Cottage Pie

What is little-known about Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain) is that he was born just after the appearance of Haley’s Comet and died the day after it returned. In the muggle world, this was just considered a coincidence, but in the wizarding world, it is known by some that Twain was one of the most powerful wizards in history. Unbeknownst to Twain’s father, John Marshall Clemens, they descended from a wizard in Cornwall England, Robert Clements, Jr., who was a muggle turned wizard--rejecting his preacher father’s anti-witchcraft ideals. After a failed marriage, because of his interest in wizardry and alchemy, Robert, Jr. married a witch, but his firstborn stayed with his former wife and was raised in a strictly anti-magic environment. The magic resurfaced through Twain who was unaware of his magical abilities in his youth. When he moved to New York City, at the age of 18, he was approached by a peculiar old man who handed him a book, then walked away. It was a book about prophecy. After reading it, he realized that his dreams were not dreams at all but visions--most of which he did not understand until he read that book. At the age of 21, he had a dream about his brother’s death on an exploding steamboat which came true on June 21, 1858. It was at this point that he fully realized his natural abilities and started studying parapsychology,  the study of paranormal and psychic phenomena and joined the Society for Psychical Research, based in the United Kingdom. He became obsessed with science, magic, and parapsychology and made many contacts in all those fields, including relationships with Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Rasputin, Faris Spavin (Minister for Magic 1865 to 1903)Madam Eloise Mintumble (a registered time traveler with the Ministry of Magic.) These associations were not enough for Twain, so he taught himself to time travel and became friends with scientists and wizards of all ages, including Merlin, Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Nicolaus Copernicus, Nostradamus, Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkle Emmanuel Ambroise Diggs.

You might be wondering what this history of Mark Twain has to do with cottage pie, so let me get to the point. In his travels (whether for magical or mundane purposes,) Twain detested the food in Europe. He frequently wrote to his long-time housekeeper and friend, Katy Leary, to tell her about his disdain for European food and how he looked forward to coming home. There was, however,  one exception: cottage pie (not to be confused with Shepard's pie, which is made with lamb instead of beef.)

SOURCES: Miriam-Webster.com, oxforddictionaries.com, Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management, focloir.ie, irishnobleman.com, jamieoliver.com, biography.com, coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu, whatscookingamerica.net, pottermore.com, harrypotter.wikia.com.