Hi there!
This has been a long time coming. Ever since my girlfriend and I met over four years ago, we told each other we would organize a day dedicated to rewatching the Lord of the Rings trilogy and make a thematic day on the gastronomical front.
Yesterday was the day we decided we would finally get it done, mostly because I had not too long ago finished reading the trilogy. Today, I wanted to make a quick little post to share with you guys how that whole day went and what we did.
THE DAY BEFORE.
Now, it’s important to know that to make all this work, you’re clearly going to have to prepare things a bit before. It doesn’t necessarily mean doing everything in advance but making sure that all the “heavy lifting” is done beforehand so that the movie marathon could go as fluidly as possible.
My girlfriend, always looking to make an environment as cozy as possible, also pulled in every plant we owned around the living room and turned on all the RGB-controllable lights to adjust the colours according to the places visited throughout the movie (and honestly, it worked out perfectly).
It was also necessary to put down in writing the hourly schedule, making sure to account for the movie lengths. In our case, we planned on watching all three extended cuts (which, I can already tell you, are the definitive versions of the movie to watch). While they are respectfully 3h48min, 3h55min, and 4h23min, it was best to consider them at 4h, 4h, and 4h30min long, even if a good 30 minutes of each movie is dedicated to credits. This way, any unpredictable event or breaks will still allow you to finish the movie marathon at a decent time. 😉
FIRST BREAKFAST.
We woke up at seven in the morning and immediately began the day with our first breakfast. We prepared two creamy yogurt parfait with red and blue wild berries, strawberries, and slices of a banana, and topped it off with crunchy granola and chocolate chips. I didn’t realize it at first but I then dubbed our parfaits “The Two Towers“. I know, I know. Thank you. 🙂
We accompanied it with what I’ll call Gandalf’s hot milk tea. It somehow went from grey to white as you kept on drinking it. Don’t ask me how, it’s just so, and I won’t tell you more. 😀
We then started The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) at eight.
SECOND BREAKFAST.
At around 9:30 in the morning, we began our second breakfast, a very hobbity breakfast, and our favourite part of the menu too, filled with eggs, cooked sunny side up, tasty slices of bacon, breakfast sausages (with a hint of maple syrup), and good ol’fashioned toast. We also drank up on orange juice and a latte.
We continued watching the movie throughout this breakfast and, as if it was Sauron’s dirty work, throughout the morning, we were also hassled by power outages (around 4-5) that happened every 30 minutes or so and lasted maybe 5 to 10 minutes. It’s worth mentioning that our city was hit by a polar vortex on Friday that was only going to end on Sunday, and this polar vortex plummeted the windchill to almost -45 degrees celsius. Talk about a perfect day to do a movie marathon, excluding the power outages, of course. 😉 As annoying as those got, which are super duper rare throughout the year in normal circumstances, we took those moments to do micro-breaks. I also found myself just picking up my copy of The Silmarillion and continuing my reading of that “little gem”.
ELEVENSES.
In all honesty, I didn’t even know the existence of this thing called elevenses but it doesn’t surprise me that it’s a very British thing to do at eleven o’clock. 😉 And even more normal when hobbits are used to doing this too. For this, my girlfriend made Bilbo’s Tea Cake, with a dominating lemony and coconutty flavour, which turned out really good. It was accompanied by a rooibos tea, to soothe the soul, as we watched the council speak about what must be done about that dreaded ring!
LUNCH.
Instead of our pre-programmed 12 o’clock lunch, we ended up eating at 1 in the afternoon and we were fine with that, not being as hungry as a hobbit by that time. For this, I made Sam’s PO-TA-TOES soup and sprinkled some leftover bacon on top to add some of that much-desired crunchiness, and boy, I must admit that it was quite delicious! We also made our own mini Rosie’s Shire meat pies, which also turned out awesome (you bet I kept some of those for the next day). We also added some vegetables with a ranch dip, just to keep things nutritively balanced. 😉
A bit after lunch, we finally began the second movie, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002).
SNACKS.
At this point, after lunch, we weren’t that hungry but you just know you can’t have a Lord of the Rings marathon without snacks accessible at any moment. For this, we got ourselves some fish-shaped gummies in dedication to our little devil Gollum/Sméagol and his love for these slippery, juicy, and very much alive fishes. We also got ourselves some BBQ-flavoured corn ring-shaped chips because… well… we all deserve a ring of power to corrupt our souls. 😀 And, finally, we also got ourselves some mini pecan pies just so that we don’t forget about all the good food found in the Shire. 😉
AFTERNOON TEA.
Towards 4:30 in the afternoon, as per our usual habit, we got to one of the most comforting moments of the day: afternoon tea. For this, we just HAD to make lembas bread. My girlfriend made these and they turned out really good. Funnily, a single bite of these did not fill us up for days… In fact, with each bite, we just wanted more of them. At some point, we did wonder if weren’t genetically related to hobbits. 😉
SUPPER.
It was around 6 when we finally finished the second movie and, as timely as ever, it was also time for supper as we began the final movie of the trilogy: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003). For this, I marinated beef cubes the day before so that I could make a variant of “Balin’s Spiced Beef”. We accompanied it with smashed potatoes and used the gravy/marinade to enhance each of our bites.
Once supper was complete, we tackled the final dessert of our movie marathon, prepared by my girlfriend, Mrs. Cotton’s Berry Pie. We barely had room in our stomachs for the whole thing but we each took a slice of this beauty and loved it! The great thing about all this is that whatever leftovers we had would be inevitably eaten in the next couple of days and we’ll always remember the endeavour of the fellowship as we eat!
And that completes our Lord of the Rings Movie marathon, we ended at around 11 at night. We both loved the experience and could see ourselves doing this again in the future.
I’m still trying to convince her to do this for the Hobbits trilogy (for which I’ve only seen the first movie in my life) but she’s not a big fan of it for very good reasons, especially regarding its overstretched plot but hey, I’m ready for any Middle-Earth torture! As long as it’s not anything like what Gollum/sméagol went through… 😉
I do plan on sharing my thoughts on each movie in future posts but, have you seen the movie trilogy? Have you ever done a marathon for the Lord of the Rings? Have you ever tried Middle-Earth-inspired food?
Share your thoughts on anything and everything with me! 😁
TILL NEXT TIME,
Roars and Echoes 
I’m getting a stomach just reading about all the food you ate! Glad the power didn’t go out permanently for you. We also got hit with the cold, but thankfully it never got below -26C (don’t know what the windchill was though, but it played a big part).
I like the look of that Bilbo bread. Lemon bread is yummy stuff.
Listen to your gf. I realize you are going to watch the Hobbit, as a LotR fan I totally understand, but don’t drag anyone else into and treat it like the shameful activity it is. They are bad movies, period. So write up posts on the hobbit movies, but use it as the catharsis you will need after watching them. And maybe set aside some money for professional therapy 😉
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Hahahah most of it was kept for the next days anyway. We considered it as meal prep for the week to come. 😀 Man, tell me that polar vortex wasn’t insane. It’s been a while since I haven’t seen that kind of cold out here!
I agree! I do love lemon bread, it just melts in my mouth every single time!
Hahahaha no worries! She’s already seen all of them and she wants to see them again but just not as a marathon because of how boring they are. 😛 I do look forward to watching them and sharing my thoughts here though. I’m sure I’ll have some choice words for it all…
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What a fun and yummy movie marathon day! Sounds like the frightful weather added to the Hygge-ness of it all! One summer we binge watched all the seasons of Lost. And we’ve enjoyed a Star Wars marathon day. We need to add LOTR trilogy because it would be fun to watch them as one complete work. Awesome post!
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It really was, Carol! We loved every second of it. 😀 I’ve always been curious about Lost but its length does make me put it aside more often than not! And a Star Wars marathon, especially for the original three episodes, would indeed be pretty fun to do too! Thanks for checking out my post. 😀
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Wow, that has to have been the most enjoyable movie marathon possible! I was smiling ear to ear reading this. Nice job, both of you. Just as creative as ol’ Tolkien himself. Not only do I want to sit down to a Lord of the Rings marathon, but I’m getting pretty hungry, too. 🙂
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Hahahah thanks, Todd! It really was quite the project and I’m glad we got around to doing it. The final result couldn’t have been any better and definitely what I was hoping for too! 😀
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Awesome adventure and post, Lashaan. This sounds like a cinematic-fantastic day. I admittedly have never taken the plunge into this world, but I certainly recognize the great fandom that these films have attained across the globe. The middle-earth inspired food looks delicious, and I would always have room for that berry pie no matter what came before it!
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If you do enjoy fantasy worlds, then the movie trilogy is definitely something that you should look into, Bruce! And yes, the food was fantastic. I have absolutely no complaints on that front and would see myself doing many of the recipes again, even on non-marathon days! 😀
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You created an amazing LOTR atmosphere. Now I wish I could join you both. I think you’ll be fine with the Hobbit as I loved actors in that too and they actually made it worth watching..
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I’m glad you had a good time with the Hobbit movies, Yesha! That gives me hope that I won’t be torturing myself more than that. I mean, it can’t be worse than Howard the Duck… 😀
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Haha, definitely not worse than Howard the Duck 😂
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Not bad, but you skipped dinner. Just start from the beginning. You’re sure to get it right the second or third time around…
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Hahah! We purposely took that off. We were already too full with everything else, we wouldn’t have survived. 😀
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Truly a movie marathon worthy of the most dedicated Hobbits! I love how you faced this rewatch with forethought (and food!!!), and I’m sure you never suffered as poor Frodo and Sam as they were nearing Mount Doom! 😉
I’m very curious about Lembas bread: could you share the recipe? Inquiring Hobbit-inclined minds want to know…. 🙂
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Thank you, Maddalena! 😀 It really was a wonderful experience and the marathon was highlighted by the awesome food ideas we decided to put on the menu for the day. 😀
We went with these ingredients, which you can modulate to your liking, especially if you want it sweeter: 2 ½ cups of flour, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, ¼ teaspoon of salt, ½ cup of butter, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, ½ teaspoon honey, 2/3 cup of heavy whipping cream, ½ teaspoon of vanilla! 😀 There’s a wonderful site with MANY other Middle-Earth recipes that you could also check out called: lotrscrapbook dot bookloaf dot net!
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Ohhh, thank you! I will have to visit that site and see what recipes I can try to re-create a bit of Middle Earth in my own home…. 🙂
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Wow, that was some well-organized marathon!
Over the New Year’s break, I’ve done a Harry Potter semi-marathon (2 movies a night) and it was fun. I really like your themed meals.
12+h though? that sounds intense for me.
I’ve seen the LOTR movies as they came out and have been thinking of rewatching, Maybe next Christmas/NY break.
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I’ve done a marathon (split across two days I think) over 5 years ago and would love to redo that, especially once I finish reading the books. I definitely encourage rewatching LOTR whenever you feel like it. Such a wonderful trilogy… It’s just so comforting to know it exists! 😀
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This is so cool! And I love how much thought you two put into all the food. I’m so hungry just looking at all your photos. I’m assuming you enjoyed watching the movies too?😉
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Hahahah it really was such an awesome marathon! And yes, you bet, Tammy. I doubt there’s a trilogy out there that matches its excellence. 😀
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Awesome way to rewatch the LOTR trilogy. The film are epic and you had a menu worthy of Hobbit feast to go with your movie marathon. Glad you have elevenses, we have that all the time here in UK! Can do a day without some elevenses!
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I think I’m going to have a hard time not doing this again when we decide to rewatch it in the future hahah In all honesty, I’m glad there’s a word for it and would never say no to elevenses! 😀
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OMG I would never have been able to eat all that LOL BUT I see that you really were in the mood Lashaan!
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You could always save up for the next days though. 😉
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Sounds like an amazing time!! We just started watching the movies again today, too. ☺️
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I hope you guys had a blast rewatching these movies! Thank you for checking out my post. 😀
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What a great way to spend together even with the power cuts going on. Also nice that you had rooibos tea that originates from S.A where Tolkien was originally from🙂.
Food looks great overall and looking forward to your reviews on the films. I second Stooge’s sentiment regarding Hobbit. I could barely make it through the first film and there were 2 more after that…
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Wow, I didn’t know about the origins of rooibos tea! Ha, now I learned something new. 😀 Hahahah duly noted for the movies. We’ll definitely be watching them but probably not as a marathon just so we can rest up in between each movie. 🙂
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Rooibos directly translates to redbush. Never too old to learn new things🙂
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… out of well-intentioned curiosity… have you noted down your weight before and after this food and movie marathon, Lashaan? 😉
Glad you made it into such a memorable experience!
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Hahahah no worries, it is definitely not this marathon that’s going to affect my weight. 😛 People say I have a dark hole for a stomach too. 😉
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I wouldn’t recommend a Hobbit marathon either. Battle of the Five Armies on its own is almost entirely the main battle. It’s overly long, exhausting to watch, and you can tell it was shot with an incomplete script and rushed visual effects.
Not surprising when you learn how much of a disaster the trilogy’s production was. Not a bad trilogy by any means, but there are plenty of fan edits that improve on it, mostly by trimming fat.
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Exhausting is exactly what she tells me and the main reason why she doesn’t want us to go through a marathon of all three of those Hobbit movies haha! We’ll probably end up spacing them out and checking them out in the near future though. I’ll definitely read up on all the behind-the-scenes insanity that caused that trilogy to be as it is.
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That seemed like so much fun! And all the food looks delicious! It’s great that you added some veggies for nutrition too ahahah 😂 Love the little Gollum fishes! We had a theme-night to watch the third movie during the pandemic and it was so much fun, and last year we did the same for Harry Potter, with house-coloured cocktails and little Harry-Potter snacks! You should definitely do it for the Hobbit trilogy!
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It was awesome! 😀 I do remember the house-coloured cocktails you guys did and would love to try a HP marathon, or at least split it on two days, in the future, especially once I finish getting through the books hahaha I doubt we’ll do the Hobbit trilogy though. We’ll watch them one by one though and hopefully not feel too exhausted by the whole experience too! 😛
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That’s how you do a LOTR movie marathon. Sounds like a great time with good food.
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It really was! Absolutely awesome movies and great food to go with it. 😀
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Sounds like an amazing day! I love these movies, but can’t really imagine watching all of them in one day. The food sounds amazing. And I thought only the Elves could make Lembas bread? I guess you live and learn! 😆
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It’s quite the project to tackle all three in one day but we definitely loved the experience and don’t regret it at all hahah
Ahhhh, it must be something hidden in our lineage. 😉
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Wow what a movie and food marathon Lashaan! It sounds amazing and what a perfect time time to do it with that polar vortex arriving at the same time!
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Tell me about it! We had a blast organizing this and could totally see ourselves doing it again too. Maybe the next time there’s a polar vortex around the corner haha!
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Every once in a while I do a Lord of the Rings trilogy marathon. I’ve been doing it most of my life since I finished the trilogy in theaters when I was 8. I would love nothing more than to eat like a Hobbit for an entire day. “What about second breakfast?”
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Right? I know I’ll definitely be rewatching these movies every now and then for the rest of my life too. With all the food to go with it too. 😀
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I love this, Lashaan. This is so much fun and I am glad I just ate dinner or I would be salivating right now. I really need to do a rewatch of the series as it has been awhile since I saw them.
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Hahaha everything I think of this marathon, I end up quite hungry! I hope you get around to rewatching the trilogy sometime soon, Carla. 😀
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