Halloween Party 2010

 The Halloween party has come and go, and I have to say that I had a complete blast through the whole thing. I started planning it over a month ago, and it came together just as I had hoped. I literally had drawn up a time line for food prep and cooking, in addition to my floor plan for the decorations. Yesterday Adam and I got started at 9 am and didn't stop until 2, then I began actually cooking at 6. The morning was just as fun for me as the party and I am so happy/lucky that Adam likes to party plan as much as I do!

 I set up the desserts opposite of the main finger foods. I made White Chocolate Snack Mix, Cookies, Pumpkin Cream Cheese Wontons and Candy Corn Bark.

 I had all of the plates set up and ready to go for when the food came out of the oven. Candy Corn Pizza, Animal Feet and Macaroni and Cheese were the main finger foods.

I ordered some fresh pumpernickel bread and made egg salad and buffalo chicken salad. I used cookie cutters to cut the bread slices before adding the filling, then cut in half. My friend Carla got me these really cute toothpicks that came in quite handy!

I LOVED the idea of this Pukin' Pumpkin that I found it on Extreme Pumpkins. I used a small baking pumpkin and added Publix Spinach Dip, which was the easy way out but that stuff is so good! Everyone thought it was a fun idea, and it's one of my favorite things that was made.

Lastly, I made the famous buffalo chicken dip, which I don't care where you bring this to or who you prepare it for, everyone absolutely loves it. I used the crockpot which made it easy to refill the carved out baking pumpkins to keep warm servings coming out. I served with bread, crackers, celery and apples.

I honestly don't know that we will have another Halloween party next year, as it really is a lot of work and time, but we had so much fun throwing this together. Luckily Halloween is still a week away so it isnt time to take the decorations down yet! Happy Halloween!

Animal Feet

If you're looking for something scary to serve for a Halloween Party, or just for a Halloween dinner, you should make these! They were a serious hit and really look like animal feet with creepy rotting nails.

Animal Feet
1 package Lil' Smokies
2 tubes Crescent Rolls
1 package Slivered Almonds

Wrap the smokies with crescent roll until fully covered. Make sure there is enough dough to create a 'nail bed' and place almonds into the dough. Cover the bottom of the almonds with dough so that they stay in place.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for 20- 25 minutes, until browned.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Wontons

I have been wanting to make pumpkin wontons ever since I saw this recipe on Big Head in the Kitchen, so a party was the ideal time to try them out because I knew that there would be other pumpkin lovers there. When I got the ingredients I didn't look at the recipe, because I actually had an idea in my head of what they would be and then when I looked at the recipe I realized that I really wasn't even making that. I made a pumpkin cream cheese, which would actually be really good on bagel or with bagel chips, apple slices, etc.

I went ahead and put this mix into wonton wrappers and baked. They were a big hit among everyone who likes pumpkin, which I enjoyed since usually I am the only one who will eat this sort of thing. Since I put these in the oven mid-party, I wasn't able to snap a photo and they were all gone within 30 minutes so there were no leftovers either.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Wontons
14 Square Wonton Wrappers
4oz reduced fat Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 c Pumpkin Puree
1 tsp Brown Sugar
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees,

Combine items 2-6 in a bowl and mix until smooth. Add about 1 tsp of mixture to the center of the wonton, then wet all edges of the wrapper and fold one side over, pressing sides to seal.

Spray each wonton with cooking spray on both sides,  cook for 15 minutes, flip and cook 4 minutes more. Sprinkle with cinnamon and serve.

(Candy Corn) Pizza

Pizza seems to be something that everyone enjoys. I can't say that I remember knowing anyone who didn't enjoy a slice, so it was an easy choice to make for a party. I had seen the candy corn idea on Oprah's website, so I adapted it to my taste and it was the easiest dish that I threw together. It's a perfect idea for a kids or an adult party, and everyone will enjoy.

Candy Corn Pizza
Premade Pizza Crust
Olive Oil
1 large Tomato
6 oz Cheddar Cheese, shredded
4 oz Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
Garlic Powder
Oregano
S&P

Preheat the oven to 375 degreed

Drizzle olive oil on the crust and sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper.

Add slices of tomato. Place cheddar cheese on the outer ring and mozzarella on the inside.

Drizzle with a little more olive oil and a dash of oregano. Bake for 20 minutes and slice into triangles.

White Chocolate Snack Mix

This white chocolate snack mix recipe has been sitting in my google reader for months now, from the blog Apple A Day. It is really a simple idea that I know has been done before, but I have never had a reason to create it. Now I have, and this could be addicting!  I have had my eye out for Halloween m&ms for about a month, and still have not found them. You know, the purple green and black ones. So here I sat yesterday, picking the red, brown, orange and yellow m&ms out of a regular old bag. I also got cheap and used Publix brand Crispex instead of Chex, but I am positive that it tastes exactly the same.

You can add anything to this mix. Nuts, coconut, milk/dark chocolate, etc, etc. I love when people make this in the winter with milk chocolate and powdered sugar, so that will probably be my Christmas holiday version.

White Chocolate Snack Mix (from Apple A Day)

8 cups Chex or Crispex Cereal

8 oz white chocolate

1.5 cups M&Ms

2 cup mini pretzels

1 tbsp oil

Using a double boiler, melt the white chocolate on low heat with the oil - to loosen up the chocolate.

Place all other ingredients into a large bowl. When Chocolate is melted, pour into the bowl and use a large spoon to mix until everything is covered with chocolate.

Spread out on parchment paper to dry, about 2 hours. Break large pieces apart. This can be stored for about a week in an airtight container.



Candy Corn Bark

With a Halloween party just 2 days away, I am beginning to stress out about the prep work for the food. Since I am 2 hours away from the location and won't get there until tomorrow afternoon, I really needed to make some things ahead of time at home to just pack and bring with me. I found this bark recipe on allrecipes.com and loved that it was easy, yet festive. After searching through the comments section, I decided to go with a version that was made into mini cupcake liners. Let me tell you, these are SWEET! I have a love affair with chocolate, and one of these satisfied my chocolate craving for a day. If you are looking for something easy to make for any type of party this year, I would add these to your list.

Candy Corn Bark (adapted from allrecipes)
24 Mini cupcake Liners and 2 pans
1 lb White Chocolate
1 Cup Candy Corn
24 Mini Pretzels, broken into pieces
6 Halloween Oreos, cut into fourths

Using a double boiler, melt the chocolate on low heat, making sure not to burn.

Through trial and error I decided that the best method was to put just a dab of melted chocolate on the bottom of the liner, add oreo piece to anchor it down, drop pretzel pieces around the oreo.

 Add more white chocolate on top to coat. Top with Candy Corn Pieces.

Pumpkin Biscotti

 It is no secret that I love all things pumpkin. I know that you can make pumpkin foods all year round, but I prefer to save it for the fall months as it brings back good memories. Last year I made candy cane biscotti and loved them, so this year I opted for some pumpkin biscotti that I found over on The Way the Cookie Crumbles. I decided to dip mine in semi sweet chocolate and cover with Halloween Sprinkles, and I am so glad that I did. I think that without the chocolate I would not enjoy these as much, I think that they need a little more of a pumpkin flavor. However, with the chocolate they are perfectly delicious!

Pumpkin Biscotti (from The Way the Cookie Crumbles)
2½ cups (12 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
pinch ginger
pinch cloves
½ teaspoon salt
2 eggs
6 tablespoons butter, melted
½ cup pumpkin purée
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 Semisweet Chocolate Chips/Wafers
Sprinkles


1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Sift together the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, and spices into a large bowl.

2. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, melted butter, pumpkin purée, and vanilla extract. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Give it a rough stir to generally incorporate the ingredients, the dough will be crumbly.

3. Flour your hands and a clean kitchen surface and lightly knead the dough. Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper. Form the dough into a large log, roughly about 15-20 inches by 6-7 inches. The loaves should be relatively flat, only about ½ inch high. Bake for 22-30 minutes at 350ºF, until the center is firm to the touch. (Feel free to also form two smaller logs for cute two-bite biscotti; just cut the baking time to 18-24 minutes.)

4. Let biscotti cool for 15 minutes and then using a serrated knife cut into 1 inch wide pieces. Turn the oven to 300ºF and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes. Cool completely.

Melt chocolate wafers or chips in a double boiler and dip the bottoms in melted chocolate. Dip into a generous bowl of sprinkles and place on parchment paper to dry. To add chocolate swirls to top, place melted chocolate in a ziplock bag and cut off a corer, squeeze onto biscotti.

Halloween Party Decorating on a Budget - 2010

Parties can be extremely expensive to throw, so when we decided to host a Halloween Party, I knew that we we needed to start collecting decorations early to get good deals and stay on a budget. To my surprise, we were able to buy the majority of our decorations from the Dollar Store, saving us a lot of money. Yesterday I put everything up so that I would know what else we needed to buy before the party. I am happy with how things turned out and I think we spent about $60-$70 on everything, which could have been roughly 3times that amount if it weren't for most everything being $1!Now Adam gets to live in a scary house until October 23rd! So, here are the mostly completed pictures and projects from my halloween party decorating on a budget:

 I really wanted to incorporate a crime scene into the decor, so I found this Fake Blood Recipe collection and decided to go with the realistic option. When I went to make it I found that I had no food coloring, so I subbed red sugar sprinkles and it actually turned out very well! I used a fork to splatter it onto these white hand towels that I got at the dollar store.
Fake Blood Recipe
2/3 c. Corn Syrup
1/3 c. Warm Water
5 Tbsp Corn Starch
4 tsp red food coloring - I used 3 tbsp red sugar sprinkles instead
1 Tbsp Powdered Cocoa
2 drops of green or yellow food coloring - I didn't use

Mix the corn starch with the water in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the corn syrup. Add the food coloring slowly, checking for color

 I really liked the idea of using our red christmas lights to simulate a more bloody theme and keep things eerie

 I got the hands, feet, liver, bags of fingers and shattered bloody glass all at the dollar store. I used the fake blood recipe on the knives by dipping the tip in the bowl of blood and holding the knife up straight to let the blood drip down, then I froze for about 4 hours. I also love the roaches. I put one on the floor and spooked myself with it! We got a bag of about 10 at the dollar store.

 I am usually really bad with the cobwebs and hate how they get stuck to you, but I decided to web just about everything hanging up in the house.

 Here is my cemetery. Since the living room is just a big open space, I wanted to cover about 1/4 of it with the graveyard. I got the tombstones and skulls at the dollar store. I used black trash bags, cutting them at both sides and taped them to the floor. I plan to have some black lights as well as a strobe light in the direction of this. I also found a graveyard backdrop for $1 but am going to go back to a different store and see if they have 2 more, because that would be great as a backdrop to this against the white wall.

 Bloody gauze and cobwebs cover the fireplace

 More Christmas lights and 'creepy cloth' add some accenting to the other corner of the living room

The front door got me pretty frustrated as I wanted to put so much on it. It all worked out and I got 'creepy cloth', caution tape, lights and cobwebs all up!

We also have lots of bugs and rats and fingers to put in/by the food and beverages, so I think that for under $100 we did a great job creating a haunted atmosphere! Can't wait to see it all in action.

Halloween Party Prep

About 2 months ago or so, Adam and I threw around the idea of hosting a Halloween party in Gainesville. I love the creativeness that goes into the holiday and even without a party I would still want to decorate and make some spooky themed foods. There are so many neat ideas out there that it is hard to not want to try some things out.

Once Septmeber hit, it seemed like most every store had their decoration displays up, so we started shopping around for things. We ended up getting a lot of things at the dollar store, and then some at party city. We are trying to do this on a budget, so we have really been able to stick to that so far. I have literally drawn up 'blueprints' of the rooms and started planning what all I think we should do. I have decided to go with a 'Chop House' theme that includes lots of blood and body parts! We will actually be decorating this coming weekend (update: decorations go up!), as it's the last time I will be in Gainesville until party weekend, and we need to see what all else we need to get. I'm excited to see how this will all come together!

Of course, planning the menu was the first thing that I did. I have been infusing vodka with candy corn for about a month now, since the sugar will add a lot of flavor to the vodka I'm hoping to turn this into shots to take out of the test tubes that I picked up. Bloody Marys, rum and coke, and purple/orange gatorade with vodka will be on the drink menu along with your usual beer choices.

I want to do a heavy appetizer spread, as that party is at 7 so most people probably will have already eaten something. Here's what I think the final menu will be:
Garlic Brie in a breadbowl, served with apple slices, crackers and bread
Pukin' Pumpkin Dip - Spinach Dip served with Crackers
Buffalo Chicken Dip served in a mini pumpkin with crackers and possibly celery sticks
Candy Corn Pizza
Eyeballs - Meatballs in the crockpot
Baby's Fingers - cocktail weiner pigs in a blanket with almonds for fingernails
Ghost sandwiches - Egg salad and buffalo chicken salad on pumpernickle bread, cut into ghosts
Macaroni and Cheese

For Dessert:
White Chocolate Snack Mix, made with halloween colored candy
Candy Corn Bark
Chocolate Chip Cookies - a few that I froze with halloween sprinkles
Candy Bowl

I am also very excited that my sisters will be coming up and staying the night, so I will need to get some easy things for breakfast. Maybe just bagels as I hope to have had too much fun the night before to be able to do too much too early!

Chocolate Mustaches

I am heading to Connecticut tomorrow and I cannot wait. I am in need of a break from work and couldn't be happier for more than 2 days with Adam! There will be kids so I thought I would bring something fun. Kids love chocolate and when I saw these molds online I immediately wanted them, These will also be perfect for halloween or a fun party!

Here is a picture from CT, with all of the kids and their 'staches!

Halloween!

I cannot believe that Halloween has come and gone! It was one of the first years that I havent dressed up or gone out, but it was a lot of fun! I had originally made a complete Halloween themed day of snacks, but we ended up changing it up and just kind of going by what we were craving. We also stopped by a local liquor store and found some fun pumpkin beer which was exciting! IT was also funny because a lady in there asked which beer is best for sitting on the porch and scaring little kids! Haha, I wouldnt want to visit that ladies house! We snacked all day and watched some scary movies at night. We made it through The Shining and Halloween before watching the Seinfeld series finale, at which point I was pretty much dead asleep. These days not much can keep me up past 11, its pretty sad actually.

In the middle of the day we were cooking and Adam was cleaning up a bit when he found a snake curled up under a plate on his dining room table! It was one of the scariest things Ive experienced in a while even though I didnt even see it. He managed to pick it up by its tail and took it outside, where his neighbor chopped it with a machete. Thank goodness, I did not want that thing alive. It was our trick for this season, instead of a black cat we came across a black snake! UGH!

Our menu for the day was mummy dogs, homemade mozzerella sticks, jalapeno dip, mini strombolis, wings, veggies and dip, and cup-o-dirt.

We had a few groups of trick or treaters at Adams. He always buys the big size candy bars, he likes to be the favorite house! There were only a few greedy kids who tried to raid the bowl as I held it, I had to slap one girls hand away! And the older kids just came in regular clothes. But we still had a good amount of backup candy at the end of the night.

Creepy Crawly Cup-O-Dirt

I couldn't let Halloween go by without making this. Especially because my favorite pudding was on sale! This is such fun and easy dessert to put together.

Creepy Crawly Cup-O-Dirt

makes 2

10 Oreo cookies, no cream

6 Gummy Worms

1 large container Kozy Shack Pudding (or homemade)

Crush cookies. Put a layer of crumbs at the bottom of clear cup. Put 4 large spoonfuls of pudding on top. Stick 3 gummy worms in each cup, so that the head side is sticking out of the pudding. Layer remaining oreo crumbs on top.

Mummy Dogs

I have always loved the traditional pigs in a blanket, so when I saw this take on them all over the internet I knew that I had to make them this Halloween. They take a few minutes longer to make but were really cute and tasted just as yummy!

Mummy Dogs
3 Hotdogs (or more/less)
1 package Crescent Rolls

Preheat the over to 350

Cut hotdogs in half. Unroll dough and cut into strips. Wrap around the hotdog pieces, leaving a space in between for the face. Make eyes out of tiny pieces of the dough.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.