Wow, there has just been so much going on these last few months, I've barley had time to breath, let alone bake or blog. When did life get so busy?
This last week was no exception, especially with Halloween.
Now, I know I usually blog on Talk Star Wars To Me about Halloween, but this year, I figured that here was more appropriate, considering that there was a lot of food involved and not as much costuming.
Let's start with pumpkins. My awesome friend Jocey, invited me over for some good old fashioned pumpkin carving! Now I hadn't carved pumpkins since I was a kid, so I was super excited and kind of leery about my pumpkin carving skill level.
But as you can see, I don't think I needed to worry, Jocey had a plan.
And an awesome array of pumpkins, squashes and gourds
This little guy's name is Gord.
Jocey's fantastic Jack Skellington
Lou and Hillbilly Billy
My Ernie turned out pretty good if I do say so myself
Here they are all lit up
Check out how creepy this guy turned out!
So, the day before Halloween, I made cupcakes for the night itself. We had a Call of Cthulhu RPG night planned and I wanted to make cupcakes that would go with it.
But what flavour do you make something so dark and mysterious?
I went with the only thing I could think of; Guinness. I mean, it does absorb the light around it...
Guinness Cupcakes
1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness Stout
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large mixing bowl, combine the Guinness, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the sour cream.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, and baking soda. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet Guinness mixture.
I love my mixer soooo much!
Butter 24 muffin tins and divide the batter among the muffin tins
I used these awesome cupcake liners that I've had kicking around for a few years now and never had a good reason to use. I think they were perfect for this.
Bake 25 minutes, until risen and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out of the tins.
I didn't really like the icing recipe that went with these, so I decided to make this instead.
Cream Cheese Icing
by Allrecipies
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese,
softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar.
I then tinted it red with more red food colouring than I'd like to admit.
I couldn't find my awesome piping tip so I had to ice them by hand, which leaves a lot to be desired. I then added slivered almond teeth and chocolate covered almond eyes and there you have it
THE EYE OF AZATHOTH!
Perfect for a night of Horror!
This was my costume for work. Yup, I was a business-casual Darth Vader.
I really just wanted to wear my Darth Vader dress. Can you blame me? It's pretty awesome.
We also attended a Halloween party with some friends on the weekend and were asked to bring snacks.
Instead of making something sweet, like I usually do, we decided to try something else instead.
Deep Fried Ravioli
1 package store bought ravioli (about 24)
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups Italian style bread crumbs
1 tsp dried Oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano
vegetable oil and olive oil for frying
fresh basil for garnish
Preheat the oil: Fill deep frying pan with two inches of oil- 3/4 vegetable oil, 1/4 olive oil. Preheat until a thermometer reads 325°. Or you can guesstimate like we did, but I don't recommend it.
While the oil heats and sauce cooks, prep the ravioli. Place the buttermilk in a shallow bowl. Place the bread crumbs, oregano, salt, and pepper in another bowl. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper for the ravioli. Dip first in the buttermilk, shaking when lifting out of the bowl, then dredge in the bread crumbs. Place on the baking sheet while you coat the remaining ravioli.
When the oil is hot, fry the ravioli in batches, turning until golden brown- about 3 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the ravioli to paper towels to drain.
Sprinkle with extra cheese and shredded basil.
How amazing do these look?
Cheesy Marinara Sauce:
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 onion, minced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flake
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated pecorino romano cheese
In a medium sized saucepan, sautée the onion in olive oil over medium low heat for 8-10 minutes, until very soft. Stir in garlic and cook for about 1 minute, until fragrant. Add in the tomatoes, salt, and red pepper flake and cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Using an immersion blender, blend the sauce directly in the pot until mostly smooth. Fold in the grated cheese.
You're going to want to try this recipe. It's fantastic! It was hard not to eat them all myself.
They didn't last very long at the party. Once people started trying them, they disappeared!
As for costumes, Adam and I went as Hipster Mario and Luigi
Yeah, we went there.
I love his moustache!
Remove from the heat. Using an immersion blender, blend the sauce directly in the pot until mostly smooth. Fold in the grated cheese.
You're going to want to try this recipe. It's fantastic! It was hard not to eat them all myself.
They didn't last very long at the party. Once people started trying them, they disappeared!
As for costumes, Adam and I went as Hipster Mario and Luigi
Yeah, we went there.
I love his moustache!
So hipster....
So how was your Halloween? Do/make anything special? Let me know.
