World Building and Food in Science Fiction: Star Trek Menu

Worldbuilding when writing science fiction has to include food, right? It wouldn’t be a real world without it, and besides, it’s fun to think up what kind of food a particular culture in a particular environment would eat. My characters in the Torch World series have to deal with food shortages, which is a plot point that starts off the first book. If Mira hadn’t been stealing food for her younger sister, she would not have met Quinn.

Anyway, because I like to cook and eat, I’m having a bit of fun investigating Star Trek food in preparation for watching the new Star Trek: Discovery series. I wanted things that were very easy to make or which I could buy something similar, and of course tasted good. To find what to serve, I used the Star Trek Encyclopedia, which lists all the food mentioned in the shows and movies. So here’s the menu with explanations below and desserts to follow in a separate blog post:

Trellan mushroom crepes

Mapa bread

Oskoid leaf salad

The main course, Trellan mushroom crepes, comes from Star Trek: Voyager, Episode: VOY 140 – Tuvix

The recipe is very flexible. You can add all sorts of ingredients to the mushrooms depending on your tastes. I like lots of flavors so I added lots of extras. You can buy ready-made crepes but they are actually easy to make if you have a nonstick skillet that’s between 8” to 11” inches. Serves 2

Ingredients:

Crepes (can be made up to a day in advance)

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1 large egg

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and cooled

½ cup all purpose flour

½ tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

Vegetable oil for pan (also have a plate and some paper towels on hand to put between the cooked crepes)

Directions: beat egg with fork, add other ingredients. Add small amount of oil to nonstick skillet, when heated add enough batter to make what looks like a very thin pancake. It will spread to fill the entire bottom of the skillet. Cook until bottom of crepe is lightly browned, flip and cook the other side, remove from pan and cover with a paper towel. The recipe will make between 3 to 6 crepes depending on the size of the skillet.

Crepe Filling:

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Mushrooms (sliced-about a cup)

1 Tablespoon Butter

Additions if desired:

Cooked brown rice

Cooked spinach – can cook with the mushrooms

Chopped cooked chicken

Cheese (I used cubes of Havarti dill but any soft cheese that melts easily would work)

Topping

Parmesan cheese

Chopped herbs – I used garlic chives

Directions:

Cook mushrooms in butter until soft over medium heat, being careful not to burn the butter, add your choice of additional filling ingredients, roll up in crepe, top with parmesan and herbs of your choice, heat in microwave until warmed through.

Mapa Bread –type of Bajoran food, from DS 9: “You are Cordially Invited”

Here’s an image from the episode.

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I am not good at making bread so I bought a round rye loaf:

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Oskoid leaf salad

Described as a leaf-like Betazoid food with purple veins, from TNG 324: “Ménage a Troi”

Since it was red, I bought red leaf lettuce, topped it with feta cheese and used an Italian dressing. Feta cheese has always seemed a little strange-looking to me, but I’m sure there are other fruits and vegetables you could add as well. Odd-colored heirloom tomatoes might be a good choice. or various kinds of nuts or seeds.

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That’s it. It’s easy! Desserts are going to be:

Tarvokian powder cake and Ktarian chocolate puff, recipes and pictures soon.