Who else is pumped for Halloween? I know this year is going to look different, but I still can’t help but be excited – Halloween is one of my favorite days. I’m planning lots of fun eats and crafts at home. We’ve got our costumes and we’re ready!
I have a lot of cookies on this blog, but Monster cookies are one of my favorites – and when you add candy eyeballs, they become deliciously perfect for Halloween.
Continue readingAre you ready for Halloween? We’re in full Halloween mode here. We’ve had trunk or treats the last two nights, and more fun planned for next week – but we’re getting slammed by a nor’easter this weekend so we’re taking it slower.
Which means it’s the perfect weekend for a fun, festive breakfast.
When Sue of Palatable Pastime suggested doing a #DeadAndBreakfast event, I was all in. Combining breakfast and Halloween? How can you go wrong!
These festive pastries are scrambled eggs with spinach and Mozzarella wrapped up in puff pastry. The spinach gives the eggs the fun green color, but if you’re not a fan you could always leave them yellow – or use a little food coloring.
Breakfast Mummy Pastries
(a Kate’s Recipe Box original)
Serves 8
9 eggs, divided
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1 package puff pastry sheets
1 tsp. water
16 sliced olives
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Lightly beat 8 of the eggs.
In a blender, combine the heavy cream and spinach until thoroughly pureed. Whisk into the eggs.
In a large skillet, scramble the eggs. At the end, stir in the cheese to melt.
Unroll the puff pastry onto a cutting board and cut each square into 6 rectangles – 12 total.
Lay out 8 of the rectangles on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cut the remaining 4 into strips. Top each rectangle with the eggs, then use the puff pastry strips to create a mummy-wrap pattern over top of them, pressing the edges into the bottom puff pastry to seal.
Beat the remaining egg with water and brush over the top of the pastry. Add olive eyes.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until puff pastry is golden. Serve immediately.
What are you being for Halloween this year? So far, we’ve got a purple dinosaur and Frankenstein’s monster. (And I’m hoping it doesn’t change at this point, since I bought the fabric to make them!)
As much as I love Halloween, it can be a little hectic. Aside from making costumes, we have two trunk or treats to prep for, the preschool costume parade, and classroom party – not to mention Halloween itself. Oh, and all the “real life” stuff happening this month too.
We are in full Halloween mode here: decorations are up, costumes are in progress, treats have been purchased. And something I’m extra excited about this year: we’re having a trick-or treat party.
Every year while growing up, our house was home base for trick or treating friends. We’d all meet up there, my parents would order lots of pizza, and we’d spend Halloween coming and going and eating too much candy. This year, we’re having some friends over to do the same thing with our kids, and I’m totally geeking out about it.
If you’re hosting a trick or treat party – or other Halloween party – this is the perfect spooky drink to make. Leave it virgin for the kids, or spike it up with caramel vodka, vanilla vodka, or Fireball for the adults. You can make the apples ahead and mix up the punch in less than five minutes when you’re ready for it.
Carving the shrunken apple heads is the most difficult part of this, but the beauty is it’s Halloween – they can be perfectly imperfect. You can also make the faces to match the crowd – scarier faces for an older crowd while silly faces would be perfect for a preschool gathering.
We had a lot of fun with this – the kids especially got a kick out of “the faces floating in there”!
Shrunken Head Punch
(a Kate’s Recipe Box original)
Serves 12
3-4 apples
1/4 cup lemon juice
6 cups apple cider
1 1/2 cups pear nectar
4 1/2 cups ginger ale
Optional: Vanilla vodka, caramel vodka, or Fireball, to taste
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
Working with one apple at a time, peel and core the apples, then cut in half. Using a paring knife or other tool, carve faces into the apple halves and dunk in the lemon juice.
Lay the carved apples on a rack over a baking sheet. When they are all carved, transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 1-2 hours, until the apples appear shrunken. Remove from the oven and cool.
Combine the apple cider, pear nectar, and ginger ale in a punch bowl or large pitcher. Add the cooled apple heads, and alcohol, if desired.
Looking for more Halloween inspiration? Here you go! And check back on Thursday when we’ll have another round of Halloween goodies ready for you!
I often tease my husband that he must have had a boring childhood because he doesn’t know 99% of the kid songs I know and he doesn’t get any of my Sesame Street references – and this started way before we had kids. There’s a few times he’s been able to tease me back – and making pumpkin seeds is one of them.
His family always roasted their seeds as a part of the annual pumpkin carving festivities. We never did. And now that I found a recipe I really like, I’m happy to incorporate them into our new family traditions.
This year was Jake’s first time helping with everything – he was unimpressed with the pumpkin and the seeds. Here’s to hoping he grows to love it!
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
(from The Homesick Texan’s Family Table)
Makes 1 1/2 cups
1 1/2 cups raw pumpkin seeds
1 Tbsp. salt
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/4 tsp. paprika
Pinch of cayenne
Rinse the seeds until they’re free of all pumpkin. Place in a pot and add 4 cups of water and the salt. Bring the pot to a boil then turn down and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry.
Preheat the oven to 375F degrees.
In a bowl, whisk together the melted butter and spices. Add in the pumpkin seeds and toss until evenly coated.
Line a baking sheet with parchment and spread out the pumpkin seeds in a single layer. Roast for 20 minutes, then let cool for 15 minutes before serving.