From Cauldron Cakes to Butterbeer to Fizzing Whizzbees, there’s no shortage of great grub in the wizarding world. Here’s some of the most delicious scenes from Harry Potter that make us want to eat our books.

Sausages, tea and birthday cake at the Hut-on-the-Rock

When we first meet Harry, he’s clearly not sampled many culinary delights – with the Dursleys tending to favour their own son’s ‘nutrition’ over their nephew’s. So while Dudley gets a giant chocolate ice cream, Harry is lumbered with a cheap lemon ice lolly, to name just one example. On his eleventh birthday, this all changed thanks to Hagrid, who not only broke into the Dursleys’ hideout and told Harry he was a wizard, but did so with a celebration of ‘fat, juicy, slightly burnt sausages’ and a large, sticky chocolate cake with green icing. And tea! Can you think of a better way to find out you have actual magical powers?

The mini birthday feast wasn’t fancy, not to mention that it took place in a damp hut in the middle of nowhere, but it was the perfect initiation for Harry into the wizarding world. Hagrid was never the best cook, but this must have been one of the first times Harry had enjoyed a meal made with love and care.

‘Anything from the trolley, dears?’

Harry’s induction into the world of wizarding sweets occurred during his first trip on the Hogwarts Express, thanks to a bit of help from his new friend and confectionary expert, Ron. Here, we were introduced to Chocolate Frogs with collectable cards, Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavour Beans, Drooble’s Best Blowing Gum, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes, Liquorice Wands and more.

Apart from the earwax-flavoured Every-Flavour Beans, we’d quite fancy a few of these.

Absolutely everything Mrs Weasley made

Imagine a slap-up dinner at The Burrow. Every time Molly’s cooking was merely mentioned in the books, it made for hungry reading, from bacon sandwiches to treacle pudding. And the epic Golden Snitch cake Molly once made for Harry’s birthday would’ve been a perfect showstopper on The Great British Bake Off.

A chocolate a day keeps the Dementors away

Harry’s third-year encounters with Dementors confirmed the wildest dreams of chocolate enthusiasts everywhere. How do you combat creatures of darkness that spread despair and misery? With a healthy chunk of Honeydukes chocolate, of course! It may only be a short-term remedy, but it’s quite a tasty one. Professor Lupin’s astute suggestion earned him Madam Pomfrey’s elusive approval and a spot on our list of ‘coolest teachers ever’ in one fell swoop.

The delights of Butterbeer

In Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry learned of the warming delights of Butterbeer when he finally managed to sneak into Hogsmeade and enjoy a tipple at The Three Broomsticks. The beverage’s exact ingredients have always eluded us (does it actually have butter in it? And surely it wasn’t alcoholic?) but the description of the ‘foamy tankards’ always made us crave one. And according to Hermione, it really does warm you up. Hot chocolate just got demoted.

Queenie’s strudel

The Harry Potter characters didn’t get all the foodie fun, you know. In Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Queenie introduced us to a magical pastry we’re still thinking about to this day. We think about pastry a lot, to be honest. By now we’d seen a lot of impressive spellcasting, but the on-the-spot creation of her apple strudel was a marvel, and a quick glance at the Fantastic Beasts screenplay tells us we’re not mistaken in daydreaming of a seat at such a table:

With a flick of her wand, QUEENIE sends raisins, apples and pastry flying into the air. The concoction neatly wraps itself up into a cylindrical pie, baking on the spot, complete with ornate decoration and a dusting of sugar. JACOB takes a deep breath in: heaven.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay

Magic plates that conjure more food

We experienced Yule Ball FOMO on many levels when we were reading Goblet of Fire, but – aside from the pretty outfits, the brilliant Weird Sisters gig and all the juicy Hogwarts gossip floating around – we really wanted those magic plates that conjured food from nowhere! Remember those, as introduced to us by Dumbledore? Just request what you want (‘pork chops’ in Dumbledore’s case), and the dinner of your choice would appear. We need to find out where Dumbledore purchases his crockery, pronto.