I’ve made based on the food offered at the Deli Shuss in The Silent Spy. The other eight can be found here,here,here,here, here,here,hereandhere. For those keeping score, there are 14 food items you can buy at Deli Shuss so only 5 more to go! (Although I probably won’t be able to make some of the remaining things).
“Black Bun” is a traditional, Scottish, New Year’s fruit cake. I was very excited when I read that because I originally wanted to do the recipe for Christmas but ran out of time (couldn’t find currants). Compared to the other fruit cake I made (Dundee cake) it is a lot more dense with dried fruit, in fact it’s more fruit than cake. I saw someone compare it online to a giant fig newton and I think that’s pretty accurate. Texture wise it’s pretty gritty and dense and the dough is flaky like a pie crust. Definitely not a combo of tastes that’s familiar to my American tongue. Since it’s very dry, I recommend a generous lathering of butter and some salt for some zing. (I’ve been putting salt on all my sweets lately).
I gotta share the black bun lore that was attached to my source’s recipe because it’s both interesting and seasonally appropriate:
“‘First footing’ is an old Hogmanay custom: shortly after midnight, neighbours would visit one another to offer their best wishes for the New Year and take gifts such as black bun (a fruit cake wrapped in pastry) to symbolise that the household would not go hungry that year.”
Happy New Year clue crew!
Recipe #109 - Scotch Pie
I believe this is my first recipe with my apartment in the background so you’ll finally get a new stove/table/countertops to look at. I moved almost exactly a year ago (Sept. 1st 2020) and I have a slightly smaller cooking space now, but way more freedom to make whatever, whenever.
Anyways, I was nervous for this one, you never really know how baking is going to turn out. I just hear the Great British Bake Off judges taunting me (“soggy bottom,” “overworked the dough,” “under/overbaked” etc.) In the end, this recipe was very forgiving and I had nothing to worry about! The main thing I was concerned about was that the pie crust wouldn’t hold together and it would just explode or stick to the tin. Instead, I got these perfectly formed, buttery morsels that slid right out. Such a relief! I was very surprised that the pie “lids” stayed on because I didn’t put much effort into pinching them on. I guess everything just gels together in the oven.
This isn’t the most authentic version I could have done for this recipe, the shape’s not quite right and I didn’t use haggis or lard, but I wanted to stick to accessible ingredients and prep. Luckily, the internet obliged. The whole thing took me about 2.5 hours give or take.
Recipe
Here is my source
-Filling
- 1 lb. ground lean beef ; or lamb
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tbsp Onion soup mix ; or (minced onion)
- 1 cup oatmeal or dry French bread crumbs
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ cup stock (beef broth)
- salt and pepper to taste
-Pastry
- 1 lb. plain flour
- ½ tsp. Salt
- 1 cup hot water
- ½ cup butter
Whelp. My meal prep is done for the week. I love how perfectly portioned these are! I’ve been inspired to use my muffin tin for savory stuff more often. Keep on cookin’ clue crew!
Recipe 109 - Scotch Pie
“Scotch Pie” is the eighth recipe I’ve made based on the food offered at the Deli Shuss in The Silent Spy. The other seven can be found here,here,here,here, here,here. and here.
“Scotch pie” is a little hot water crust meat pie filled with mutton or haggis. I filled mine with lamb which is close enough. Other than chicken pot pie, I feel like savory pies aren’t super popular in America so I have very little experience with meat pies. My first impression of this recipe was that it was very dry and I’m not sure if that’s my fault or if it’s supposed to be like that. Once I got over the initial texture shock and paired the pies with some sauces they really grew on me.
The strongest flavor here is probably the Worcestershire sauce which I love. In fact I poured more on as a topping. I’d be curious to hear what other people eat meat pies with because I really have no clue. Always fun to try something new :)
Recipe #103 -Dundee Cake
The British obsession with dried fruit is kind of baffling to me. I watch a lot of the Great British Bake Off and they’re constantly using them in their bakes. I mean, they’re okay, but the texture is just kind of chewy and unpleasant. I rather baked goods be a soft, melt-in-my-mouth experience.
All that being said, I do look forward to eating this again for breakfast tomorrow. It has a very “mature” and mild taste that will go well with my “just-woke-up” palate. In the game, they make these look like little pastries/buns for some reason:
They look more like brioche than cakes so I had no idea what I was getting into. I was very excited to find out that they were fruit cake because the games don’t give me a lot of opportunities for Christmas tie-in recipes.
Making the cake was extremely simple, the hard parts were finding the ingredients and setting up the almond decoration. You might need to improvise with some bits if you’re working with an American grocery store like mine. I’ll make notes of any changes I made below.
Recipe:
Here is my source
-6oz softened butter
-6oz light brown sugar
-3 tbsp orange marmalade
-3 free-range eggs, beaten
-8oz self-raising flour
-1oz ground almonds (I substituted ¼ tsp of almond extract)
-1 tsp ground mixed spice (I substituted pumpkin pie spice)
-14oz mixed dried fruit (I had to buy it all separately and mix it together)
-3oz maraschino cherries, halved
-2 tbsp whisky or milk (I did 1 tbsp milk and 1 tbsp whisky)
-11/2oz blanched almonds (I had to use almond slivers)
-1 tsp granulated or caster sugar
That’s all for now. I did manage to get my physical copy of Midnight in Salem and I’m very excited to get cracking on the recipes from the long awaited game 33!
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Recipe 103 -Dundee Cake
“Dundee Cake” is the seventh recipe I’ve made based on the food offered at the Deli Shuss in The Silent Spy. The other six can be found here,here,here,here, here andhere.
Dundee Cake is a Scottish fruitcake made with marmalade, currants, and almonds (I also used cherries, cranberries and raisins). I thought it would be the perfect recipe for this time of year. Although my family has never had the tradition of eating fruitcake at Christmas, we do eat panettone which is basically the bread version of fruitcake.
This is what I would consider a “breakfast” dessert because it’s not overly sweet and would go well with various drinks you’d have in the morning (coffee, milk, tea etc.) It’s not particularly exciting (like most Scottish food) but I had fun making and eating it regardless. A nice, traditional treat from the olden days.
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Recipe #119 - Cranachan
I hand whipped the cream because I don’t own a mixer…my arm is still on fire.
I’m really pleased with how this one came out! Also pleased with the fact that I was able to reuse some things from past recipes. I used the cups and spoons from my chocolate mayhem recipe to help with assembly, the oats from my scotch pies and the brandy from my black bun recipe. Always nice when that works out.
This recipe called for “folding” the toasted oats into the cream and I couldn’t stop thinking about that scene from Schitt’s Creek where they argue about what folding means. You wouldn’t know it from looking at it but every layer of this thing has booze. Both the raspberry layers and the cream layers have brandy in them. I don’t drink because I don’t like the taste of alcohol, but I feel it was subtle enough here to work for me. I’m sure you could make this alcohol free as well, but it would be pretty plain if you did. The toasted oats were probably the most “traditional” part of this dish and I feel like they were the surprise MVP. They helped hold the layers together and gave a nice little crunch to each bite.
Recipe:
Here is my source
-1 1/3 cups oats
-1/3 cup whisky (I used brandy instead)
-2 cups of fresh raspberries
-3 Tbsp whisky
-3 Tbsp honey
-2 tsp sugar
-2 cups of heavy whipping cream
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Recipe 119 - Cranachan
“Cranachan” is the tenth recipe I’ve made based on the food offered at the Deli Shuss in The Silent Spy. The other nine can be found here,here,here,here,here,here,here, here, and here. This will be the final Deli Shuss recipe because I’m not going to make smoked fish or sheep intestines lol.
This was so fun to make! Maybe it’s just because I have a lot of experience with layered desserts at this point, but I found it very easy to put together without smudging the sides of the glass. I think each layer is just the right consistency: not too light, not too heavy and very malleable. It’s definitely the booziest thing I’ve ever made (like you may actually get tipsy if you eat a big enough portion). I could see it being a big hit at cocktail parties. Since it’s light and fruity it could also be eaten close to breakfast/brunch too. Nice and versatile little treat.
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Nancy: Why are you sending me these messages?
The Revenant caller:
SPY Unused Zipline Voice Clips
When you went ziplining in SPY, Nancy was going to be expressive about it.
I was thinking about the ranking of ND suspects by @aniceworld (if you haven’t seen it then go check it out because it’s the best) and felt inspired to do something similar.
Methodology: I included characters who left us puzzles to solve. I judged STFD, CRE, VEN, TOT, and ASH as not having characters who met those criteria. CAR was the only game with two. I lumped all the Penvellyns together because ain’t nobody got time for that. If I forgot anyone, let me know. All rankings are personal taste.
28. J.J. Thompson (FIN)
Does he count? Between fucking over Louisa Falcone and betting against Harry Houdini pulling off a trick, ol’ J.J. just can’t overcome his P.T.-Barnum-knockoff origin story.
27. ??? (CAP)
To be honest, I spent this whole game trying to figure out how I could break up with Ned and ask Frank out, so I don’t remember who put the puzzles here. They were stupid, though.
26. Ezra Wickford (TRT)
You can’t just adopt a kid and then disown him if he has behavioral problems. And I frankly don’t believe your claim that you invented chocolate milk. Enjoy your hidden sadness shrines, you sack of shit.
25. Lizzie Applegate (MHM)
I guess I’m just not sure why she left the treasure in the floor instead of using it at any point. Sorry your outlaw husband ditched you, though. Dirk Valentine would never do a thing like that.
24. Trapper Dan (ICE)
Apparently Lizzie Applegate is the one who told Dan to riddle the Lodge with puzzles: a pointless callback in an overwhelmingly frustrating game.
23. El Toro (RAN)
The hourglass puzzle makes me cry, but he deliberately died in a ridiculous position so his corpse could trigger a booby trap, which I respect.
22. King Pacal (SSH)
The scribe’s desiccated corpse has haunted my dreams for years, so while I appreciate Pacal’s level of loopholed pettiness, I hate him.
21. Ramses II (TMB)
I’m not particularly impressed by anything Ramses set up to guard Nefertari’s tomb, but at least his actions were justified in-character, and I minored in classical civilizations so he gets an automatic bonus for Ancient Egypt.
20. Rita Hallowell (WAC)
Her motivations are unclear at best, but she gains rank for clearly being an emo lesbian cat lady.
19. Kasumi Shimizu (SAW)
Maybe just tell your daughters that they can leave the family business instead of making them solve a nonogram to find out. No wonder your family fell apart.
18. Kate Drew (SPY)
Many parts of this game are beautifully, emotionally moving, but up until the new engine fuckery, Nancy’s mom being a spy was the dumbest idea HER has had since RAN.
17. Rolfe Kessler (CAR)
I’m sorry that neither your wife nor your era could handle your mental illness.
16. The Forgery Ring (LIE)
I love the culprit in this game, but everyone’s first clue that they weren’t a real theater troupe should’ve been their requirement to solve complex puzzles to do a goddamn set change. Hire a prop manager to keep all those dumb pieces in order.
15. Charlotte Thornton (GTH)
The audacity of entrusting a vital clue to finding her will to an approximately five-year-old child just proves that Charlotte was not fit to run the family business. It’s hard to like her when all she does is murder me while I am actively avenging her.
14. Jin Soo Seung (MED)
I don’t know how or why Sonny’s grandpa hid these artifact pieces all over this specific area of New Zealand. Unfortunately, I am one of those people who loves Sonny Joon enough to put up with a fair amount of bullshit.
13. Captain Lawrence (SEA)
Like the Penvellyns, it is amazing that his treasure-hiding gambit was even marginally successful. However, that skeleton hands post helps him skate all the way to spot #13 on my list.
12. Brendan Malloy (HAU)
His double-agent scientist backstory is the only redeeming thing about this absurd game.
11. Noisette Tornade (DAN)
Great name, cool job, noble deeds, but did you need to lock me in the basement after I went to all the trouble of solving your encrypted clues?
10. Jake Rogers (SCK)
Jake Rogers decided to be a blackmail kingpin at the age of 17. Minus points for being skeevy about Connie (her secret is that she can beat the shit out of you, dude, please have more foresight), props for sheer ballsiness. Is he the one who left all the weird rhyming clues everywhere in SCK1? Because if so he would shoot up at least five spots.
9. Penvellyn Family (CUR)
Props for dedicating their lives to continuing this convoluted, pointless gambit. It’s just impressive none of them fucked it up over the last few centuries. However: if the point was for your family members to solve an elaborate series of puzzles to find the treasure, why trap them in a box to suffocate at the end?
8. Darryl Trent (CAR)
He clearly made a lot of poor decisions in his life, but leaving his daughter a baffling robot to remember him by makes up for most of them.
7. Jake Hurley (TRN)
I need a private sadness train with a mystical gemstone contraption, like, yesterday.
6. Bruno Bolet (CRY)
What a fucking weirdo. If it weren’t for the crystal skull thing he might rank higher, because all of his other obsessions are positively delightful.
5. Josiah Crowley (CLK)
I have a bunch of nerdy internet friends who use nicknames for each other, so I appreciate his group of radio Mechanicals. Also disguising yourself in drag to mess with your friends and neighbors is hilarious. Truly a man ahead of his time.
4. Niko Jovic (DED)
Turns out that he was kind of an asshole, but I’ve got to love him for the steampunk lair he built under a privately-owned facility.
3. Dirk Valentine (SHA)
If I were Frances Humber, I would’ve left Shadow Ranch the day after I met Dirk and had like eleven outlaw babies with this king of romance.
2. Hilda Swenson (DDI)
When I’m a bored widow, I hope I become so disillusioned with the rest of the world that I fuck off and force anyone who wants to talk to me to solve a bunch of puzzles I scattered around my old town.
1. Mickey Malone (DOG)
All I aspire to be is a 1920s gangster who owns a private speakeasy under my cabin in the woods and hangs out with my four giant dogs whom I adore.
25 ND OUTFITS CHALLENGE: day 5, your favorite game that takes place in a foreign country
some of us are not american so all of them a forigner to me
still played by the rules, i guess and chose SPY (my fav is sea btw but im not repeating them). Do i unerstend what the fuck is happening in this game? no, like i only found out it`s about virus through tumblr
but i do love playing it purley for the vibes, feels like summer vacationSO here is kate IN mom jeans but also some stylish 80s attire + added brown leather jacket as an homage to dean winchester, dont ask
@dekob2 - art account
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