Tag: Lightening Bolt

Harry Potter & The Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling 
And Lemon Drop Squares 

Ok, I know that I have committed an English teacher crime by reading Harry Potter for the first time in my adulthood – but here we are. I am not sure why I didn’t read Harry Potter as a child, especially since it completely consumed my generation. Maybe it was my rebellious nature and desire to go against the grain as a little angsty hormonal middle schooler? Who knows. As a kid I read the first chapter only, then I watched the movie and was upset that Dumbledore’s lemon drop scene didn’t make the cut as he dropped Harry off on the Dursley’s doorstep. What a little film critic I was. 

As an adult, I absolutely loved the first book and am kicking myself for not reading it sooner. It truly is a work of literary genius – it develops and creates an entire world but does it so carefully, where you get 100 pages down and realize a clue had been dropped on page 5 for a character you’ve finally formally met. Just so good. Books also just have the ability to slow-develop characters in a way that movies don’t have the time for. For example, we had much more time with the Dursley’s in the beginning of the book and therefore developed a much more passionate dislike for them. I was also much more impressed with Harry’s strength of character in the book form versus the movie (although I love the movies too). We saw much more of an active struggle getting to read his thoughts and how he balanced out the pros and cons of situations. And Dumbledore is an absolutely lovable and cooky character! How I wish his flower bonnet for the Christmas dinner made it in the movie because the image had me giggling. It’s inspiring to see such a powerful, successful, and wise figure have such a joy for life. 

Obviously rating this book feels silly, but if you’re like me and haven’t read it yet end the shame now and get to it!

Final Recommendation:

Skip it! /  Put it on your list! / ((Go read it now!))

I wanted to make a dessert that honored  Dumbledore’s love of Muggle lemon drops. I love that he carries around and appreciates a Muggle candy – this is the first character move we really see him make that sets the stage for his humility and humor despite being a powerful wizard. 

The quote that inspired the recipe:
“We have much to be thankful for. Would you care for a lemon drop?”
“A what?”
“A lemon drop. They’re a kind of Muggle sweet I’m rather fond of.”
No, thank you,” said Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn’t think this was the moment for lemon drops.”

Dumbledore’s Lemon Drop Squares
Adapted from Serious Eats

Ingredients: 
For the Crust:

• 1 cup AP Flour
• ½ cup Powder
• ¼  teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon of zest (needs to be freshly grated or else dries out)
• 1 stick of cold unsalted butter, cut into ¼ inch dices

For the Custard:

• 3 large eggs, cold
• ½ cup/135 grams  egg yokes (this was from about 6 eggs for me but Serious eats says 8 eggs. It’s helpful to have a scale for this one)
• 1 ⅓ Granulated Sugar
• Pinch of salt (kosher is the best for baking)
• 1 packed tablespoon of lemon zest (this came from one large lemon for me)
• 1 ⅓ cups of lemon juice (this came from 7 lemons for me but you could need 8-9 depending on how juicy your lemons are!)

Topping:

• ½ cup powdered sugar
• Small sheet of wax paper to make your lightning bolts

*Note: These turned out to be a bit too sour for my taste but had a lovely color and texture. I liked the taste because they were very similar to a lemon drop candy. I would make some fresh whipped cream on the side to cut the flavor and it would be perfectly balanced!

How-To:

1. The Crust: Your first step is to make the crust for these bars. This is a fairly simple process and most of the work is done by your food processor. Preheat your oven to 350! 
2. Line your 8×8 pan (Serious eats suggests anodized-aluminum, but I only had glass so I watched the crust more closely and took it out earlier.) Hang two pieces of parchment paper over the pan (these should cover the whole bottom of the pan and hang over all four sides). 
3. Combine all of your crust ingredients into your food processor. Pulse the ingredients until they start to combine. If it’s sandy, keep pulsing! It will start to form into bigger pebbles. 
4. Put this into your prepared pan and press it firmly into the pan to form a smooth even layer. 
5. Bake about 30 minutes (less if you don’t have an aluminum pan) Keep an eye on it and pull it out of the oven when it’s light gold and firm to the touch.
6. The great thing about this crust is you can make it early and store it up to 48 hours (tightly covered/room temperature) I made it earlier in the day, ran some errands, and used it a few hours later when my custard was ready. You can also use it hot/fresh out of the oven! 🙂
7. If you are using right away, keep your oven on and heated to 350!
8. The Custard: In a large saucepan, whisk together your whole eggs, yolks, granulated sugar, salt, and lemon zest until combined. After this is well-combined, whisk in your lemon juice. Cook this over low heat for around 3 minutes gentle stirring it. Test it with your finger to see if it’s warm. 
9. Increase your heat to medium-low and continue to stir (I switched from my whisk to my wooden spoon here because the sauce will thicken). Use a thermometer and turn off your heat when it gets to 170 degrees. This took me about 6 minutes but can take up to 8. 
10. Make sure your crust is nearby because once this is done you’ll immediately strain it(using a fine mesh strainer) on top of your crust. Smooth it out gently if necessary.
11.  Cover your pan with aluminum foil. Bake your bars until firm. This took mine about 12 minutes but check on it after 9 minutes. 
12. Take out of the oven and take OFF the foil. Bring the pan to room temperature. If you keep the foil on it will trap the heat, still cook a bit, and you’ll get a build-up of condensation. 
13. When it is cooled down, replace the foil and put it in the fridge for at least an hour.
14. The Topping: Loosen the sides of your bars with a butter knife where necessary. Hold on to the parchment paper and pull gently up and transfer it whole to a cutting board. 
15. Cut into squares of whatever size you wish. I also trimmed a bit of the side to it looked more uniform. 
16. Trace out a lightning bolt on some wax paper (or parchment!) and cut out your stencils. Place them on the squares ensuring that a teeny bit of the stencil still hangs off. 
17. Use your cleaned fine mesh and put your powdered sugar in it. Gently hit the sides of your mesh strainer over your bars to shower powdered sugar on them. 
18. Use a toothpick or a tweezer to lift up your wax thunderbolts when you’re done!