Adults
Season 1 Culinary Guide
Difficulty Level: Medium
Prequel Episode
For this prequel episode, Anton is eating dumplings on the couch when he realizes he got caught in a pretty big lie with his coworkers. He told them he was running the NYC Marathon. In a desperate attempt to cover up his fib, the friend group works together to make it seem like he actually did run the marathon.
For this episode, I served steamed dumplings and beer with an orange wedge. I bought frozen dumplings from my local asian market and steamed them per the packaging instructions.
Anton’s coworkers give him an orange wedge when they spot him on the course, and Anton and the friend group are later seen drinking beer, so I served Blue Moon with an orange slice. Blue Moon Beer is brewed with Valencia orange peel and pairs nicely with oranges.
Episode 3
We have two iconic scenes in this episode that mention food. First is Anton’s plans to make paella with a man he met on the F Train… that turned out to be the Bayside Stabber. Second is when Paul Baker has a confusing run-in with an older queer person and is confounded to learn the “spectrum of their language” includes calling him a fruitcake.
Paella Recipe– This is a great recipe to make a more traditional Spanish paella. I made a more simplistic version with just chorizo and chicken thighs, but this recipe also includes the seafood traditionally found in Paella.
Fruit Cake Recipe– This is the recipe I used for the fruit cake I made, including the apricot sauce on top. I did make a few changes for this filling because I wanted each fruit or nut I added to be a color from the Pride flag. I used the following:
1/2 cup of dried cranberries for red ❤️
1/2 cup of apricot preserves for orange 🧡
1/2 cup of golden raisins for yellow 💛
1/2 cup of shelled pistachios for green 💚
1/2 cup of dried blueberries for blue 💙
1/2 cup of raisins for purple 💜
I bought all of these from Trader Joe’s because I found their prices to be more affordable, and they have a wide selection of dried fruit and nuts.
I soaked these in brandy overnight, and then I drained them and saved the liquid to pour on the baked cake. It was so sweet and delicious.
Episode 6
This is one of the funniest episodes, in my opinion. Charlie Cox was absolutely brilliant, and I really hope he plays more comedic roles in the future.
For this episode, Billy is trying to throw a sophisticated dinner party to impress her much older boyfriend. Anton is the bartender for the night and clearly has never tended a bar in his life. He forgets to put the cap on the cocktail shaker and asks if you muddle olives. It’s pretty hilarious.
I spotted Campari in the scene, and they are drinking red drinks with an orange peel, so I decided to serve a Negroni… with olives for a garnish as a nod to Anton.
For the roast chicken, I used Tini’s recipe linked above. It was so good!
Episode 7
THIS is my favorite episode! The actor who plays Annabelle killed it, and I love Anton and Paul Baker together. I also think that Issa’s line delivery for “You literally wrote the final pas de deux”, paired with the vacant look on the boy’s face, is priceless. This is all around a solid episode.
In honor of two of my favorite scenes, I served popcorn for Popcorn Forest and a spaghetti dinner for the diner that Anton made for Annabelle and Paul Baker.
Spaghetti Recipe– When making the pasta, make sure to salt the water well so the pasta absorbs that salt. I served this with a simple salad.
Episode 8
This show does shock very well because you never know what to expect. Like a whole wedding during the final episode! I decided to serve the wedding cake that they eat at the end of the episode. My decorating skills aren’t the best, but I did a basic design that I think came out cute enough.
For the cake, it looked like a simple vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting, so that’s what I made. Here is the recipe I used.
Vanilla Cake Recipe– To make the cake extra moist, I drizzled simple syrup on the cakes before frosting. The simple syrup is absorbed into the cake, and it helps the cake retain its moisture. It’s well worth it, in my opinion.
I didn’t want the cake to be too big, so I made a small 8-inch base and poured the rest of the batter in a muffin tin for the top layer. I froze the cakes and cut them in half to create the layers.
