The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook - Dinah Bucholz [4]
Aunt Petunia has always hated her sister for being able to master potions, but she is no slouch around the cauldron either, at least when it comes to cooking. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets she whips up a three-course meal for a classy dinner party with the Masons, and in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, a fancy meal for Aunt Marge. To the disgust, shame, and horror of the Dursleys, Harry ruins both meals… and Uncle Vernon will never forgive him for losing the deal that would have bought him a summer home in Majorca.
English Fried Eggs and a Gammon of Bacon
Does Harry sometimes remind you of Cinderella? He has to cook, he has to clean…. Often he plays the role of breakfast chef at the Dursleys', and the morning of Dudley's birthday is no exception. Aunt Petunia darkly warns him not to burn breakfast (see Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Chapter 2).
Eggs and bacon doesn't sound very posh, but some 400 years ago, it was the “Breakfast of Queens.” Henrietta Maria, Queen Consort of England and wife of King Charles I, would finish off a fancy breakfast with a simple dish of poached eggs and bacon. In England, a “rasher” of bacon is one slice, and two rashers are called a “gammon.”
1 gammon of bacon
1 tablespoon lard or bacon drippings reserved from frying
2 large eggs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
To pan-fry the bacon, heat a skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat. Lay the bacon carefully in the pan. Let the bacon cook for 2 minutes; then, using a pair of tongs or a fork, turn the bacon and cook for 2 minutes more. Continue cooking and turning every 30 seconds until the bacon reaches desired crispness. Remove the bacon and let it drain on paper towels. Drain all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan.
Reduce the heat to medium low. Break the eggs into a small bowl. When the fat begins to sizzle, add the eggs and season with salt and pepper.
Serves 1
Fried eggs are served by a degree of doneness: sunny side up, over-easy, over-medium, or over-hard. For sunny side up, cook the eggs for 4 minutes or until the white is set and firm. For “over” eggs, add the eggs to the pan and let cook for 3 minutes. Carefully flip the eggs using a spatula and cook as follows: over-easy for 2 minutes on second side; over-medium, 2 minutes, 15 seconds; over-hard, 2 minutes, 30 seconds or until the yolk is completely firm. You can also break the yolk before turning for over-hard.
Double Chocolate Ice Cream Cones
When Harry goes with the Dursleys to the zoo, the day starts out like a dream come true. Harry has never been taken along on Dudley's birthday trips before and he can hardly believe his luck. Uncle Vernon buys chocolate ice creams for Dudley and his friend Piers to enjoy on their outing. There's none for Harry, of course (see Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Chapter 2).
When the first ice cream recipe found its way to England in the 1600s, King Charles I wanted to keep it for himself. Ice cream was a treat reserved for royalty and the king wanted to make sure it stayed that way. According to legend, he swore his cook to keep the recipe a secret. But when the king died, the secret got out… and now you can enjoy this sumptuous ice cream recipe.
2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
5 large egg yolks
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Sugar cones for serving
Combine the milk, heavy cream, sugar, and cocoa powder in a medium saucepan and cook, stirring frequently, until hot but not simmering. Whisk the melted chocolate into the egg yolks (it will be thick and difficult to whisk). Temper the egg yolk mixture by slowly pouring 1 cup of the hot milk mixture into the yolks while whisking vigorously. Pour the yolk mixture into the saucepan containing the rest of the milk mixture and cook, stirring