Continuing with the theme of EARTH we decided to go back to the basics and make pork fajitas. What’s more basic than smoked meat over a tortilla with simple vegetables? We used pork shoulder, but don’t be afraid to experiment even non-meat options are great.
Ingredients:
a 4 lbs pork shoulder
For the dry rub:
Dry Mustard: 1 tablespoon
Paprika: 2 tablespoons
Onion Powder: 1 tablespoon
Garlic Powder: 1 tablespoon
Salt: 2 tablespoons
Pepper: 1 tablespoon
Instructions:
Mix ingredients in bowl and rub it on the pork shoulder to cover it entirely. Wrap the shoulder and let sit in refrigerator for 24 hours. Smoke at 250 degrees or until internal temperature reaches at least 165 degrees, but closer to 195 degrees so that meat pulls apart, roughly 90 minutes per pound of meat. Baste with apple cider vinegar every 30 minutes. You can absolutely do this in an oven.
In America corn, beans, and squash are called the “Three Sisters”. A number of Native American tribes interplanted this trio because they thrive together, much like three inseparable sisters. And a three sister salad is the perfect combo for this EARTH themed party.
It is very gratifying sharing drinks and food with friends and family and playing a game afterwards makes the experience even better. Give this recipe a try and share your experience and your inspirations too.
Our group of avid gamers recently embarked on our own ‘Earth: The Board Game Dinner Party Experience.’ With eager anticipation, we delved into the intricacies of the game, searching for synergies between the flora, fauna, terrain and event cards to make the most efficient Earth engine and win the night. Every step of the way, we were tantalized by a menu inspired by the game. It was a night of laughter, friendly rivalry, and delicious treats—an evening that elevated both our taste buds and our gaming skills. As the host, I reveled in the joy of bringing friends together, combining my love for board games and culinary delights. And now, I’m excited to share this journey with you, in hopes that you too can create an unforgettable board game dinner party experience that will help you make lasting connections with your friends and elevate your game nights to new heights.
For this dinner party I invited a couple that love engine building games and are avid gardeners; so I knew EARTH from Inside Up Games would be a great choice as the main game of the night.
As guests arrived they were welcomed with a drink. The cards on EARTH have beautiful pictures of the flora and fauna of planet Earth; and the box cover features a stunning picture of the sun setting over mountains. I was inspired to make a cocktail with color transitions that evoked the rich colors on the cards and box cover. Gaia’s Elixir is a refreshing and herbaceous cocktail that incorporates the colors of Earth, and its floral aspects. This cocktail combines the refreshing flavors of gin, Elderflower liqueur, lime, orange, and mint, while the blue curaçao adds a vibrant blue hue reminiscent of the Earth’s oceans. The layered effect created by the tonic water adds visual appeal, especially when paired with the vibrant blue of the blue curaçao. The garnish of cucumber wheel and hibiscus flower adds a touch of natural beauty.
Continuing with the theme of EARTH I decided to go back to the basics and serve pork fajitas. What’s more basic than smoked meat over a tortilla with simple vegetables? For the fajita veggies I went back to Earth with a Three Sister medley. Native Americans interplanted corn, beans, and squash because they thrive together, much like three inseparable sisters. And a three sister salad is the perfect combo to showcase the synergies that exist in our planet EARTH and the game too. The pork was chopped and served with the salad over homemade tortillas. There is something primal about eating with your hands that perfectly ties to the theme of EARTH.
The guests really enjoyed the meal. And as I served them, it provided the perfect opportunity to talk about the game and start the teach.
EARTH is about finding synergies between the cards you are dealt, and the game begins before the starting hand has even been drafted. Players will receive an Island, Climate, and Ecosystem card during set-up. Using these double-sided cards, each player shows their strategy by selecting one side of the card to place face-up in their play area. The combination of these three cards introduces asymmetry to the game by providing variable starting resources, bonus abilities, and unique end-game scoring objectives.
On EARTH you’ll be taking actions to plant cards from your hand into your island (a 16-card tableau arranged as a 4×4 grid), compost to gain the soil needed to plant, water flora of your island to help it sprout, and grow the flora.
On your turn you select one of the four actions: plant (green), compost (red), water (blue) or grow (yellow); and everyone performs that action. As the active player you get a more powerful version of the action. Subsequently, all players activate any cards on their player-board, and in their island, which match the color of the chosen action. Players continue taking actions, growing their Island, sowing Plants and developing Terrains to attract elusive Fauna, and unlock the scoring bonuses of diverse Ecosystems. Once a player has added a sixteenth card to their island, they earn a completion bonus and trigger the end of the game.
After the play, it is time for dessert. Continuing with the theme of simple, and close to Earth ingredients I went with a corn cake topped with berries, creamed cheese whipped cream and drizzled wild honey.
As we said goodbye to an evening filled with laughter, friendship, and delicious food, we marveled at how seamlessly the “EARTH” board game and the dining party merged to create an immersive experience. The ambience led us to engage in a game discussion about other games that played similarly, about how much we enjoyed the art and particularly the simultaneous play mechanic. We all agreed we wanted to share this experience again. At the end of the night the board game dinner party experience enabled us to connect at a deeper level than just a game night. After all, what connects more than food, maybe drinks or games?
Listen to our podcast Earth Board Game Dinner Party to learn more about our guests experiences before and after playing the game.
1 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
14 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs, room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract
¼ cinnamon (optional)
Cream Cheese whipped cream:
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup white sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch salt
Toppings:
4 ounces blueberries and strawberries,
2 tablespoons wild honey
Instructions:
Corn cake:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease cupcake pan or similar pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and cornmeal together. In a large bowl, whisk 1½ cups sugar, buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract
Whisk flour mixture into sugar mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.
Portion batter into cupcake pan, for about ¼ cup of batter and do not overfill.
Bake for about 20 mins, rotating pan to ensure even cooking. Cakes are done when browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let cakes cool for 30 minutes. Remove from the pan and let cool completely in a cooling rack for about 1 hour. 4
Cream Cheese whipped cream
In a bowl, whisk cream cheese until light and fluffy,
Add vanilla and beat at medium speed until combined,
Lower speed to low and slowly add heavy cream; then increase speed to medium-high and beat until soft peaks
Cover and refrigerate until slightly firm, at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
Assembly:
For each individual cake top with frosting, add berries and a drizzle of wild honey.
Game Night Tips
Cakes can be made ahead of time and wrapped individually in plastic wrap and kept at room temperature. Frosting can be made ahead of time and kept refrigerated until serving.
Listen to our podcast Earth Board Game Dinner Party to learn about our guest’s experience before and after playing the game.
It is very gratifying sharing drinks and food with friends and family and playing a game afterwards makes the experience even better. Give this recipe a try and share your experience and your inspirations too.
Earth by Maxime Tardif (Inside Up Games) is a visually stunning game that deserves a visually striking drink. Gaia’s Elixir (in reference to Gaia, the ancient Greek goddess personifying the Earth) is a refreshing and herbaceous cocktail that incorporates the colors of Earth, and its floral aspects.
This cocktail combines the refreshing flavors of gin, Elderflower liqueur, lime, orange, and mint, while the blue curaçao adds a vibrant blue hue reminiscent of the Earth’s oceans. The layered effect created by the tonic water adds visual appeal, especially when paired with the vibrant blue of the blue curaçao.The garnish of cucumber wheel and hibiscus flower adds a touch of natural beauty.
Cheers to Earth!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
2 oz freshly squeezed orange juice
1 ounce blue curaçao liqueur
1/2 ounce Elderflower liqueur
1/2 ounce simple syrup *optional
A handful of fresh mint leaves
Ice cubes
Cucumber
Soda water
Hibiscus flower in syrup – make simple syrup of 1:1 water to sugar and ½ of dried hibiscus flowers.
Instructions:
Pour blue curaçao liqueur into a highball glass filled with fresh ice
In a cocktail shaker, muddle a few mint leaves to release their aroma and flavor. *You could add cucumber as an optional step.
Add the gin, lime juice, orange juice, elderflower liqueur and simple syrup to the shaker.
Fill the shaker with ice cubes and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds to chill the ingredients.
Strain the mixture into the highball glass filled with fresh ice.
Add cucumber to glass
Top the glass with soda water to your desired level.
It is very gratifying sharing drinks and food with friends and family and playing a game afterwards makes the experience even better. Give this recipe a try and share your experience and your inspirations too.
On today’s episode we play EARTH, designed by Maxine Tardif and published by Inside Up Games. We received our guests with Gia’s Elixir a cocktail we developed inspired by Earth; and continued with the theme by preparing pulled pork and three sister salad served on home made wheat tortillas. Keeping with the Americas and Earth theme we finish the evening with a corn cake with fresh berries and cream cheese whipped cream. So, grab a chair and get ready to experience EARTH.
