The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook Presents: A Magical Christmas Menu

by Dinah Bucholz

  Makes 1 loaf

  Desserts

  Christmas Pudding for Kids

  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.

  Rhubarb Crumble with Custard Sauce

  Harry's first dinner at the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix is a spectacular meal followed by a spectacular dessert cooked by Harry's favorite cook. The camaraderie that good food inspires disappears in a flash right after the rhubarb crumble and custard when Sirius invites Harry to ask whatever he wants about the Order of the Phoenix (see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 5).

  In the 1500s, you might have been offered stewed rhubarb when it was time to take your medicine. But that didn't work — it didn't get rid of bubonic plague. Three centuries later, rhubarb finally found its way into pies. It did take kind of a long time, but it's a good thing they figured it out. If you try this recipe, you will understand why Harry had three helpings.

  Rhubarb Filling

  1 pound frozen rhubarb

  ½ cup granulated sugar

  1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

  1 teaspoon baking soda

  Crumble Topping

  1 cup all-purpose flour

  1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

  ½ cup pecans, chopped

  ½ teaspoon cinnamon

  ½ stick (4 tablespoons) cold butter, cut into chunks

  Custard Sauce

  ¼ cup granulated sugar

  Pinch salt

  1 tablespoon cornstarch

  1 cup whole milk and ½ cup heavy cream or 1½ cups milk

  3 large egg yolks

  1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

  Preheat the oven to 350°F. Toss the rhubarb, sugar, lemon zest, and baking soda in a 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 10 minutes.

  While the rhubarb is baking, make the Crumble Topping. Combine the flour, brown sugar, pecans, and cinnamon in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture resembles wet sand.

  Remove the rhubarb from the oven, toss the rhubarb mixture one more time, and pour the topping into the center, spreading it to the edges with your fingers. Return the pan to the oven and bake for 50 minutes, or until the rhubarb bubbles over the edges.

  For the custard, combine the sugar, salt, and cornstarch in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the milk and cream and continue stirring until the cornstarch dissolves. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is hot but not bubbling. Reduce the heat to low and temper the egg yolks by slowly pouring ½ cup of the hot mixture into the yolks while whisking the yolks constantly. Pour the egg yolk mixture into the saucepan while stirring gently. Turn up the heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick and bubbling. Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour the custard through a sieve. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. Serve the rhubarb custard warm with the hot custard.

  Serves 8

  The addition of baking soda helps to neutralize some of the acid in the rhubarb, making it slightly more mellow and palatable. If you prefer an extremely tart dessert, omit the baking soda.

  Christmas Trifle

  Despite eating four helpings of trifle at Christmas tea, Crabbe and Goyle have no problem polishing off the chocolate cakes Hermione had set up as a trap (see Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 12).

  Christmas trifle is a natural outgrowth of Christmas cake or pudding. Take some of the leftover slices from Christmas dinner, throw 'em in a bowl, top 'em with custard and whipped cream, and voilà! You have something fabulous to serve for Christmas tea.

  1½ cups whole milk

  2 tablespoons cornstarch

  1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar

  Pinch salt

  3 large egg yolks

  ¼ stick (2 tablespoons) butter

  ¼ teaspoon rum extract or ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  Leftover slices of Christmas pudding or Christmas cake

  ¼ cup marmalade

  1 cup heavy cream

  ¼ cup confectioners' sugar

  1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  Ground nutmeg or cinnamon, for dusting

  Combine the milk, cornstarch, brown sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan and stir to dissolve the cornstarch. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until hot but not bubbling. Pour ½ cup of the hot mixture into the egg yolks while whisking constantly, then pour the mixture into the saucepan while stirring. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick and bubbling. Remove from the heat and add the butter and rum or vanilla extract. Stir to combine, then pour through a sieve, using a rubber spatula to push the mixture through. Cover the surface directly with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming, and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until cold or up to 3 days.

  Crumble a few slices of the Christmas cake or pudding into the bottom of a 9-inch serving dish, preferably clear glass, that is 2½ to 3 inches deep. The crumbled cake or pudding should come about 1½ inches up the sides. Spread the marmalade as well as you can over the cake or pudding; it will be sticky. Then spread the brown sugar custard over the marmalade, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to serve or up to 3 days.

  Before serving, combine the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl and beat until stiff peaks form. Spread or pipe the whipped cream over the trifle and dust with ground nutmeg or cinnamon.

  Serves 8 to 10

  Pumpkin Pie

  Pie Crust

  1¼ cups all-purpose flour

  2 tablespoons granulated sugar

  ¼ teaspoon s
alt

  1 stick (8 tablespoons) cold butter, cut into small pieces

  4–6 tablespoons ice water

  Filling

  2 cups canned pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling

  1 cup granulated sugar

  1 cup heavy cream

  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

  1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

  1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

  ¼ teaspoon salt

  3 large eggs

  For the crust, place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter over the flour mixture. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse yellow meal without any white powdery bits remaining, about 15 pulses. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle 4 tablespoons water over the mixture and toss with a rubber spatula until the dough sticks together. Add more water 1 tablespoon at a time if the dough is dry (better too wet than too dry). Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.

  Preheat the oven to 425°F. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a floured surface to a 12-inch circle. Fold the dough into quarters, brushing off excess flour with a pastry brush after each fold, and unfold it in a 9-inch pie pan, easing the sides down into the pan. Trim the overhang to within 1 inch of the rim with a sharp knife or kitchen scissors. Fold the overhang under and crimp with a fork or your fingers. Freeze for 20 minutes.

  Remove the pie shell from the freezer, line with aluminum foil, fill with pie weights, and bake for 25 minutes until the dough is dry and set. Remove the foil and weights, reduce the temperature to 375°F, and continue to bake another 10 minutes, until the shell begins to brown. Prepare the filling during these 10 minutes.

  To prepare the filling, combine the pumpkin, sugar, heavy cream, spices, and salt in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until hot to the touch. Whisk in the eggs one at a time and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the filling is very hot but not simmering. Do not let it boil. If the pie shell isn't ready by the time the filling is done, remove the filling from the heat.

  Pour the filling into the crust (if the crust is still 4. in the oven, it's easier to remove the pan from the oven than to try to pour the filling into the crust while the pan is on the oven rack) and continue to bake until it puffs up around the edges and doesn't look wet, about 30 minutes. The filling will be jiggly when you remove it from the oven; it will set up as it cools. Serve at room temperature with whipped cream.

  Serves 8

  You can make the crust a day in advance, and also freeze it for up to 2 months if it is well wrapped in plastic.

  Peppermint Humbugs

  Harry doesn't understand why peppermint humbugs are served along with the roasts and chops and potatoes at his first Hogwarts feast. But it makes sense if you think about it. Maybe the candies were supposed to be like after-dinner mints to freshen your breath (see Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Chapter 7).

  Scrooge's famous “Bah, humbug!” exclamation and peppermint humbugs are unrelated, though some people in England give out humbugs on Christmas as a joke. The only other thing you need to know about a humbug is that it's a type of pulled candy, literally pulled, as you will see in the instructions. Traditional humbugs are striped white and black, but it's for home cooks to tint the candy one color. If you make the candy with a friend, double the recipe, divide the hot candy, and tint it two different colors. When the candy is stiff enough, you can twist and pull the two colors together.

  1/3 cup water

  1 cup granulated sugar

  ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

  ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract

  Few drops green food coloring or other desired color

  Spray an 8-inch pan with cooking spray and set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine the water, sugar, and cream of tartar and cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture begins to boil. 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 side of the pot. Reduce the heat to medium and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the temperature reaches 260°F. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the peppermint extract and food coloring and mix well.

  Pour the syrup into the prepared pan. Let the syrup cool for a few minutes. Put on a pair of clean heavy rubber gloves and spray the gloves with cooking spray. Rub your hands together to evenly distribute the oil. If you can tolerate the heat, you can skip the gloves and just oil your hands.

  Pick up the hot candy and begin pulling it, twisting along the rope as you pull. This will be difficult at first, as the candy will be a mushy glob and will seem to just gloop and droop. Gradually it will stiffen and be easier to pull. Fold the rope in half and then half again and twist and pull again. Repeat and repeat and repeat. As you pull and twist, the candy will begin to look more opaque and will take on a pearlescent sheen, very pretty to behold. When the candy is too stiff to pull, snip the rope at ¾-inch intervals onto a sheet of parchment paper. The candies will look like teeny-weeny pillows. Do not let the humbugs touch each other; instead wrap each piece individually in parchment paper or plastic wrap to prevent sticking. Store in an airtight container. The humbugs will begin to recrystallize after two or three days.

  Makes about 20 ¾-inch pieces

  Eat these candies with caution. They can really cement your teeth together!

  Hot Chocolate

  After Harry's been spirited away in Mr. Weasley's Ford Anglia to the Burrow, he enjoys the rest of summer vacation with Ron. On the last night before start of term, he digs into a fabulous dinner prepared by fabulous cook Mrs. Weasley, finishing off with dessert and hot chocolate (see Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 5).

  Before Coenraad van Houten was born, people enjoyed hot chocolate with pools of grease floating on top. But then along came the Dutch chemist, who figured out how to press out the cocoa butter from the cocoa beans in the early 1800s. Plus, he invented Dutch cocoa, which is leaps and bounds better than natural cocoa. We modern folk owe him a big debt of gratitude: every city should have a statue of this man, and every village and hamlet should have a Coenraad van Houten Street.

  ½ cup water

  ¼ cup granulated sugar

  2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

  2 teaspoons instant coffee

  2 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate

  2 cups whole milk

  ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  Whipped cream, optional, for serving

  Unsweetened cocoa powder, optional, for serving

  Combine the water, sugar, cocoa powder, and coffee in a small saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture is hot and bubbling. Remove from the heat and whisk in the chopped chocolate until smooth. Return to the heat and add the milk, cooking and stirring until just heated through (do not boil). Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

  Pour the hot chocolate immediately into four teacups. You can top the hot chocolate with a dollop of whipped cream and a dusting of cocoa powder.

  Serves 4

  This hot chocolate is very rich. For a lighter version, put 1 heaping teaspoon cocoa powder, 3 to 4 heaping teaspoons granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon instant coffee, and a few drops of vanilla extract into a large mug. Pour in a little boiling water and stir until dissolved. Add more boiling water to come ¾ of the way up the mug. Stir well, then add milk or cream to fill the rest of the mug. Try adding a few mini-marshmallows to the cup before drinking. You can use a stick of cinnamon as a stirrer to add a bit of cinnamon flavor. For smooth creaminess, replace the dark chocolate with white chocolate.

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  Dinah Bucholz

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