Harry Potter inspired Butterbeer and Pumpkin Pasties #thebookclubcookbookCC

I was provided with a copy of The Book Club Cook Book to use for this year-long endeavor of reading and food fun. All opinions and experiences and individual book purchases are my own.

I hope everyone enjoyed an amazing Thanksgiving Day! My heart was full while I sat down to dinner. November started with birthdays and now I had a chance to take a moment to just reflect and be thankful.

One of the little things I have really been thankful for lately has been the ability to share a bit of my childhood passions with my 6 and 8-year olds. This month we have started on a journey into a "Galaxy Far, Far Away..." with Star Wars books and movies, then we watched Never Ending Story and Goonies. I think my kids are starting to think their Mom has good taste.

And though the books came out when I was graduating, I remember reading every one of J.K, Rowling's Harry Potter series. Then when the movies came out, I was over the moon!

So in anticipation of November's Book Club Cookbook selection, Erin from The Spiffy Cookie invited us to read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, I started reading it to my kids at bedtime. It is just amazing to watch their faces as Harry and Ron raced into danger to save Hermione from the Troll, or when Harry competed in his first Quidditch match. They have already fallen in love with the characters and story. I can't wait to show them the movie! It has been years since I reread the book or watched the movie adaptation, so I am a little excited, too!

As we were reading, I made note of all the food mentioned in the book. After growing up with his aunt and uncle, Harry described all the amazing foods around him on the train to hogwarts as well as served in the great hall for meals. I could have chosen just about anything to make!

The Book Club Cook Book gives a recipe for treacle tart, which sounds delicious! But, I was moved by the season and my own interests and decided to create an adult version of Butterbeer and Pumpkin Pasties.

This group, The Book Club Cook Book Cooking Crew, was created by  Camilla, of Culinary Adventures with Camilla, brought together 11 food loving bloggers to take turns choosing books, recipes and sharing the fun. You can check out all the talented bloggers' sites below:

Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Tortillas and Honey
Adventures in All Things Food
A Day in the Life on the Farm
The Spiffy Cookie
The Pajama Chef
Life on Food
Cheese Curd in Paradise
Mostly Food and Crafts
Things I Make (for Dinner)

The pumpkin pasties made an appearance on the treat cart on Hogwarts Express. I decided to make a variation on my favorite pumpkin/candied yam filling with a little added crispy sage and browned butter.

I rolled out and cut pie crust to fit in my little dumpling press.

I picked up these presses for my kids to help me create pierogies since they are pretty easy to use. I also enjoy the small size for other sweet or savory treats like these pumpkin pasties.

Pumpkin Pasties

You will need:

• 2 pie crusts, cut in 2" rounds
• 1/4 c. pumpkin filling
• 1/4 c. candied yams, mashed
• 1 egg, slightly whisked
• 2 tsp. maple syrup
• 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• handful of fresh sage leaves, dried and stems removed
• 2 tsp. water

Prehead the oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together the pumpkin, yams, approximately half the whisked egg, maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk together the remaining egg and 2 teaspoons water and set aside. In a cast iron skillet, brown the butter and at the very end add the sage leaves to crips up. Don't let them burn. Removie the crispy leaves and roughly chop. Then add the browned butter and chopped leaves to the filling mixture.

Place a tablespoon of filling in the middle of one pie crust round. Fold over the edges and crimp with a press or your hands. Place on a non-stick baking sheet and brush the tops with the prepared egg wash. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

And then I didn't feel like I could read and write about Harry Potter without a recipe for Butterbeer. Now, this is an adult version and uses Pumpkin Ale as a base. I have enjoyed several soda versions (butterscotch soda bottled as Butterbeer), but this warm Butterbeer is a little different and perfect for these chilly nights.

Butterbeer Recipe (with real beer)

You will need:

• 1 Pumpkin Ale of choice - I used Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale
• 2-4 Tbsp. Homemade Butterscotch sauce *recipe linked up soon

In a small saucepan, bring the ale up to a simmer. Whisk in 2 - 4 tablespoon of butterscotch sauce, to taste. Serve warm and enjoy right away.

Giveaway

This month Erin at The Spiffy Cookie, this month's host, is giving away a copy of the book.* Enter to win a copy of the cookbook so you can join us in future months, if you wish!

One of our lucky readers - US and Canada only! - can enter to win a copy ofThe Book Club Cookbook, Revised Edition: Recipes and Food for Thought from Your Book Club's Favorite Books and Authors by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp, courtesy of Tarcher-Penguin. Giveaway runs from November 1st till November 30th at 4 o'clock PM, Pacific time. Please see terms and conditions in the rafflecopter widget below. Many thanks to Tarcher Books. You may find Tarcher: on the web, on Facebook, on Twitter, and on Pinterest.

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*Disclosure: Erin received a complimentary copy of The Book Club Cookbook, Revised Edition: Recipes and Food for Thought from Your Book Club's Favorite Books and Authors by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp as an opportunity to give a copy away. Opinions are our own. We received no further compensation for our posts.