To celebrate the commencement of Game of Thrones’ sixth season, that we’ve been religiously watching every week, in company of our closest friends for the past three years, I decided to put together a feast. You may notice I said three years, not five. When Game of Thrones first aired in 2011, I was pregnant and completely not attracted to the idea of watching babies being slain or other horrendous acts of violence. However, sometime after the second season had ended, I became curious about the show and all the talk and fascination around it, so I watched the first episode. And as you can imagine, I binge watched the whole first two seasons in less than three days and I was hooked.

And ever since season three, each Monday night from April to June is a staple at our house. So far, it’s been a hell of a ride, in all its splendid gore, with its abundance of political and sexual intrigue, with characters that are brave (Brienne of Tarth), some with backbones of steel (Arya Stark), others adorable and generous (Samwell Tarly), some mysterious and dark (Melisandre), fierce but vulnerable (The Hound), others merciless (Tywin Lannister), many heinous and villainous (Cersei), sketchy yet decent (Tyrion Lannister), others that you just love to hate (Joffrey Baratheon) and one to bow to, in the form of the mother of dragons; and they’re all in a quest for the Iron Throne, all under the impending sign of “Valar Morghulis”.

The menu for this feast circled of course, around meat, namely a couple of coquelets that were marinated in blood orange juice, a roasted turkey breast and they got paired with oven baked potatoes, steamed carrots with thyme and to top it off, an old fashioned apple pie. Without further ado, I give you A Feast of Ice and Fire.

Coquelets with Blood Oranges

3 coquelets

1 large blood orange, cut into eights

For the marinade:

Shaved rind from one blood orange and juice from two blood oranges

Shaved rind from one lemon and juice from one lemon

4 Tblsp olive oil

2 Tblsp balsamic vinegar

2 Tblsp dried oregano

A few sprigs of thyme

Salt and pepper, to taste

To make the marinade, simply mix together all ingredients. In a shallow dish that is large enough to fit the three coquelets, pour the marinade over the chicken and arrange the orange sections snugly in between the meat. Keep in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight. Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Remove the coquelets and the orange sections to a baking dish, pour a few tablespoons of the marinade over and bake for an hour or a little over one hour, basting from time to time. When they’re done, allow to sit for 10 minutes, then set on a serving plate along with the orange sections. Pour a little water to deglaze the roasting pan and pour all of its contents in a gravy bowl to serve over the coquelets.

Maple Roasted Turkey Breast

1,5kg/3 pound boneless turkey breast

60ml/½ cup Maple Syrup

½ tsp salt

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp dried thyme

½ tsp ground black pepper

3 garlic cloves, skinned

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F. Mix together the maple syrup and flavourings, then simply rub the turkey breast with them, then make 3 slits into the skin and insert the garlic cloves. Place on a roasting rack and let sit in the oven for about 1½ hours. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

1,5 kg/3 pounds small potatoes, peeled, washed and dried

6-8 garlic cloves, smashed

Two large onions, quartered

A few sprigs of thyme

2 Tblsp olive oil

Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Cut the potatoes in 2 cm/1 in. slices and put in a baking dish along with onions and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, drizzle with the olive oil, toss them to make sure they are all coated, arrange the sprigs of thyme on top and roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes, until the potatoes are browned and tender. Give them a toss halfway through baking time.

Steamed Carrots with Olive Oil and Thyme

500g/½pound carrots, peeled

Salt and pepper, to taste

Olive oil, for drizzling

A couple of thyme sprigs, chopped

Using a bamboo steamer or a stainless steel one set in a pan of simmering water, place the carrots, put a lid on top and steam for about 15-20 minutes until carrots are soft, but not mushy. Transfer to a serving dish, season with salt and pepper, drizzle a little olive oil and garnish with the chopped thyme.

Old Fashioned Apple Pie

For the crust (makes one 20cm/9in double crust pie)

320gr/2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

225gr/1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

50-100 ml/ 1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

In the bowl of your free standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, place the flour and salt and mix. Add butter, and mix until it resembles coarse crumbs with some larger pieces remaining. With mixer running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream just until dough comes together without being wet or sticky. Divide dough in half, and shape into disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.

For the filling:

60gr/5Tblsp all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface

Egg wash: 1 egg yolk whisked with 1 tablespoon heavy cream

1,5kg/4 pounds assorted cooking apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1,5cm/ 1/2 in slices

3 Tblsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

100gr/1/2 cup organic unrefined granulated sugar or caster sugar

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

60gr/1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 Tblsp powdered sugar

Turn out 1 piece of dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll into a 30/13in round and fit into a 20cm/9in pie plate. Trim edges flush with rim and chill in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Roll out remaining dough to a 30cm/13in round. Transfer to a baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 200C/400F.

Put apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl and toss to combine. Fill pie shell with apple mixture and scatter butter on top. Lightly brush edge of pie with egg wash. Place dough round on top of pie. Trim edges flush with rim and press to seal. Crimp edges as desired, I used the back of a fork. Make four 1,5 cm/1/2 in slits in center of pie (I made the O from Game of Thrones), brush top with egg wash and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Freeze for 30 minutes.

Place pie on a baking sheet and bake until crust begins to turn golden brown, about 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 180C/350F. Bake until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling, about 35 minutes. Cover with foil if browning too quickly. Serve warm, with vanilla ice-cream or at room temperature.