Quotable Corner: Yogi Berra

"You better cut the pizza into four slices because I'm not hungry enough to eat six."

A Hogwarts Dinner for Harry Potter's 34th Birthday!

Today, July 31st, marks a very special occasion - it's Harry Potter's 34th birthday! He's just returned from Patagonia, where he cheered on old friend Viktor Krum as Bulgaria beat Brazil in this year's Quidditch World Cup (seriously, if you haven't checked your Pottermore account recently, or if for some strange reason you don't have a Pottermore account, log in right now and get reading!), so suffice it to say it's been a good month for the Boy Who Lived!

In honor of his birthday and the fact that I have an arguably unhealthy obsession with Harry Potter (I threw myself a 25th birthday party that was completely Harry Potter themed), I prepared a meal featuring items mentioned during the course of the books. With the help of Dinah Bucholz' Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook, which really is a great addition to your library (even if Harry Potter isn't your cup of tea, there are a lot of quintessentially British foods included), we had roast beef, roasted carrots, and vegetable pies, followed by a rhubarb crisp with warm custard. Sadly, I couldn't use my wand to clean up the dishes afterwards, but the meal was worth scrubbing a few pots!

Slughorn passed around a plate of pies . . .

The cookbook has recipes for British pies, two savory and two sweet. The savory pies both sounded great - chicken and mushroom and meat and potato - but since I was already cooking a roast and didn't want to go to the trouble of preparing more meat, I combined the two recipes to create a vegetable pie. Just follow the directions for the crust, and then lightly saute a medium onion, a medium zucchini, a handful of new potatoes (or one medium potato, depending on what's in your pantry), and mushrooms, all finely diced. Fill and bake as directed, and voila! They lifted easily out of the pie tin. And don't be fooled by their size - each one is surprisingly filling.

Roast beef, carrots. potatoes . . .

As you can see, my roast was a bit over-done, but still yummy. I added a herb crust because I like herbs and because I'm trying to clean out our cabinets. Combine two teaspoons each of basil, thyme, oregano, and mustard, then rub all over and bake as directed.

Harry looked up from his rhubarb crisp and custard . . .

I love tart tastes, so this dessert was right up my alley. If you don't want to do all rhubarb, you can always substitute half of the fruit for strawberries, which will sweeten the palate.

Homemade Fruit Lemonade! (Sort of)

While out at restaurants, I'm never really tempted to overload my body with sugary drinks . . . like Coke, that is. Strawberry lemonade though, is a different story. The combination of sweet berries and tangy lemon is mouthwatering, especially when the drink is so thick it's almost like drinking a smoothie. For the Fourth of July this year, as our tables were groaning under the weight of so much fresh produce, my mother had an absolutely brilliant idea - turn the fruit into fruit juice! And then add it to lemonade!

Fruit, fruit everywhere and so many drops to drink

We used our Nutribullet to liquify strawberries, mangoes, and watermelon (all separately, of course). The watermelon benefitted from being strained through a paper towel to remove the grainy bits, but it isn't absolutely necessary if you're not set on a juice that has to be completely smooth.

Now, we didn't actually make the lemonade by hand - this was a rather last-minute idea, and there wasn't enough time to squeeze lemons in the quantities needed to hydrate about twelve thirsty people. We took the shortcut and mixed up a batch from a Minute Maid can, which tasted pretty good, in all fairness.

From there, it was just a matter of pouring everyone a glass and pointing them to the table, where they could add as much or as little fruit juice as they wanted. The strawberry proved most popular, although the mango contingent was pretty vocal. Suggestions were made for darker berries next time - blackberries and blueberries, beware!

Brit + Co Post: Gluten-Free Vegan Recipes

Gluten-free vegans have just as much of a right to "10 Vegan, Gluten-Free Recipes More Delish Than Your Lunch" that the rest of us do.

Pizza pizza!

From the article: "Let’s be honest; for those of us with dietary restrictions, such as a gluten intolerance, or those who follow certain eating practices, like veganism, it can be hard to find recipes that make your friends and coworkers legit jealous of what you brought for lunch. And for those of us who combine both, it can be tough to create interesting meals on the daily. But don’t worry! You aren’t relegated to rice and vegetables — from appetizers to desserts, here are a week’s worth of recipes that are vegan, gluten-free and, most importantly, delicious!"

Homemade Ice Cream

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! I don't know if I would actually "scream," but I certainly throw fits when someone else eats the last serving and will drive to Publix at ten at night if I'm having a mint chocolate craving, so I certainly love the stuff. It's a family trait, really - my father has a serving of ice cream every night before bed (and he's thin as a rail, go figure) and my brother thinks nothing of destroying an entire Ben & Jerry's pint in one sitting. Given the amount of ice cream consumed at my house, plus a desire to focus on food with natural, pronounce-able ingredients and without laundry lists of preservatives and additives, I finally bit the bullet and bought an ice cream maker! The Cuisinart ICE-21 Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker, to be precise. And man, was that money well spent.

We started with vanilla, the most basic ingredient in the included recipe book. Instead of a entire cup of whole milk, I subbed in half a cup of almond milk. Mixing the milks, sugar, salt, and cream took about five minutes with a whisk, and after sitting overnight in the fridge and a mere 15 minutes in the machine, look what we had!

Homemade goodness

The ice cream was absolutely delicious. It was sweet, creamy, and even better than store-bought, in my opinion. The consistency isn't as hard as the stuff in cartons, but if you prefer it that way, just scoop the ice cream out of the mixer, place it in an airtight container in the freezer, and wait a couple of hours. We didn't have the patience for that though, so into our mouths it went! I hadn't even finished making the last serving before the first person was buzzing around looking for seconds - pft, like there were any.

The Cuisinart is really a great machine. The bowl is double-insulated with liquid in the middle, so it has to be frozen before the mixture is poured in (in our fridge, it didn't even take six hours to do the trick). We just turned it on and went about our business - you can definitely hear the engine running, but it isn't loud enough to make you reach for a pair of earplugs or anything, and my mom was able to hold a conversation in the next room, which is open to the kitchen, just fine. I actually found the hum oddly comforting, but maybe that's just because I knew what it was saying . . . ice cream is coming! ice cream is coming!

It's actually really fun to watch it work, too. The paddle stays in position while the bowl rotates around, so you could see the ice cream being summoned from the sweet liquidity depths of the milk and cream mixture. Once the liquid was gone, you just pull out the paddle and eat!

All ready to be scooped out

The possibilities are endless. I want to try substituting all the milk for almond milk, which would drastically cut calories and fat without, I think, sacrificing flavor. And that means I can have three scoops next time, right? Right?

Quotable Corner: Erma Bombeck

"Once you get a spice in your home, you have it forever. Women never throw out spices. The Egyptians were buried with their spices. I know which one I'm taking with me when I go."

Brit + Co Post: Chocolate and Peanut Butter Recipes

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups were one of my favorite treats growing up. "25 of the Best Chocolate and Peanut Butter Recipes #GuiltyPleasures" is inspired by that love, and takes the classic chocolate/peanut butter pairing to the next level.

Is it bad I'm tempted to eat ALL THE STACKS?

From the article: "In the culinary world, there are some combinations that are widely accepted as tasting better when they’re together. Case in point — tomato and basil, bagels and cream cheese and of course, chocolate and peanut butter. Whether you’re looking for something vegan, a treat that’s quick to make or a dessert that’s completely show-stopping, here are the best chocolate and peanut butter recipes on the planet."