Cthulhu fhtagn! Now feed me!

December 19, 2007 2:44 PM

H.P. Lovecraft-themed foods?

Am Going to a party on Friday where we shall be watching the silent version of Call of Cthulhu and playing some Lovecraft-themed board game. Would like to bring appropriate food. Please suggest. Vegetarian options very welcome.

Because that's how I roll with the Elder Gods, yo.

posted by Astro Zombie to Food & Drink (28 answers total)

Response by poster: Cocktail suggestions also appreciated.
posted by Astro Zombie at 2:45 PM on December 19, 2007

You could eat Milky Way bars, which is a little like devouring universes (I know, galaxy != universe)

Along similar lines, you could get a pizza with everything.
posted by aubilenon at 2:47 PM on December 19, 2007

Blood Oranges
posted by Malla at 2:48 PM on December 19, 2007

Besides squid?
posted by klangklangston at 2:50 PM on December 19, 2007

Goat with a thousand young cheese pizza.
posted by Malla at 2:50 PM on December 19, 2007

Absolutely squid. Though not deep-sea squid—too much ammonia to be palatable.
posted by limeonaire at 2:54 PM on December 19, 2007

I keep thinking of some mushroom dish revolving around the fungi from yuggoth. Maybe the "stuffed mushrooms from yuggoth"...
posted by kaseijin at 2:55 PM on December 19, 2007

...the grilled portabello from yuggoth....
posted by kaseijin at 2:56 PM on December 19, 2007 [1 favorite]

...or you could cut blocks of mozzarella cheese into 1's, bread them, fry them up...and serve them with marinara as "Deep (fried) Ones"....
posted by kaseijin at 2:57 PM on December 19, 2007

Robert E. Howard's letters to Lovecraft were often concerned with food.

He remarked tangentially, too lazy to actually think of suggestions.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 2:59 PM on December 19, 2007

Shoggoth Smoothies!
posted by kaseijin at 2:59 PM on December 19, 2007

Also asked my next-door cubemate, a sci-fi aficionado, for suggestions—apparently Lovecraft is from Maine, and a lot of his stories have that kind of bent to them, so lobster, crab...the more gigantic, the better!
posted by limeonaire at 2:59 PM on December 19, 2007

Calamari with various dipping sauces (Marinara recipe is in the calamari link)

THAI LIME DIPPING SAUCE (from Blue Ginger restaurant)
Makes about 5 cups
Lasts 1 week, refrigerated

2 cups Thai fish sauce (nam pla)
3 cups fresh or bottled lime juice
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon peeled and minced fresh ginger


AIOLI
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leafed parsley leaves
1 teaspoon minced garlic

====
You can also get dried squid snacks at asian markets.
posted by spec80 at 3:08 PM on December 19, 2007

There's also this hot dog roaster which you can probably jimmy together with a Punisher mask, foam core and chopsticks.
posted by spec80 at 3:10 PM on December 19, 2007

DIY roaster suggestion for display, not for roasting - obviously
posted by spec80 at 3:12 PM on December 19, 2007

Lovecraft himself subsisted on a diet of Boston Baked Beans and ice cream, according
to George Kuchar's graphic biography in Arcade Comics #3 (1975). Kuchar loosely based his story on August Derleth's biography of Lovecraft.
posted by doncoyote at 3:43 PM on December 19, 2007

You should go for the insane asylum food route, from the Nellie Bly article, they mention being served:
gruel broth, spoiled meat, bread that was little more than dried dough

Also, anything green and liquiding would work (a la re-animator). A jagermeister / chartreuse (a drink so fine they named a color after it) based mixed drink? Or a Navy Grog.

How about vegetarian chicken strips made like fingers (cut off a bit on the top part to make it look like a nail)?

How about this episode of good eats?
posted by mrzarquon at 4:07 PM on December 19, 2007

(you would have to use vegan gelatin depending on the vegetarians level of veggieness)
posted by mrzarquon at 4:09 PM on December 19, 2007

Punch! Something strong and unspeakable. You could make an ice ring or block and fill it with creepy toys (fingers, eyeballs, tentacles...), or get some dry ice (always impressive at parties) for that smoky look.
posted by lovecrafty at 4:26 PM on December 19, 2007

Spaghetti with green food coloring? You could also toss together cubes of jello of various flavors, smash 'em up a bit, then call it "non-Euclidean."
posted by ignignokt at 4:29 PM on December 19, 2007

Pudding. Nothing says, "formless spawn from the dawn of time" like pudding.
posted by SPrintF at 4:46 PM on December 19, 2007 [1 favorite]

Take hot dog. Stand it on end. Slice vertically from the top to about 1/2 way down. Rotate 45 degrees, repeat until symmetrical. When you cook this, it will end up squid shaped. I'm pretty sure I first saw this linked from Bruce Schneier's weblog.
posted by lorimt at 5:01 PM on December 19, 2007

Combine a brain mold and agar almond "tofu" (the "one stick" is kind a vague - you'll want a final agar concentration ~ 0.7 to 1% weight/volume).

You can dribble blackberry (or whatever) jam over top.

Sashimi (raw fish) would be part of my Cthulhu mythos-themed food package. Hm, some Japanese restaurants do really crazy rolls that look like caterpillers or dragons and whatnot.
posted by porpoise at 5:43 PM on December 19, 2007 [1 favorite]

Fresh Innsmouth sashimi would be nice. Maybe smeared with a bit of nice, green wasabi for a slime effect.

Beefalo, for your genetic mashup horror animal (it's also lean and very tasty).
posted by middleclasstool at 8:25 PM on December 19, 2007

Here's what Lovecraft had to say about his own favorite foods. (The list includes but is not limited to beans and ice cream.)

And I agree that lobsters and other sea creatures would be thematically appropriate - I have always thought that shrimp especially looked like sinister little aliens.
posted by emmastory at 6:21 AM on December 20, 2007

Cthulhu's frozen cthusthard!
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 7:37 AM on December 20, 2007

Souls. Eat souls.
posted by baphomet at 8:05 AM on December 20, 2007

Also, if the game you're playing is Arkham Horror, pick the scientist. And hope your Ancient One isn't Azatoth.

For a cocktail, nothing suggests the epic struggle of good vs. evil implied by Arkham Horror like a layered Dead Nazi. Pour half a shot of Rumpleminz into a glass, then fill it with Jaegermeister by pouring the Jaeger over the back side of a spoon so the liquor runs down the side of the glass. You should get a nice separation this way (it really helps to use a bartender's pour spout- you can get the plastic ones at Zipp's for less than a buck. The pour spout will have a little hole in the top- covering it with your finger will slow the flow of the liquor considerably. This is hugely helpful when pouring layered shots.)

Hell, I'll invent you a cocktail for this occasion.

Cthulutini
1 1/2 oz. Jaegermeister
1/2 oz. Blackberry Brandy
3 oz. Cranberry Juice

Chill liquor until frozen like The Blackest Incarnation and serve in a martini glass. Garnish with a gummy worm.
posted by baphomet at 8:12 AM on December 20, 2007 [1 favorite]