The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook - Dinah Bucholz [54]
Return the lamb chops to the skillet. Cover the skillet and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until the meat is tender. Serve with the pan sauce, passing extra sauce at the table.
Serves 4
Classic Roast Chicken
At the Dursleys', Harry has never been allowed to eat as much as he wanted. So at his first-ever Hogwarts feast his eyes must have been popping out of his head with amazement at the huge variety of dishes that suddenly appeared on the table in front of him, including roast chicken (see Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Chapter 7).
Chicken is the most popular poultry in the world. This may be because compared to cows, sheep, and goats, it costs much less and is easier to raise, it can be prepared in a staggering number of different ways, and very little of it goes to waste.
1 medium onion, sliced into ¼-inch-thick slices
2 celery ribs, cut into 2-inch chunks
2 carrots, cut into 2-inch chunks
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 3-pound roasting chicken
Olive oil for brushing on the chicken
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup water
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lay the onion slices in a roasting pan and scatter the celery, carrots, and garlic cloves on top.
Pat the chicken dry. Place the chicken in the roasting pan, breast side up, wings tucked under. There is no need to truss the chicken. Brush the olive oil over the chicken and sprinkle it with the salt and pepper. Pour the water into the roasting pan.
Put the pan in the oven and roast for 50 minutes. Raise the temperature to 450°F. Rotate the pan and continue roasting for 30 to 40 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 170°F. Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 20 minutes before carving.
Serves 4
Boiled Potatoes with Herb Vinaigrette
One of the astounding variety of dishes that magically appear before an astonished Harry at his first Hogwarts feast is boiled potatoes (see Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Chapter 7).
When you think “history of the potato” (if you think “history” at all), you probably think “Ireland and the potato famine.” But actually the Irish weren't so keen on the potato at first. The Spanish brought the potato back from South America in the 1500s and it took a very long time before the English and Irish started eating it. They thought it was poisonous, because, like the tomato, it belongs to the nightshade family.
3 pounds small new potatoes
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar (you can substitute a different vinegar, such as balsamic)
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Scrub the potatoes and place in a pot. Fill the pot with water to cover the potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes can be pierced easily with a fork, about 25 minutes.
Drain the potatoes and transfer to a large mixing bowl.
Add the oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, and dill, and toss to combine. Serve warm.
Serves 6
A traditional vinaigrette is made by whisking the ingredients to form a temporary emulsion (a process that suspends the oil in the vinegar), but in this recipe we take the easy way out and just toss all the ingredients together.
Roast Potatoes with Garlic and Rosemary
Ron stuffs his mouth with so many roast potatoes that no one can understand a word he's saying. What can he do? He's hungry, after all. It took a while for the feast that kicks off the school year to get started because of the extra-long sorting, when the hat sang an extra-long song warning everyone to stick together in the troubled times ahead (see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 11).
If you've been reading this book in order, you know that it took a long time (two centuries, in fact) from the introduction of the potato into England to its being eaten. Some people knew potatoes were safe to eat, but no one believed them. So they resorted to tricks. One