Spider-Man Day: NYC Recipes from Official Cookbook

What’s the best way to herald the celebration of Spider-Man Day, you ask? A smorgasbord of scrumptious cuisine straight from the heart of the Wall Crawler’s territory, New York City, sounds about right. If you’re scratching your head, wondering how you’d get your hands on Spidey’s cherished dishes, worry not. Like a dream come true, there’s a hardback out there that can help with just that.

“Spider-Man: The Official Cookbook: Your Friendly Neighborhood Guide to Cuisine from NYC, the Spider-Verse & Beyond” is that phenomenal catalyst between you, the kitchen, and a heap of mouth-watering specialties. Crafted by the creative trio, Jermaine McLaughlin, Paul Eschbach, and Von Diaz, this book doesn’t just stop at offering kitchen designs. It marries the joys of being a foodie and a Spider-Man fan. Readers can nearly taste the exotic New York flavors that this narrative tour guide-cum-cookbook presents and even recreate the culinary delights along the way.

A Taste of the Spider-Verse

A spontaneous signing event at Anyone Comics in Brooklyn set the perfect stage to catch up with seasoned writer, Jermaine McLaughlin. A former writer for The Beat, McLaughlin was more than happy to spill the secret ingredients that shaped his latest work.

“When we started,” McLaughlin explained, “it was all about putting down the recipes first. Then, it was a matter of figuring out what dish fit what borough. What Marvel heroes, what Spider-Man villains, would fit in with what we were cooking up.”

The result? A book filled with iconic NYC dishes enjoying the endorsement of Marvel’s everyone’s favorite superheroes and villains. And, wait for it, it came with a side of humor and a hearty serving of Marvel trivia.

The Making of a Marvel Cookbook

This labor of love wasn’t a random idea that popped into McLaughlin’s head one day. “It was pitched to me,” he confessed, “They already had the chefs on board and just needed someone who had a pretty solid idea of how the Marvel universe worked.” With that, it was then a mad dash to marry years of Marvel comic book knowledge with a deliciously interactive culinary guide fit for Spidey fans.

He also mentioned some internal culinary disagreements, a couple of last-minute borough shuffling and the fight to keep ‘chopped cheese’ with the Bronx where it truly belongs. Food combat aside, McLaughlin’s favorite pick turns out to be the chicken and waffles in Harlem, a spot that holds a special place for him.

When asked whether this book is for comic connoisseurs or home cooks, he proudly proclaimed, “It covers all categories!” McLaughlin is sincere in his hope that his storytelling will draw avid fans toward previously unfamiliar dishes and stimulate their taste buds for experimentation.

The Marvel-ous Meet of Minds

A book like this is a testament to the power of collaboration. McLaughlin credits his co-author, Paul Eschbach, for his quality groundwork on the recipes while he added the Marvel twists and trivia. If you were curious about his superhero knowledge credentials, he passionately expressed that despite being a 16-year veteran of DC Comics, his lifelong comic reader status and friendships with artists and writers have made him “pretty well-rounded” in the lore and history of both DC and Marvel comics.

That brings us to the ultimate question: Is it possible to rate one’s favorite TV or movie Spider-Man? McLaughlin believes so. Josh Keaton from Spectacular Spider-Man, Tom Holland, Nicholas Hammond from the original live-action Spider-Man, Christopher Daniel Barnes from the Spider-Man 90s show, and Andrew Garfield round up his top five, in no particular order.

Spider-Man: The Official Cookbook has gradually been stirring up excitement among readers at various bookstores, and if you’re lucky, you might just find a signed copy at Anyone Comics. And now that your appetites have been whetted, both for Spider-Man trivia and NYC cuisine, it’s time to get cooking. Beware though. Alarming Spider-Man mask-wearing and unexpected web slinging may occur in your kitchen.