Posted By a Hobbit on August 21, 2011

Pareth traveled to Michel Delving to buy some supplies and to also make use of the expert cooking facilities that the hobbits had there. Many aspiring chefs traveled for miles to learn from the best cooks in Middle Earth. Hobbits loved to eat and so it comes as no surprise that many of them excel at cooking.
Pareth decided to teach some of the local hobbits how to make Lothlórien waybread, a recipe taught to her by Bassiril, an Elf who lived in Egladil. Some of the hobbits chuckled and said “It’s just bread. Surely none can compare to our delicious breads in the Shire!” And they looked on with amusement, while Pareth gathered the ingredients she needed: lots of fresh cream, Winter barley flour, mixed herbs and mixed spices.
The smells coming from the ovens nearby were delightful. The hobbits never needed an excuse to turn an outdoor cook-out into a party. Soon tables were set and a huge assortment of foods was placed on them. Pareth thought there was almost too much food and she made a comment to a nearby hobbit who chuckled and said, “There could never be enough food! We hobbits like to eat a lot and often. But Pareth, surely you knew this already, for I know you have a home in the Shire and I’ve seen you at another one of our famous feasts.”
Pareth laughed and nodded. She loved to watch hobbits eat. They enjoyed their food and didn’t try to hide it. And they loved to show off their culinary skills and some of Pareth’s favorite recipes were hobbit family secrets, passed down from generation to generation.
Pareth’s waybread was ready and she placed it on one of the tables. A hobbit named Folco Twofoot took a big piece of it and ate it. Pareth watched him and noticed the look in his eyes. He was surprised and delighted and declared to the curious onlookers, “This is most excellent and simply delicious. This lady knows how to cook, my friends. You must try this!”
Pareth smiled and said, “I cannot take the credit for this recipe. For the Galadhrim Elves from Lothlórien taught me how to make it. It is the best food to use as rations on the battlefield, for one small piece can sustain a person for hours, and believe me when I tell you there are times when we go without a real meal for days.”
The hobbits laughed out loud and shook their heads in disbelief. But Folco confirmed Pareth’s statement for he said “My goodness! I’m quite full. I wouldn’t have believed it either, if I hadn’t just eaten some of this Elven bread.”
And then another hobbit, Bidoc ‘Headstrong’ Smallburrow, yelled out, “Old Folco’s been into the brew already and that is why he’s so full! There is no way one small piece of bread can fill a person up!” And he proceeded to take a rather large chunk of waybread and with a mocking look at Folco and a cheeky laugh in Pareth’s direction, he shoved the whole piece in his mouth and it was gone before you could say “the Shire”!
About two minutes later Bidoc declared that he was full also but he eyed Pareth suspiciously and said that it was some Elvish trick that she had played on all of them. He was ignored for the most part, as he was well known for being a bit of a grouch. He never believed anything or anyone and thought he knew everything, according to what other hobbits said about him.
The rest of the nearby hobbits all took a sample of the waybread, and all of them reacted the same way. They were full and complained that now they weren’t able to eat the other goodies. But they did anyway. For no hobbit could see good food go to waste! And the food was truly delicious. Pareth enjoyed herself very much that night with the other chefs of Michel Delving. It was so good to leave the battlefield behind, if only for a short while.
Pareth would bake another large batch of waybread the very next day, but this time the hobbits would not get to eat it. It was for the road. And the day would come sooner then ever, when Pareth would leave the Shire again to travel East, always battling evil so folks in the Shire could live peacefully for as long as possible. And when she left, the best cooks in the Shire spoke of her often, for she had earned their admiration and respect.
Category: LOTRO Adventures |
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