The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook (34 page)
To make turkey stock for gravy, place the turkey giblets and neck in a small saucepan along with 1 carrot, 1 celery, ½ onion cut into chunks, 1 peeled garlic clove, and a few sprigs of dill. Cover with water and bring to a boil, then simmer for 1 hour. Strain the stock through a sieve and use a fat separator to remove the fat.
Harry and Ron toasted marshmallows, but they didn't make them. However, don't put it past the kitchen house-elves, who are excellent cooks, to make batches of this spongy confection in the Hogwarts kitchens and send them up to be available as snacks (see
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
, Chapter 12).
Marshmallows used to be made from the marsh mallow plant. The roots have an extract that's mucilaginous, a word that sounds like what it means. Today we use gelatin (or commercially, gum arabic), but the name has stuck. Over 4,000 years ago the Egyptians also developed a treat made from the mallow plant, which grew in the marshes of Egypt.
½ cup confectioners' sugar, divided, plus more as needed
1 cup water, divided
3 tablespoons (3 envelopes) unflavored gelatin
2 cups granulated sugar
1¼ cups light corn syrup
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
Spray a 9″ × 13″ pan with cooking spray and line with parchment paper to come up the two narrow ends for easy removal. Thickly coat the parchment paper with ¼ cup of the confectioners' sugar, using a sieve to dust the sugar over the paper.
Place ½ cup of the water and the gelatin in a large mixing bowl to soften. Combine the sugar, corn syrup, salt, and the remaining ½ cup water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. If sugar crystals form on the sides of the pan, wash down the sides with a pastry brush dipped in hot water. Clip a candy thermometer to the saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, to 238°F.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour half the sugar syrup into the softened gelatin. Increase the speed to medium and slowly pour in the rest of the syrup. Increase the speed to high and beat 10 to 15 minutes until thick and creamy. Beat in the vanilla.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread it to the edges. Smooth the top with a rubber spatula. The mixture will be sticky and hard to spread, but do the best you can. Thickly coat the top with the remaining ¼ cup confectioners' sugar, using a sieve to dust the sugar over the top. Leave the pan to set and dry out, uncovered, overnight.
To cut the marshmallows, pull out the marsh-mallow sheet by the overhanging parchment and place it on a cutting board. Using a chef 's knife or a large, non-serrated knife, press down with one motion to make a single cut through the center. It's going to be sticky. Make 8 even cuts along the length and then along the width to form rectangles. Dip the cut sides into the confectioners' sugar to prevent sticking.
Makes 64 pieces
To store the marshmallows, lay them in a single layer in an airtight container, covering each layer with plastic wrap or parchment paper. The nice thing about homemade marshmallows is that you can flavor them any way you want. Try replacing the vanilla with 1 teaspoon almond extract or ½ teaspoon mint extract. You can also add a few drops of food coloring to tint it to any shade. For a really delicious treat, you can toast shredded coconut, grind it in the food processor, and use it in place of the confectioners' sugar, or you can use ground toasted nuts.
Along with the one hundred roast turkeys, cranberry sauce is served at Harry's first Christmas dinner at Hogwarts (see
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
, Chapter 12).
Fenwort, marshwort, moss berries … they sound like they belong in a witch's brew, but in fact, those are all medieval words for cranberries. When cranberries are fresh, they bounce, so in the olden days people sorted cranberries by rolling them down the stairs: whatever bounced to the bottom got sold; whatever stayed on the stairs was discarded.
1 12-ounce package of cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar Generous pinch salt
Combine the cranberries, water, sugar, and salt in a small sauce-pan. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer until the cranberries burst open, about 10 minutes.
Cool the sauce completely before refrigerating.
Makes about 2 cups
Anxiety about drinking the illegal Polyjuice Potion does not interfere with Harry and Ron's appetites. They have three helpings of Christmas pudding before Hermione hustles them away to pluck hair off the heads of the two thugs that the potion will change them into (see
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
, Chapter 12).
In medieval times, the Roman Catholic Church decreed that Christmas pudding should contain thirteen ingredients to symbolize Christ and his twelve apostles and that everyone in the family should get a turn to stir it from east to west to represent the Magis' journey. Traditional Christmas pudding is made with brandy, but this recipe leaves it out.
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon salt
2 sticks cold butter, cut into pieces
1 cup dried currants or cranberries
1 cup dark raisins
1 cup golden raisins
4 large eggs
¼ cup marmalade
Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
¾ cup apple juice
Fill a large, wide pot halfway with water, place an overturned shallow bowl in the pot, and bring to a simmer. Grease and flour a 2½-quart bowl with a tight-fitting lid and set aside.
Whisk together the flour, bread crumbs, brown sugar, spices, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Scatter the pieces of butter over the flour mixture and rub it in with your fingers until it reaches the consistency of wet sand. Add the currants or cranberries, dark raisins, and golden raisins, and toss to combine.
In a separate bowl beat the eggs, marmalade, grated zest and juice of orange and lemon, and apple juice until well combined. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir to combine. Pour the batter into the prepared bowl and snap the lid tightly in place. Place the pudding in the pot, making sure the water comes halfway up the sides. Cover the pot and steam for 6 hours, adding water to the pot as necessary.
Remove the pudding from the pot and allow it to cool. Unmold the pudding onto a serving platter and serve warm with custard or cream.
Serves 8
To flambé the pudding, as in the Harry Potter books, drizzle brandy over it and ignite with a long match.
On Harry's first Christmas at Hogwarts, he attends the biggest Christmas dinner he's ever seen, followed by a light supper of sandwiches and tea cakes, such as Christmas cake (see
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
, Chapter 12).
This rich fruitcake, also called plum cake (in the Middle Ages “plum” referred to dried fruit, and this usage has survived today in such foods as plum cake or plum pudding), is very popular at Christmas. The tradition to cover it with marzipan and then royal icing started in the late 1700s. Royal icing is made with uncooked egg whites, so if you're concerned about food-borne illness, hold off on the icing.
Cake
½ cup dark raisins
½ cup golden raisins
½ cup dried currants or cranberries
½ cup chopped dried dates
½ cup chopped dried apricots
1 cup brandy
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup ground walnuts
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
1½ sticks (12 tablespoons) butter, at room temperature
1½ cups packed dark brown sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
Grated zest and juice of 1 lime
Grated zest and juice of 2 oranges
½ cup marmalade
1 cup chopped walnuts
¼ cup brandy, to finish
½ cup currant jelly, melted
2 pounds marzipan
Royal Icing (recipe follows)
Royal Icing
3 large egg whites
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
5 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
For the cake, place the dried fruit in a bowl and pour the brandy over it. Let it soak overnight. Drain the fruit, reserving the brandy.
Preheat the oven to 275°F. Grease and flour a 9-inch spring form pan and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper. The sides will be a bit tricky, but you can do it. Whisk together the flour, ground walnuts, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large mixing bowl.
Beat the butter and sugar in a separate bowl using an electric mixer until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each until incorporated. Add the zest and juice of the lemon, lime, and oranges along with the marmalade and reserved brandy and beat until combined. Don't worry if the mixture looks curdled.
Add the flour mixture and mix on the lowest speed until combined. Add the soaked dried fruits and chopped walnuts and mix until combined. Scrape and fold with a rubber spatula to finish.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 2½ hours. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Cool completely in the pan.
Release the latch on the springform pan to remove the cake. Invert the cake and remove the bottom. Poke holes in the bottom of the cake with a skewer and spoon the ¼ cup brandy over the bottom. Wrap the cake well in plastic wrap and store upside down. The cake will stay fresh for several months. If you want the cake to keep for longer (or even years — no kidding), then once a month unwrap the cake and spoon ¼ cup brandy over the bottom. Rewrap it well and store it upside down.
When you are ready to assemble the cake, place it right-side up on a cardboard round or platter. Brush the top and sides of the cake with the melted jelly. Roll out the marzipan on a work surface dusted with confectioners' sugar to a 14-inch circle. Drape the marzipan over the cake, press it in place, and trim off the bottom with a sharp knife. Eat the trimmings while you work.
To make the Royal Icing, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft mounds form. Reduce the speed to medium and gradually add the confectioners' sugar. Add the vanilla and beat on high speed until stiff. Use an icing spatula to thickly cover the top and sides of cake. Make peaks and swirls with the icing spatula or the back of a teaspoon. Allow the icing to set before serving; it will harden. Do not refrigerate the cake — the condensation will ruin the Royal Icing. Once the cake has set, even after it has been cut, it can be stored at room temperature wrapped in plastic wrap.
