The Wizarding World of Butterscotch

Last month, my boyfriend, Shaun, and I went to Orlando to visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter with his extended family. In her books, J.K. Rowling describes, with great detail, a town just outside the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry called Hogsmeade. There's the pub, The Three Broomsticks, where students drink pumpkin juice and butterbeer, and various shops to buy candy and supplies. An extremely creative art department came up with a spot-on recreation of the books' descriptions for the Harry Potter film series, and that same crew was hired by Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando to recreate Hogsmeade as a theme park.


Once we found out that they had also recreated butterbeer, well, of course we had to try some. I didn't put much thought into what butterbeer would taste like while reading the books, because it was a made up term with no basis in reality. I knew it wasn't actually beer, because children were drinking it, but that was about as far as I ever thought. So after walking through the gates to Hogsmeade, we went straight for the giant red barrel with a huge sign reading "BUTTERBEER". I bought Shaun a plain one, but got mine frozen. I watched them pull the tap and saw the fizzy substance pour into the mug, then they moved the mug to another tap and white foam was carefully laid on top, like the head of a real beer. Cute.

This was the sweetest and most delicious thing I had ever tasted. It had an overpowering butterscotch flavor, but with an even sweeter marshmallow-like head. I knew there had to be about 600 calories in this mug and I didn't care. I drank the whole thing. As I drank, I picked apart all of the flavors. Shaun and his cousins were insistent that the head was vanilla frosting, but to me it was clearly marshmallow. I just knew it. The soda itself was definitely butterscotch, but there was something else there. Creamy and vanilla. Like cream soda. And after finishing the last gulp, I turned to Shaun and declared, "I could totally make this."

Once we got home, I went to work assembling the ingredients and made a trial batch. I handed the mug to Shaun, and after the first sip, he screamed, "Holy shit! You just made butterbeer!" And so, in time for part 1 of the final chapter in the Harry Potter movies, I give you a true wizard's brew.

Butterbeer

1 bottle of good quality cream soda (I used Virgil's)
2 ounces of butterscotch syrup (such as Monin)
2 tablespoons of Marshmallow Fluff
1 tablespoon of heavy whipping cream

Put the marshmallow and cream in a bowl and whisk together using a fork until completely blended and smooth and set aside. Next, pour the soda and syrup into a large 2-cup Pyrex measuring glass at the same time, so they mix during the pouring process. Then pour half into one mug and half into another. Top both mugs with the marshmallow mixture and let sit for a minute. The carbonation of the soda will begin to activate the marshmallow, and it will foam up even more. Enjoy the sugar rush!

Makes 2 servings

I Am Not a Witch

I’ll freely admit, there are weeks when nothing eventful happens. I will sit at my computer and haven’t a clue what to write about. Years before I would sit staring at a blank page, now it’s a blank screen. I’ve even been known to ask the little Microsoft Word “help guy” in the corner for ideas. He usually just scratches his little computer head and whistles softly.

However, I know from experience that if I sit here long enough with my blank monitor and my blank thoughts, something will land in my lap. Either one of my daughters will call with a fascinating cooking question, or the dog will go by on roller skates, or I’ll hear something pertinent on the news.

Earlier this week when I thought all was lost, I saw a Christine O’Donnell ad on TV telling Americans “I am not a witch.”

Thank you Christine; thank you, thank you, thank you; just in time for the start of the Halloween season. There she is on camera in a simple black dress and white pearls with a gray-blue swirling smoky background, obviously bubbling over from the cauldron. And, do you know what goes beautiful with a simple black dress and pearls—black and orange striped socks. You know she’s wearing them in that video.

Christine goes on to tell the audience, “I’m nothing you’ve heard. I’m you.” Now, for all the witches out there watching this campaign ad, they’re thinking, “well, that’s a misstatement. If you’re not a witch how can you be me if I am a witch?”

This is the time of year when we all should embrace our inner witchness. I actually do that all year ‘round. I am often known to cackle at the kitchen stove when stirring a big pot of something or other.

For all of you out there who have a “secret “ recipe or a recipe with a “secret” ingredient. Come on, we know what you’re doing; you’re brewing!

Christine then goes on to announce, “I didn’t go to Yale.” Well, duh. Of course you didn’t; you went to Hogwarts. You might have been just a C student, Christine, but then so was Bushy and he bragged about it. Be proud of your Hogwarts affiliation. Your alumni card should be arriving in the mail soon.

I’m sure that Christine didn’t write this ad. What’s scarier and creepier is that she read it and said, “Yeah, that’s great. Let’s go with this one.”

I can’t wait to see her next ad addressing masturbation.

Witch’s Brew

A nice garnish would be some very thinly sliced apples or oranges, peel and all. Use your mandoline for this.

4 cups water
1 ½ cups sugar
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
12 whole cloves
4 cinnamon sticks
4 whole allspice berries or 1 teaspoon ground allspice
2 quarts apple cider
3 cups orange juice
Juice of 3 lemons

Stir water and sugar together in a heavy large saucepan. Add ginger, cloves, cinnamon and allspice. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cackle while you stir. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.

Strain syrup and return to pan. Add cider, orange juice and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer. Serve hot. You can spike this with rum or brandy, if you witch.

Makes about 14 cups.

The Versatility of Short Ribs

Restaurant Week is a 12 day celebration of food in Los Angeles, with participating restaurants serving up three-course prix fixe menus for $44 and under. Every year I undoubtedly come across a food trend I wasn't aware of while perusing the menus. Last year, sauteed scallops were offered at almost every restaurant, but this year the trend is clearly short ribs.

Spanish red wine-braised short ribs with olive oil crushed potatoes. Braised beef short rib with toasted couscous, wilted greens, and wild mushroom red wine sauce. Short rib risotto with port glaze and parmeggiano reggiano. Spice braised short ribs with creamy polenta and crispy shallots. These are just a few of the entrees listed.

If you're not familiar with them, short ribs hail from the chuck and plate primals, near the shoulder of the cow. They've got lots of connective tissue, which makes them perfect for braising. You can also slice the meat thin (a la Korean galbi), marinate it, and grill it up fast. Braising makes the ribs a bit more versatile, as the low, long exposure to heat and liquid render out all the connective tissue into gelatin, and this gives you the tender, falling apart, texture you want for stews. I like to use short ribs for more unconventional foods, however. You can replace just about any cut of steak with short ribs and make it into something new and wonderful. Beef stroganoff becomes absolutely mouth watering with the addition of short ribs, pulled apart first, and mixed in with all that creamy, mushroomy, awesomeness. Tacos become elevated. But my personal favorite, is adding short ribs to grilled cheese.

Most braised short rib recipes throw in all sorts of vegetables and herbs with the assumption that you're going to make a gravy from the remaining liquid. But for grilled cheese, that's too much unnecessary work. So here's my recipe for simply braised short rib grilled cheese sandwiches.


Short Rib Grilled Cheese

12 ounces of boneless short rib, cut into 2 inch chunks
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 cup of beef broth
¼ cup of red wine
½ a white onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
8 slices of monterey jack
8 slices of good quality sourdough bread
1 tablespoon of butter

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat until it becomes glossy looking. Pat the ribs dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sear the ribs on all sides for just a few minutes per side, then set aside on a plate. Add the chopped onions to the pot and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add wine to the pot and scrape up all the browned bits. Let the wine simmer until almost cooked off, about 6 minutes. Add the beef broth and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Add the ribs and any accumulated juices to the pot, cover, and cook in the oven for 1½ hours.

Once the ribs are done, pull them from the pot and place them on a plate to cool. Once cooled enough to touch without burning yourself, pull the ribs apart into shreds. Pre-heat a cast iron skillet on the stove top while arranging the sandwiches. For each sandwich, place one piece of monterey jack, then layer the meat on. Top with another slice of cheese and the bread. Heat butter on the skillet and grill the sandwich on each side for 2 minutes. Slice each sandwich diagonally and serve.

Serves 4