Our Pumpkins - Happy Halloween!

Ok I have bought the pumpkins and now it's time to let the children loose and design their own faces (this should be interesting)!  You may have noticed that there are three pumpkins that is because I wanted to do one too!

Here are our Pumpkins (mine's the one in the middle in case your wondering):

Looking at this picture it seems we've been a little creative this year - I hope you like them!  I have also tried to be a domestic goddess and have kept all of the edible pumpkin flesh which I have steamed and puréed ready to make some pumpkin cakes and soup etc. I will try and post the recipes soon.  

Happy Halloween!

Halloween Tasty Treats

This Halloween my girls have a few friends coming over for a Halloween tea before we go out on our annual Trick Or Treat trip around the crescent we live in.

Here are some Fab ideas I will be using to create a fabulous spooky treat for my little guests:

1) Ghostly Banana Pops:

Cut bananas in half and insert a lollipop stick into the cut side. Dip into melted white chocolate and cover. Place in fridge to set and apply face using melted milk chocolate or raisins. 

2) Orange Pumpkins:

Cut the top off of an orange and scoop out the flesh. Wash and dry oranges and using a sharp knife cut out the pumpkin face. Fill with small sweets.

3) Mummy Hotdogs:

Roll out puff pastry approx 3mm thick and cut into thin strips. Wrap the pastry strips around the hotdogs in a mummy-like manner and place on baking sheet.  Bake in oven set to 200C for 15-18 mins.  Add eyes using a dot of mayonnaise, mustard or ketchup.

4) Eyeball Spaghetti:

Cook the spaghetti according to packet instructions.  Meanwhile cut a small hole into mini mozzarella balls and push in half an olive.  Drain spaghetti and stir through some pesto.  Top with splodges of tomato ketchup and mozzarella eyeballs.

Halloween Dress Up Ideas

I have been scanning Pinterest for Halloween inspiration on the internet this week and found these great photos of Halloween Fancy Dress ideas! Check these bad boys out - so funny!

Halloween - Love It Or Hate It...?!

Personally we love Halloween in our house! - Don't get me wrong we don't go completely over the top (we're English after all) but we do enjoy partaking in a bit of pumpkin carving and my girls who are 6 and 3 love dressing up and 'trick or treating' around the close we live in.

I speak with many people who groan at the mention of Halloween as they really cannot stand it.  I always ask "Why Not"?  It's harmless fun in my mind - young children taking part in a small celebration and really enjoying themselves is great and I personally love to be involved.  However, I know in the past Halloween has gained a stigma in this country due to innocent people being bothered by over grown teenagers threatening to vandalise their properties if money is not being handed over under the proviso of Trick Or Treat!  This is unacceptable by anybody's standards and thank goodness in my experience this kind of bullying seems to have stopped.

There are always treats for any genuine Trick Or Treaters at our door and we love to see all the costumes. All I can say is please, please try and lighten your spirits when young children knock on your door with their sweet expectant faces merrily chorusing "Happy Halloween" and join in the fun. Halloween makes them so happy and it shows great community spirit if you can let your guard down and join in with the festivities!  So this year I urge you to give it a go! :-)