Most of the cuisine found in the fictional world of Middle-earth are real foods from Earth history. However, several key types of food and drink featured throughout J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium (Tolkien's works about Middle-earth) are fictional. These are described below.
Appearing in The Hobbit and mentioned in The Lord of the Rings, cram is a biscuit-like food made by the Men of Esgaroth and Dale, which they share with the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain. Very nutritious, it is used for sustenance on long journeys. It is not as appealing as and less tasty than the similar Elvish bread lembas; Tolkien describes it humorously as "more of a chewing exercise" than enjoyable to eat. Like lembas, it is probable that Tolkien modelled cram on hardtack, a biscuit that was used during long sea voyages and military campaigns as a primary foodstuff. This bread was little more than flour, water and salt which had been baked hard and would keep for months as long as it was kept dry.
Petty-dwarf roots appear in some versions of the story of Túrin Turambar, as given in Unfinished Tales and The Children of Húrin. Túrin and the outlaws are sheltered by a petty-dwarf who gives them roots to cook. After being scrubbed and cooked, the roots are described as being fleshy and tasting like bread. The dwarf does not reveal what plant they are from, for fear of the plant's extinction, and refuses to teach the elves out of hatred. The "earthbread" is plainly a member of the potato family.
Appearing in The Hobbit and mentioned in The Lord of the Rings, a honey-cake is a twice-baked cake made by the "skin-changer" Beorn and later, his descendants the Beornings. Similar to cram and lembas, the cakes are sustaining and keep fresh for a long time. Although they are tastier than cram, they tend to make the eater thirsty.