Hagrid's Rock Cakes | A Harry Potter Halloween
These Harry Potter-inspired rock cakes are so tender and perfectly sweetened. They're perfect for breakfast, or enjoying with a cup of tea!
Now that it's October, I'm really excited to start a new series on the blog! If you don't know already, I am a giant Harry Potter nerd. I started reading the books when I was a junior in high school, several years before the movies came out (yes, I'm old!), and they've been part of my life ever since. Luckily, my husband and kids love Harry Potter as much as I do, so it's something fun for us to enjoy as a family. We love to read the books and watch the movies together, and this year we're even dressing up as Harry Potter characters for Halloween. Since I love the whole wizarding world so much, I thought it would be really fun to do a series of Harry Potter recipes on the blog for Halloween. First up: rock cakes!
The rock cakes were shapeless lumps with raisins that almost broke their teeth, but Harry and Ron pretended to be enjoying them as they told Hagrid all about their first lessons.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
I know that in the books the rock cakes are described as being fairly awful, but I'm going to put that down to Hagrid's terrible cooking skills. My rock cakes are incredibly delicious! If you're not familiar with rock cakes, they're lightly sweetened drop scones with raisins. They're called rock cakes because they're sort of rough and uneven looking, like craggy rocks. I love that they're made with pantry staples, and so simple and delicious!
I found the recipe for these rock cakes in The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook (which you should definitely check out if you don't own it already!) and we've made them over and over since we first discovered the recipe. Every single time, I can't believe how good they are. Sometimes simplicity really is the best! They're crisp around the edges, but soft and tender in the middle, and the raisins make them extra delicious. If you really hate raisins, you could leave them out and I'm sure they would still be fantastic, but I love the raisins.
These rock cakes will keep several days if stored in an airtight container. We love eating them for breakfast or snacks, and they're perfect with tea or hot chocolate!
Rock Cakes
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold butter
1 egg
1/3 cup whole milk
1 cup raisins
Preheat the oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone liner. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Grate the cold butter into the bowl, and toss to coat with the flour. Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut in the butter until the pieces are no bigger than pea sized. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. Stir in the raisins. Drop the dough by large scoops onto the prepared baking sheet (I used an ice cream scoop), spacing 2 inches apart. Bake 25 minutes, until the edges are golden brown.
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