The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook - Dinah Bucholz [79]
Whisk together the egg yolk, cream, and vanilla and pour over the flour mixture. Toss with a rubber spatula until the dough begins to stick together. Knead very briefly to form a cohesive mass and form into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours or up to 3 days.
Preheat the oven to 425°F. On a generously floured surface, roll out the disk (make sure you flour the top of the disk as well) to an 11-inch circle. Tart dough is hard to roll out, but this is a very forgiving dough, especially if you use margarine in place of the butter. Simply gather up the torn dough, re-flour the work surface, briefly knead the dough into a ball, and roll it out again. Fit the dough into a 9-inch tart pan. If the dough breaks, you can patch it by gluing extra scraps with a bit of water. Prick the bottom of the shell with a fork, line with aluminum foil, and fill with beans or pie weights. Bake for 20 minutes or until the dough is dry and set. Remove the foil and weights, reduce the heat to 350°F, and bake another 7 to 10 minutes until the crust is golden brown. Remove from the oven to cool.
To make the chocolate bottom, place the cream and chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes, stopping to stir every 30 seconds. Stir until smooth and pour into the bottom of the tart shell. Cool until set.
To make the filling, combine the pumpkin, sugar, 4. cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, and heavy cream in a medium saucepan and cook, stirring frequently, until hot but not bubbling. Whisk the eggs with the cornstarch and add to the pan. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbling. Remove from the heat. Cool to room temperature.
Pour the cooled filling into the tart shell and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. If desired, drizzle melted chocolate on top. Refrigerate until firm.
Serves 8
Creamy, Dreamy Chocolate Gateau
The best foods are always served at the Hogwarts feasts, especially the start-of-term feasts, and the one in Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts is no exception. While Harry goes for his usual treacle tart, Ron reaches for the chocolate gateau (see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 8).
Gateau is the French word for “cake,” but there is a difference. Most Britons don't know this, but in England “gateau” refers to a cake in which the filling is the main point, and the cake is just a structure to support it. The cake layers would be some sort of unremarkable sponge cake. To make an especially decadent gateau, this recipe uses rich chocolate layers plus a rich filling, so you get the best of both worlds.
1 recipe Rich Chocolate Cake, baked, cooled, and split into 3 layers (recipe follows)
1 recipe Chocolate Pastry Cream from Chocolate Éclairs, prepared and cooled
1 recipe Chocolate Glaze from Chocolate Éclairs, prepared and cooled until thick enough to spread
Chocolate Whipped Cream
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
½ chopped, toasted pecans, for topping
Combine the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk ¼ of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate to lighten it, then fold the rest of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate.
To assemble the gateau, place 1 cake layer on a cardboard round or platter. Spread ½ of the chocolate whipped cream over the cake layer, then ½ of the chocolate pastry cream over the whipped cream. Repeat with another cake layer. Top with the last cake layer. Spread the glaze over the top layer and sprinkle the chopped pecans on top.
Rich Chocolate Cake
1 cup boiling water
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1½ teaspoons instant coffee
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1½ sticks (12 tablespoons) butter, at room temperature
1½ cups granulated