Thursday, August 22, 2013

"Old Black Witch"

One of the best memories I have of my childhood is the excitement of getting to watch reel to reel movies my mother would bring home from school (along with the projector) when she was teaching in the 70s.  There were several she would bring home, but my absolute favorite was called "Winter Of The Witch."  It's based on the book "Old Black Witch" by Wende and Harry Devlin (which I also owned and read over and over).
 
 
When Nicky and his mom buy an old New England house to turn into a tearoom, they are startled to find they must share the house with its resident troublemaker, Old Black Witch. "Boo! Scat, and Ratcha Fratch!" Old Black Witch calls out to all the tearoom visitors. Zooming about on her dilapidated broom, she manages to stir up plenty of fuss and excitement. Old Black Witch and its sequels originally sold more than one and a half million copies, now the "Blueberry Pancake Witch" makes her triumphant return after nearly fifty years! Try your hand at serving her delicious blueberry pancakes using the bewitching recipe that's included on the back cover.
 
 
 
 
Bewitching Blueberry Pancakes

1 1/4 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons melted fat or oil
1/2 cup washed blueberries

As you stir in the blueberries (this is the magic part) say three times:

Gobble dee gook
With a wooden spoon,
The laugh of a toad
At the height of the moon!

Pour on a hot griddle and watch.

You can make things disappear just like the Old Black Witch. Put three pancakes in front of any hungry boy or girl and watch them go.
 
My mother would let me make these special blueberry pancakes occasionally on weekend mornings and of course, the best part was getting to say the magic spell.  (It worked every time)!
 

A couple of years ago I discovered the old movie on YouTube. It's not the best quality, but it brought back some really good memories watching it.  It's only about 25 min long.
 
 
 

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