The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook (18 page)

Makes 8 pies

It doesn't exactly say that the Weasleys are Irish, but they are all redheaded, freckled, and fiery. Of course, we shouldn't stereotype, but… you know. So the night Harry arrives at Grimmauld Place, perhaps Mrs. Weasley would have served a classic Irish stew. There's a great moment when Mrs. Weasley displays her towering temper at Fred and George, who in trying to magic everything to the table, nearly spill the stew and stab Sirius (see
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
, Chapter 5).

To make the stew for adults, replace the Coca-Cola with Guinness. Do not use Extra Stout. Add 2 tablespoons dark or light brown sugar along with the rest of the ingredients in Step 3.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more as necessary

2 pounds chuck steak, trimmed and cut into ½-inch cubes

1 onion, chopped

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 14-ounce can chicken broth

½ cup Coca-Cola

2 tablespoons tomato paste

¼ cup chopped prunes

1 teaspoon ground sage

Juice of 1 lemon

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

6 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

1. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or wide pot and add the meat in batches, searing on both sides over high heat 4 to 5 minutes until crusty brown and transferring each batch to a large plate. After the last batch of meat is cooked and removed from the pot, add another 2 tablespoons of oil if necessary and the onion. Cook the onion over medium-low heat until softened, scraping up the fond (browned bits) from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
   

2. Add the flour to the pot and stir until combined. Pour in the broth and Coca-Cola and cook over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbling. Add the meat back to the pot along with the accumulated juices and the tomato paste, chopped prunes, sage, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and simmer for 1½ hours.
   

3. Add the potatoes, carrots, and parsley and continue to simmer for another hour, stirring occasionally and adding more chicken broth or water as necessary to keep the stew from drying out and burning.
   

Serves 6 to 8

Percy got what he deserved when he barged in on the Weasleys during Christmas dinner and ended up with mashed parsnips all over his face. With all of the rest of the delicious food that is usually on the Christmas table, the Weasleys probably didn't miss the parsnips (see
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
, Chapters 16 and 17).

1½ pounds (about 10 medium-small) parsnips, peeled and chopped

1 14-ounce can chicken broth

2 tablespoons butter

¼ cup milk Pinch of nutmeg

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan, bring the parsnips and chicken broth to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Drain the parsnips and add the butter, milk, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Mash with a potato masher.

Serves 4 to 6

Harry wryly observes that Voldemort won't get killed off while Harry's busy making canapés and vol-au-vents (although they might make good missiles in comedy shows). He's frustrated that Mrs. Weasley is keeping him so busy with preparations for Bill and Fleur's wedding that she leaves him no time for planning (see
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
, Chapter 6).

You can cut the canapés into different shapes to represent different fillings. For example, you can cut the Sour Cream — Anchovy Canapés into squares, the Olive-Cheese into circles, and the Smoked Salmon into triangles. You can also come up with your own toppings. The ideas are endless.

Canapés

1 loaf good-quality sandwich bread

Butter, for greasing the skillet

The Toppings

Sour Cream — Anchovy Topping: sour cream, anchovy fillets packed in olive oil, grape tomatoes

Olive-Cheese Topping: mayonnaise, mozzarella cheese sliced into ¼-inch-thick slices, pitted green olives

Smoked Salmon Topping: cream cheese, smoked salmon, chopped scallions Toothpicks for holding the fillings in place

1. To make the canapés, use a round 2-inch cookie cutter to cut circles out of the bread. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Take a cold stick of butter and rub the tip of it over the surface of the hot skillet. Add as many pieces of bread as fit into the skillet. Toast over medium heat on each side until golden brown, a few minutes per side. Repeat the buttering between batches. Make as many as desired.
   

2. For the Sour Cream — Anchovy Canapés, spread sour cream on the canapés. Dab the fillets with a paper towel, then cut in thirds and lay over the sour cream, 1 fillet per canapé. Push a toothpick through a grape tomato and press into place on top of the anchovy.
   

3. For the Olive-Cheese Topping, use the 2-inch cutter to cut out circles of cheese. Spread mayonnaise on the canapés. Lay the circles of cheese over the mayonnaise. Push a toothpick through an olive and press into place on top of the cheese.
   

4. For the Smoked Salmon Topping, spread cream cheese on the canapés. Lay a piece of smoked salmon on top, then sprinkle with the chopped scallions.
   

Makes as many as desired

Mrs. Weasley is really an amazing cook. To prepare all the food for her son's wedding, especially such elegant, classy savories as vol-au-vents, is just simply, well, impressive, to say the least (see
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
, Chapter 6).

Puff Pastry

Puff pastry needs to be made at least a day in advance, as it takes so long to make. Forming the pastry cases is fussy work, so to save time you can use frozen puff pastry shells. Just prepare them according to the package directions.

Butter Block

3 sticks cold butter, cut into chunks

½ teaspoon lemon juice

½ cup flour

Dough

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

½ stick cold butter, diced into ¼-inch pieces

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold water

1½ teaspoons lemon juice

Sweet Cream — Blueberry Filling

8 ounces cream cheese

½ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup heavy cream

1 pint blueberries, washed and drained

1 tablespoon currant jelly

Tomato-Feta Filling

5 ounces feta cheese, diced into ¼-inch pieces

1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

½ teaspoon dried basil

Pinch salt

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Smoked Turkey-Olive Filling

1 cup diced smoked turkey breast (¼-inch pieces)

1 cup small green olives (if large, chop them)

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

Freshly ground black pepper

English mustard

1. For the butter block, combine the butter, lemon juice, and flour, and mix with your fingers. Knead briefly until combined. Form into a square and place between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll out the butter to a 7-inch square. Refrigerate until ready to use.
   

2. For the dough, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the ½ stick butter and rub it in with your fingers until the mixture becomes mealy. Add the water and lemon juice and stir to combine. Knead briefly until a rough dough forms. Shape the dough into a ball, flatten slightly, and cut a cross halfway through the dough almost to the edges with a sharp knife. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
   

3. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on a flour-dusted surface. Pull the edges of the cross open from the center of the dough to create a rough square. Sprinkle flour on top and roll out the dough to an 11-inch square. Remove the butter block from the refrigerator and peel off the parchment paper. Place the block onto the square of dough so that the corners point to the center of the lines of the square (it should look like a diamond shape). Bring the dough up over the butter and pinch the edges together. Roll it out into a rectangle ½-inch thick. Fold the rectangle into thirds like a business letter. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. This is called the first turn.
   

4. To make the second turn, remove the dough from the refrigerator and lay it horizontally on a flour-dusted work surface. Roll it into a rectangle ½-inch thick. Fold the rectangle into thirds like a business letter. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Repeat the turns 3 more times, resting the dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour between each turn. This recipe makes about 2 pounds 10 ounces of puff pastry; you will not need all of it to make the vol-au-vents.
   

5. To make the pastry cases, line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Cut off 2/3 of the dough and roll it out ½-inch thick on a floured surface. Use a 3½-inch cutter to cut out twelve circles of dough. Use a 3-inch cutter to cut out centers, making thin rings. Set the rings aside on a sheet of parchment paper. Roll out the remaining centers one by one very thin (you will need to flour the work surface and the tops of the pastry circles again). Use the 3½-inch cutters to cut out new circles from the rolled-out centers. Prick holes in these circles with a fork and lay them on the prepared baking sheets, six circles to a sheet. Brush the edges with water and carefully attach the rings to the edges to form cases. Refrigerate the cases for 1 hour.
   

6. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove one baking sheet from the refrigerator and line each case with small pieces of aluminum foil. Fill the foil with beans or pie weights. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375°F and bake another 20 minutes until the dough is set. Remove the foil and weights and bake another 3 to 5 minutes until light golden brown. Raise the heat to 400°F and repeat with the second sheet. Cool completely on a wire rack before filling.
   

7. To make the Sweet Cream — Blueberry Filling, beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes. In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Fold the two mixtures together until smooth. Divide the mixture among the twelve vol-au-vents. Top with as many blueberries as fit. Melt the jelly in the microwave for about 20 seconds and brush the tops of the blueberries with the melted jelly, using a pastry brush. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
   

8. To make the Tomato-Feta Filling, combine all the filling ingredients and fill the cases.
   

9. To make the Smoked Turkey — Olive Filling, combine all the filling ingredients except for the mustard and fill the cups. After the cups are filled, drizzle the mustard on top.