The Unofficial Hogwarts for the Holidays Cookbook: Pumpkin Pasties, Treacle Tart, and Many More Spellbinding Treats
by Rita Mock-Pike 5 out of 5 stars

This cookbook captures all the magic of Hogwarts through each holiday season. There are recipes from all your favorite Harry Potter scenes from the first train ride to Halloween, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day.

I love that each holiday section begins with a little page that describes what we love most about a magical Hogwarts holiday. It’s the comforting familiarity of tea and rock cakes in Hagrid’s hut. It’s the crispy fall weather at Halloween with baked pumpkin and cockroach clusters.

We have recipes for a gloomy death-day party, the glorious Yule ball, and a cozy castle breakfast in the Great Hall. On New Year’s Day we get chocolate fudge and mince pies. For a special World Cup dinner, we have a chicken-and-ham pie and strawberry ice cream.

There is an entire section just for special wizard drinks, some for children like pumpkin juice and butterbeer, and some for the adults like liquid luck and fire whiskey. The Owl-Mail Feast section includes food to feed a certain Marauder dog who might be hiding out in the hills in need of sustenance. His care package includes a ham, sweet buns, and a fruit salad.

Some recipes that I definitely want to try are the pumpkin pasties, the carrot cake, cauldron cakes, and of course the famous butterbeer. I love all the traditional British recipes for crumpets, Christmas pudding, trifle, and kippers. But one of the coolest recipes in the entire book has to be the snitch-shaped cake pops for Harry’s birthday!

I love that there are beautiful photos of each recipe, so you can really see what you are cooking. The pictures are so good that my mouth was watering! And each recipe has clear instructions with the prep time and the serving amounts. The recipes are not too difficult, and some would be simple enough for children to help with the cooking!

This wonderful cookbook invites the reader to remember that “Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.” It’s a magical experience!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher/author in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.