LEHI — Lori Bennett has so many ideas for magical Harry Potter foodstuffs that she ought to write a book.
And she just might, as soon as she secures tickets to the new movie and finishes putting the touches on recipes like "Hagrid's Bread Pudding" and "Parsel-Tongue Pizza."
After all, she's first and foremost, a fan.
However, when Bennett reads a Potter book or watches one of the movies, she's paying a lot more attention to the food than to the action or the spell-casting.
"When I read the books, I wrote down every time they mentioned food," Bennett said as she stirred up "Mad Eye Meatballs" and "Wizard Fudge" for those attending a Cobblestone Kitchen cooking class at Thanksgiving Point recently.
She then brainstorms to come up with simple foods that translate into recipes that Harry, Ron and Hermione might eat. She knows Dumbledore's favorite candy (lemon drops) and that it's important to anti-jinx "Fred and George's Ton-Tongue Toffee."
She has "Gillyweed Horror d'oeuvres" to replicate the food that Potter had to eat so he could survive underwater when he battled the Merpeople.
There's a special chocolate potion named after Lupin and even a no-bake chocolate ring cake named for Dolores Umbridge — though she doesn't deserve it, Bennett said.
"Blast-Ended Skrewts" (shrimp with red fancy toothpicks poking out of the ends) resemble the magical creatures Hagrid presented to his students.
Some are regular fare renamed for the books (such as the Hogwarts Halloween Chili that is actually Bennett's father's recipe) while others, like the "Cauldron Cakes" and the "Cockroach Clusters" and "Peppermint Toads" were created just for Harry Potter parties.
"Wizard Fudge" is so named because it comes together quickly, "just like magic," Bennett said.
All of the recipes (and the game ideas) are meant to be fun and help bring the wizard and witch world to life, she said. They're also tasty.
"Hagrid's Bread Pudding? I promise it tastes better than the way Hagrid made it," she said.
Hogwarts Feast recipes include:
Hogwarts Chili
1 lb. ground beef
1 clove garlic
1 onion, chopped
3 slices bacon
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
2 15-oz. cans chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon cumin
1-3 teaspoons chili powder
Chipotle chili, about two-thirds of a can, chopped, or liquid smoke
2 cans chopped green chilies
1 can tomato sauce
1 can pinto beans
1 can kidney beans
1 green pepper, cut into chunks
Brown beef with bacon, garlic and onion. Add beans, tomato sauce, tomatoes and two beef bouillon cubes. Add celery, green pepper. Cook until vegetables are still crispy.
Gillyweed
2 10-oz. packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
2 cups Italian-style seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup butter, melted
4 small green onions, finely chopped
4 eggs, lightly beaten
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix the frozen chopped spinach, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, butter, green onion, eggs, salt and pepper. Shape the mixture into one-inch balls. Arrange balls in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes until lightly browned.
Parsel-Tongue Pizza
1 16-oz. loaf frozen bread dough, thawed
4 oz. sliced mozzarella cheese, cut in half diagonally
4 oz. sliced cheddar cheese, cut in half diagonally
1 3.5 oz. package sliced pepperoni
1 8 oz. can pizza sauce
1/2 cup red, green or yellow sweet pepper strips
1 strip roasted red sweet pepper
2 pimento-stuffed olives
Place thawed dough on lightly floured surface. Roll into a 22-inch rope. Place on a large greased baking sheet, forming a letter "S." Let rise for 1 1/2-2 hours until doubled. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack. Cool to room temperature. Hollow out the center about an inch deep and 1 1/2 inches wide. Leave two inches at each end. Layer cheese down the center, allow cheese to hang over the sides of loaf. In a medium bowl, stir together the pepperoni and pizza sauce. Spoon atop the cheese. Top with strips of red pepper. Place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until heated through and cheese melts. Make a slit in the front of the loaf. Insert a roasted red pepper strip for a tongue and two olives for eyes.
Wizard Fudge
2 packages milk chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
dash salt
3 tablespoons butter
Microwave three minutes on high. Stir until glossy. Add one teaspoon vanilla and desired filling: gummy worms, gummy frogs, nuts, etc. Pour into 9-by-13-inch pan. Place in freezer for an hour for quick set up. Then keep in refrigerator.
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