"pumpkin juice" news and stories

Cauldron Cakes. Photo: Alex Van Buren

So the new "Harry Potter" movie opened in the wee hours of the morning, and your cravings for Butterbeer, pumpkin juice (here are our recipes), Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans and Cauldron Cakes are probably at full tilt.

Thankfully we have discovered that the folks at Brooklyn's renowned shop Baked have been serving these delicious brownie-cookie-cake hybrids to Muggles under the extremely suspicious name of "Black Forest Cookies" for years, but they are well-known to wizards by their real name: Cauldron Cakes.

Easily stackable for that train ride to Hogwarts, these Cakes are utterly worthy of defending via wand-wielding showdowns, sword battles with giant water snakes, etc. The surfaces of the decadent treats become cratered and volcanic after a whirl in the oven, and bubble as if they've emerged straight from a cauldron. Break them apart to reveal a moist, dark-as-night center the texture of a brownie. It must be magic.

Eating one feels slightly wicked. Eating two is downright evil. Ten points to Slytherin, indeed.

Cauldron Cakes recipe courtesy of the magicians at Baked, after the jump.

Unlike Sarah, I'm a big fan of the Harry Potter books, so I'm sure it'll come as little surprise when I tell you that Wednesday night I made my way to the local theater and stood in line (for an hour, no less) buying tickets for opening night of The Order of the Phoenix.

Now to be clear, I like the series, but I'm not obsessed with it like many of my fellow moviegoers were. Yes, there were the requisite number of muggles people dressed up in long flowing robes complete with witch and wizard hats, and their conversations did revolve around everything Hogwarts. In fact, while standing in line, I overheard several groups of ladies discussing various Harry Potter-related recipes they had prepared prior to coming to the show.

After a quick search on the web (really, who doesn't want to know what Butterbeer tastes like?) I found that MuggleNet.com seems to have the most complete listing of food and drink recipes that are mentioned in the books. So, if you are heading out this weekend to catch the movie or have kids at home, you may want to whip up a batch of Madame Rosmerta's Butterbeer, Pumpkin Juice, or Mrs. Weasley's Treacle Fudge. Recipes can be found after the jump.

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