The sequel to the bestselling Dungeons & Dragons cookbook contains a secret weapon

polygon.com:

Since its debut in 2020, Heroes’ Feast: The Official Dungeons & Dragons Cookbook has earned quite a reputation — both at the New York Times, where it ranks among the bestselling cookbooks of the decade, and with my 10-year-old daughter, who swears by the simplicity of its one-pan buttermilk biscuit recipe. Now its authors are back with a sequel titled Heroes’ Feast: Flavors of the Multiverse, a joyous romp through the dishes of the D&D multiverse. I’m happy to report that not only is it a great read, but it has the potential to level up the whole family when it comes to kitchen prowess.

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What made the original such a magical artifact for me were the thoughtful and at times daring recipes by Adam Ried. Fans of PBS will know him as the gadget guy on America’s Test Kitchen. He’s also senior editor for Cook’s Illustrated, and when he’s not testing cheese graters or running down freelancers, he’s writing recipes on the side. Thankfully, Ried puts the same kind of care into these dishes as his on-air product reviews. Just as before, I found them to be both approachable and repeatable — even for the youngest members of the party.

It’s fall, which means it’s soup/stew season. I was torn between three of the soup and stew offerings in this cookbook, but one of my D&D characters comes from a family of shepherds, so I thought a lamb stew would be fitting. As with many long-stewing… stews, most of the steps in this recipe came in the beginning. Once everything was in the oven, all I had to do was wait, add a few more things, and wait again.

Slowly, but surely, the delicious smell of stewed lamb began to waft through my chilly house. I served the dish with an arugula salad and some bread to dip. It