World of Warcraft Cookbook

Just after the summer of 2016, the official World of Warcraft cookbook was released to fans after a long wait. I went to BlizzCon X to sign it, and I can't imagine a better celebratory item to release in Blizzard's 25th year. It features recipes for fan favorites such as Dirge's Kickin' Chimaerok Chops, Beer Basted Boar Ribs, and fresh loaves of Mulgore Spice Bread. 

Both Horde and Alliance will be able to prepare a feast fit for a warchief or revitalize their raid groups with Azeroth's most scrumptious treats. World of Warcraft: The Official Cookbook teaches you how to conjure up a fantastical menu of foods inspired by Blizzard Entertainment's beloved massively multiplayer online role-playing game. Organized by meal type and marked with a difficulty level, the book's large selection offers something for everyone, whether you're an apprentice cook or a master chef. This tome of exquisite delicacies also includes a few tasty recipes for brew, including Greatfather's Winter Ale, Junglevine Wine, and Winter Veil Egg Nog.

About the Book

With around 100 recipes, this cookbook includes a wide array of dishes drawn directly from the Warcraft game. Great care went into making each recipe aesthetically consistent with the overall feel of the game, while still making them as approachable as possible. There are even spice mixes in the front, and the back of the book includes a helpful listing of the recipes organized by gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan, so everyone can enjoy a little taste of Azeroth.

 

The Process

Fans often ask me how I managed to create real recipes from game items. The short answer: it's complicated.

I started developing the recipes for the WoW cookbook by looking at the massive list of food and drink available to buy/craft in-game. From that, I pulled a large selection that looked or sounded interesting and tasty, then added to it based on suggested fan favorites. When creating recipes for fictional dishes, I always try to learn as much as possible about the world from which it comes, and work from there. Fortunately,  in the case of WoW, I had reference images to match to finished dishes:

That wasn't always easy, as in the case of the ever-popular Savory Deviate Delight, which simply features the head of a purple fish. That's... not an appealing photo. So with dishes like that, I had to take some creative liberties. I picked up the purple color with some cabbage, and gave a little nod to the ninjas vs. pirates lore of the dish with the coins I scattered in the sand around the photo.

But in addition to the looks, I had to ask the hard questions, like, "Do night elves have tomatoes?" and "What would go into a spice mix in Northrend?" For the former, I figured yes, since tomatoes are a part of the nightshade family, and that seemed to fit with the general aesthetic of Darnassus. For the spice, I tried to make a chilly sort of a mix, with some juniper to give it some bite.

I also spent a lot of time in the game pulling reference images to use when setting up shots of the finished dishes. There's a wealth of small details that help give the world its depth, and I really wanted to make the dishes look like they could be found in a real world version of Warcraft. So if at any point you saw a noob standing on a table in an inn, awkwardly turning in circles, that was probably me trying to get a good screenshot of a bowl of fruit:

My Favorite Recipes:

The spice mixes, Rice Cakes, Cornmeal Biscuits, Dragonbreath Chili, Firecracker Salmon, Rylak Claws, Winterveil Eggnog!

What People are Saying:

PC Gamer - 18 June, 2017 - Review, Retrospective

PC Gamer - May 10, 2017 - Interview

Culturess - March 23, 2017 - Review

The AV Club - November 2, 2016 - Interview

Nerdist - October 28, 2016 - Review

GeekDad - October 25, 2016 - Review

Destructoid - October 21, 2016 - Review

Geek & Sundry - May 15, 2016 - Interview

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