(Disclaimer: My camera died on Christmas Eve . . . Well, wouldn't it?!? I had to scan hard copies of pics. Still not many pics today, but will buy a new camera ASAP!!!)
I am probably too old to admit this, but I adore Harry Potter. I've read the books over a dozen times each ~ and I've seen the movies even more.
Blame my daughter.
I was the single ~ working ~ mother of four when J. K. Rowling's first book was released. My youngest (Lilli) was very interested, but there was a huge furor over this "evil" book. So ~ I asked her dad (who has been reading newspapers since he was 3 and can read over 600 words per minute) to please read it and let me know if he felt it was age appropriate for our 10-year-old daughter. That same day, he gave it the thumbs up and passed his copy on to Lilli.
I love all literature ~ even many children's books ~ but I had no desire to read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (or Harry's a Pothead and the Sorcerer's Stoned, as my son called it.) I did, however, watch the movie.
And the rest is history! (Mine, that is.)
I was mesmerized! I was able to truly connect with something in Harry's character. Perhaps it was that he was the oddball kid no one was particularly nice to ~ but who had hidden talents and depth. (Believe me when I say I can relate to this!)
I was a cute kid with a sweet (though assertive) disposition whom most people liked ~ from a distance! In 10th grade, one of my high school friends (Carol) gave birth to a son. She brought him to a basketball game one evening to show him off. I oohed and ahhed. Carol and her friends looked at me like I was crazy bizarre. (I was.) Then I said, "His fingers are so long! Maybe he'll grow up to be a pianist!" (What 15-year-old says that?!?) Carol, et al, rolled their eyes and walked away from the crazy person.
I remember thinking at the time, "What did I do?" I even annunciated this properly inside my brain!
So ~ quite a bit like Harry in that I was a bit of an outcast. My "magic" was words and music and imagination. I lived inside my head more than outside as a kid. God bless her ~ my Lilli's the same way! So ~ in our minds ~ we each became fast friends with Harry. (And she fell in love with Dan Radcliffe. Well, who wouldn't?)
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| Actor Dan Radcliffe plays Harry Potter in the 8 films ~ |
Soon ~ the next book was released. Lilli and I always pre-ordered our copies. She even competed in a midnight costume contest at Walden Books one year and won a movie ticket. (Seven guesses which movie we spent that on!)
We've gone to midnight releases of the movie, as well as midnight releases of the book.
As a nearly 48-year-old woman, I should be embarrassed about this! And I would be if these books weren't so incredibly well written ~ and they get better as they go along. Stephen King once said, J. K. Rowling had "plundered the vaults of mythology" in these masterpieces.
They weren't best-sellers for nothing!
Even the food is interesting. British with a twist: pumpkin pasties, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor (Jelly) Bean, pumpkin juice, chocolate frogs that actually have "one good jump in them." When Rowling introduced butterbeer, I became enamored of Butter Shots. I told my then-husband we should market a butterbeer. He replied, "You can't market an alcoholic beverage based on a book aimed at kids!"
He had a point.
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| O yum! |
As far as I know, the Brits (Celts) originated in Gaul before they settled the isles. Being Celtic, I was born with a British intrigue and leaning. I was just naturally attracted to anything British. As a very young child, I would pretend I was in England (or Scotland or Ireland) many days. These were some of my most exciting times as a kid. (Let's move along now before you begin to feel sorry for me!)
I still long to be close to my Celtic roots. For now, I can be near to the tales and the foods of Brittany. And ~ I suppose ~ that will have to suffice!
RECOMMENDED PURCHASES
For the obscure few who have not seen or read Harry Potter, I recommend all of the books by J.K. Rowling ~ They are: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I also recommend the films of the same titles ~. The screenplay writer did a fantastic job. I have to admit the books are better, though.
RECIPE
Butterscotch Tart
I almost always prepare this for St. Paddy's Day. And it is always gobbled up!
Ings for tart:
Pie crust, pre-baked until slightly golden
¾ cups brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 cup milk
1 ½ oz butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 egg yolks
Meringue
2 egg whites
2 TBS powdered sugar
Place sugar and flour in a small pan. Make a well in the center. Add milk gradually, whisking the whole time. This will create a smooth paste. Whisk over low heat for 9 minutes or until mixture begins to boil and thickens. Remove from heat; add vanilla and egg yolk. Incorporate well. Spread filling into your pie crust
Beat egg whites until firm peaks form, adding sugar gradually. This will make a glossy meringue. Spread over tart and bake for 20 minutes or until meringue is a light golden. Serve warm or cold.
Venison Pudding Pastie
1# venison, cut into thin 4 inch disks
flour
butter
2 tsp basil
salt
pepper
Stout beer (like Guiness)
Puff pastry
Melt butter in a pan, then slightly sear both sides of the lightly battered venison. (You only want to sear it. Venison is very tough unless cooked only slightly or for a very long time. Anything between is like shoe leather.) Remove from pan and place in a casserole or soup pot. Add salt, pepper, basil and beer. Cover with pastry and bake just until the pastry is cooked (about 15 minutes). This is a very old British recipe that I have only slightly tweaked.
Pumpkin Muffins
Around Halloween 2003, my teen-aged kids carved a pumpkin on my front porch. They got into a seed throwing contest, which resulted in about half a dozen magnificent pumpkin plants the next summer. We harvested so many pumpkins from these volunteers that I started giving them away. With packs and packs of frozen pumpkin, I needed some recipes.
After about 4 pies, I was ready to try something new. I came up with this recipe. My friend, Theodoria, (who hates pumpkin) loves these.
Ings:
1 cup shortening
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 cup nuts (optional)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
Approximately 2 cups pumpkin puree
1 tsp. lemon flavoring
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup self-rising flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
Cream shortening and sugars. Add eggs, vanilla, lemon flavoring and pumpkin. Combine dry ingredients and mix together with shortening mixture. Pour into greased muffin pans and bake at 350° for approximately 25 minutes.
This can also be baked as a loaf or a cake.
Everyone is entitled to an "off" day now and then. Since I'm known for my cooking, I've always hated the thought of an "off" day cooking. As an adult, I've really only had the rare "almost-off" days.
Christmas was the exception. That was the worst meal I have ever served to guests! Even my morning coffee was far too weak. I couldn't seem to make anything work.
When my blender blew up and caught fire (yes, you read that right) I should have taken that as the bad omen it was and ordered out for pizza! Instead, I borrowed my neighbor's blender.
My menu included 2 appetizers:
Sweet Potato Strips with Soy Sauce and Sesame Seeds ~ These I burned!
Cranberry/Pumpkin Dip with Pistachios Served on Crackers ~ This was the only thing edible on the entire table.
Salad and entrée:
Mother's Fresh Garlic and Romaine Salad ~ Half my guests liked this ~ as did I. The other half felt I'd been far too liberal with the salt.
Smooth Chick Pea Soup ~ This was supposed to be a soup form of Hummus. (I'd thought going Middle Eastern was appropriate for a day celebrated as the birth of a Jewish Messiah.) I'd put the chick peas in the crock-pot on Friday because I knew they'd take a long time to cook. By Sunday, they were still al dente. But I had to go with it. After adding garlic, water, lemon juice, basil, tahini, almond butter (all blended smoothly, thanks to my neighbor), I ended up with what tasted like a sandy pot of dirty water.
Frustrated, I pulled out the dessert course, my Tres Leches. There is no way to mess this recipe up unless you burn the cake.
Which I did.
So ~ my dear readers ~ I admit defeat and carry my human flaws just as surely as I was meant to. It's better to laugh at oneself and admit failures than to hide one's head in embarrassment. Perhaps I could do a little of both!
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