This is Halloween

Fun Fact: Halloween is my second favorite holiday, next to Christmas. The evening combines candy, theatre, and the mystical all into one, sporting event. I like to think that our commercialized version was inspired by some truly spooky and other-worldly happenings. That being said, I can't just celebrate Halloween for one night. I get together multiple costumes, decorate every bit of the house and the dog that I can, and, I watch movies. Tons of movies. Here is a list of ones I've watched recently, favorites, and ones that aren't really strictly Halloweeny, but they put me in the spirit!

1. Scooby Doo and the Ghoul School (1988)
If you're also a fan of this goofy hound and his scruffy owner, I think you'll enjoy this movie. Created in 1988, the flick definitely has a nice 80's vibe going on. As it was a made-for-tv movie, there are weird fade outs at awkward parts but it adds to the charm that is obviously apparent at an all-ghouls finishing school. When the gang sign on to be fitness instructors for the school, they realize Halloween has come early.

2. Halloweentown (1998) 

Ahhhhh, when the Disney Channel still put out decent live action movies. In case you need a refresher, Marnie and her siblings secretly follow their grandma home one Halloween evening only to discover that the bedtime stories she had told them where really about her hometown. The first of the films is certainly worth your time, Halloweentown II is questionable, as is Halloweentown High. Return to Halloweentown no longer has the original Marnie, and therefore no longer has my heart. 

3. Session 9 (2001)

I normally do not like horror films and this one was no exception. I watched it with my dad but still closed my eyes for the last third of it. The plot focuses on a team of asbestos experts who are hired to clean an abandoned insane asylum in Massachusetts (which was actually a real place until they tore it down for apartments...and those apartments mysteriously all caught on fire). The pacing of the film, however, is refreshing, and leaves you thinking about the story long after it has ended. I can see why it's a cult fave.

4. It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)

Who doesn't like the Peanuts? This animated television special shows Linus waiting on Halloween night for the Great Pumpkin to appear. Everyone else seems to think that this fantastic gourd is a big fake. Who's right? You'll just have to watch to find out, it's only 25 minutes long.

5. The Exorcist (1973)

I don't care what anyone says, the original stills scares the pants off me every time. With the plot focusing on a young girl named Regan who has become possessed by an unknown power, the amount of anxious blanket-gripping is high for this film. It's crass, violent, and all together so much more suspenseful than the slasher films we have today. Merrrrrrrrrrinn!

6. Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005)

My dad and I decided to give this one a chance post-Exorcist watching. The story takes place in Eastern Africa, with the insinuation that the evil that has begun to plague the land is from ancient Iran. This movie starts fast and has an unexpected pace, keeping it pretty spooky. All in all, not a horrible choice.

7. Hocus Pocus (1993)

I put a spell on you, and now you're mine! Does this movie even need an introduction? Hocus Pocus is the tale of three evil witches being brought back to life after a non-believer challenges the ancient spell to keep them buried. High-jinks, singing, and rad 90's fashion combine for a Halloween classic that without question deserves an annual viewing. 

8. The Wolfman (1941)

The original wolfman is a great classic to add to your collection. Classics aren't for everyone, but I love how the stories unfold. You slowly learn about the town and their superstitions which ultimately lead a non-believer right into the jaws of the beast! This is best watched with a pentagram nearby. 

9. Carrie (1976)

Scary Carrie. What a poor, misunderstood girl. The lead, Carrie, is a misfit that suddenly gets asked to prom by a super hottie and begins to realize that she has super powers. Here's a question- why do Carrie and her mother have southern accents? Some mysteries go to the grave.

10. Frankenstein (1931)

Another classic. Dr. Frankenstein is driven mad by the idea of having divine power and creates a monster with a murderous mind. The lack of humanity in this film is almost scarier than the idea of a creature made from hangmen and lab parts. Obsessed with the idea of destruction for creation, who is the monster and who is the man?

11. Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were Rabbit (2005)

The crazy duo are at it again. This time, the brits are humane exterminators that discover a monster is destroying the town's prized vegetable crops right before the annual Veg Fest. A bit of cheddar and sleuthing bring the team face to face with the critter in question. 

12. Dracula (1931)

I may or may not have thought this was scary due to my very rational fear of Vampires. We start out in a foreign land only to have the story shift to the streets of England (per usual). In no time at all the citizens of London are being attacked by an assailant that seems to just disappear into the midnight sky. If only they knew!

13. The Halloween Tree (1993)

Originally a book, this movie that Cartoon Network aired is probably (sorry, Hocus Pocus) my favorite Halloween movie of all time. Pip, the best boy that ever lived, mysteriously becomes ill on his favorite night of the year. His four friends make an unsettling deal with a sketchy old man who offers to help them find Pip while showing them the true meanings of Halloween. Whatever you do, make sure you watch this movie this year. Make me proud. 

Others to Note:

Psycho 

The Shining

Alien(s)

Young Frankenstein (a comedy with Gene Wilder)

Nightmare Before Christmas 

An Italian Affair

     I really do enjoy baking seasonally; there's something ungodly about a pumpkin pie in June. However, sometimes you just have to go against the tides and play nature. I froze cherries from the summer and planned on making some ice cream with them later in the year (like in February when you can no longer eat citrus as your only form of fruit). As I was deciding what kind of a cake to make for my mom's birthday, the cherries resurfaced in the freezer, a premonition from a higher power. Almonds and cherry are a classic combo which is also mom-approved. I was off to the races until I encountered this...

Cherry-Almond Cake

I searched high and low for marzapane, and for what? This. This little can of "almond filling" was the closest thing I could find. I tried shaking it to see how viscous it was but was uncomfortable as I was being watched...you do you, I do me, store-keeper. When I opened it, it was more loose than marzapane, but what could I do? I was in deep.

This part was delightfully simple. I just added the butter, almond filling, sugar, and vanilla into a stand mixer and mixed until it was smooth. I then added the eggs, one by one, followed by the flour and baking powder, which I folded in. Lastly, I added the halved cherries. I divided the batter into two 9-in pans that were well greased. This is the finished cake. The almond filling did not result in mutant cake babies. 

Pastry cream time. Awwwww yea, look at that cream, and so easy to come by. This glorified pudding is a snap to make. You bring the milk and the vanilla bean to a boil. In the meantime, you combine the cornstarch, sugar, and salt together in a large heat-proof bowl. Add the eggs one by one into the heat-proof bowl until incorporated. Temper the egg mixture by slowly adding 1/3 of the milk, while whisking, into said bowl. Now add the egg mixture back into the pot to bring to another boil. I strained my mixture at this point to ensure against lumps and chunks but you don't need to. Once the mixture comes to a boil, you only need to cook it for a minute or two. Take the thickened mixture off the heat and slowly add the cold butter. Put that gem away for later.

Now we layer. Carefully slice each cake in half horizontally, yielding four cake disks in total. I took prepared cherry jam and added some water to it to make it easier to spread. Then the cream goes on.

It can be a hot mess because you're going to cover up your mistakes with icing! 

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To make the icing, combine two room-temperature sticks of butter with three cups of powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. Ice Ice, baby.

Yay, all of your imperfections have been covered up with buddah.

My family said this was the best cake I've made to date. I have a coconut cake floating around in my memory that has that honor, though.

Recipes

Cake:

(Adapted from Nigella Lawson's "How to be a Domestic Goddess")

350 F 40-50 min.

1 1/2 sticks butter

9 oz. marzapane (or my jenky can)

3/4 c sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla 

6 eggs

1 c and 1 tbsp flour

1 tsp baking powder

Pastry Cream:

(Adapted from "The Professional Pastry Chef" by Bo Friberg)

1 pint whole milk

1/2 vanilla bean

1 oz. cornstarch

4 oz. sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 eggs

2 oz. butter

Icing:

2 sticks of softened butter

3 c powdered sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

milk, as needed

A Bushel and a Peck

     October is such a tease. The morning and evenings are chilly, but the days are glorious and bee-filled, perfect for outdoor activities. This weekend was the ideal backdrop for apple-pickin and eatin. Mostly eatin. We wanted to pick Jonathan apples for  our treats, but the hayride was too short. How often do you ride on hay? If you're me, you do not, because you're allergic to grass. I digress. Anyway, we picked the tractor that went to the golden delicious field, which was also by the stayman-winesap trees. I'm not gonna lie, we tasted the latter to make sure they were a good addition to the goldies. They were! After picking up some apple cider ( when it rains, it pours), we went back home and baked the fruits of our labor.

Apple Upside-Down Cake & Apple Crumb Pie

Classic crust action. Cut the cold fat into the flour, sugar, and salt. Slowly add the cold water and bring the dough together. I lost my pastry blade so I worked quickly. My paws get pretty warm. Put that away while we make all the other things.

Now you can peel all of your apples, but not with this. This is the destroyer of dreams. If you're into fiber, you don't have to peel them, but I think the overall effect is better peeled. 

Cake time. Not pictured: the 9-in cake pan that butter was melted in, and was then sprinkled with brown sugar and grated ginger, which replaced the crystallized ginger called for. The apples were then artfully arranged on top. Next, cream the butter and the sugar and add the rest of the wet ingredients. Add the dry ingredients and lightly mix to combine. Pour over the arranged apples.

Back to pie. Mix the spices, flour, lemon juice, sugar, and apples together. The recipe calls for cornstarch, but mamma always says flour (1/4 c) goes with apple. We actually made all these treats as offerings to the gods so the Birds would win. Strategic. 

Now the pie goes in at a higher temperature for half an hour, NAKED. After the half hour has elapsed, you can cap ya pie with its oatmeal crust. To make the crust, simple cut the butter into the flour, oats, brown sugar, spices, and salt. We added a little water to make more of a spaceship shield. We also doubled the crumb recipe because we're fat.

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Both can now go into the lower temperature oven for half an hour.

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After consuming this plate with a mug of apple cider, I have to say, I've never felt more like a lumberjack. 

Recipes

Pie (adapted from Ken Haedrich's "Pie")

400 F-375 F 30 min. each

Crust:

1 1/2 c flour

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 c cold butter, diced

1/4 c cold shortening

1/4 c cold water

Filling:

7 c sliced apples

1/3 c sugar

juice and grated zest of 1 lemon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

Crumb(this is the doubled recipe):

2 c flour

1/2 c rolled oats

1 1/3 c brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 c butter, diced

Cake (adapted from Raymonde Bourgois' recipe in Taste of Home Sept/Oct)

375 F 30 min.

Apples:

1/4 c butter, cubed

1/4 c brown sugar

1 Tbsp finely chopped crystallized ginger

2 large apples, peeled and sliced

Batter:

1/2 c butter, softened

2/3 c brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 c flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c 2% milk

Autumn, I've got you under my skin.

     For years, I have stressed about making the perfect birthday cakes. It is a gift and a curse when people know you enjoy baking; they expect things. They might not even know they expect things, but inside their mischievous noggins, a little voice is whispering, "don't worry, she'll make the cake...". Then, for weeks I'll consider hundreds, okay, thousands of recipes that could potentially be perfect for the birthday gal or guy. The reason birthday cakes stress me out so much is the weight of failure that comes in tow with an imperfect cake. Nothing says, "happy birthday" like a cake that has turned into a small replica of Mt. Doom. An imperfect cake meant an imperfect birthday in my book. That all changed this year when my sister slaved in the kitchen for what seemed like hours to make me a birthday cake. The result looked like a swamp log, but I was so pleased! She had put so much love and sweat (literally?) into that cake. That's when it dawned on me: it's not the cake itself, but the action that is a gift. With that in mind, I've been making less complicated cakes for birthdays, meaning less room for mistake and more nommin.

Spiced Applesauce Birthday Cake

Cream dat butter. Once you've creamed the sugar and the butter together, add the rest of the wet ingredients. This will look like curdled milk. Go with it.

Next, sift all the dry ingredients together so there aren't any questionable lumps. I added ginger, mace, and nutmeg to my mix, a teaspoon each. Why? It's fall and I'm an American. 

Combine the two mixtures just until the batter forms. Add the chopped apples (that I included) at this point. When the cake escapes from the fiery pits of the oven, it should look something like this.

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For the icing, I just folded some mascarpone into whipped cream. Wait until the cake is cooled before you attempt to ice it. Being impatient with this step shatters dreams.

Wow! How many other grandpas do you know who are twenty? You go, Vinny. My old a cappella group was kind enough to provide a birthday jingle at this point. Check these she-foxes out: http://auralfixation.weebly.com/index.html

As you can see, my family and I are gifted in slicing cake.

I don't even like apple cakes and I was diggin this one like an old soul record. 

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There you have it, a humble cake for a humble guy. May all of your birthday cakes of the future be filled with joy and gumption. 

This was my birthday cake. The commitment! 

Recipe

(Adapted from "Betty Crocker's Cookbook")

350 F 55-65 min

2 1/2 c flour

2 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 c water

1 1/2 c applesauce

1/2 c shortening (I used butter)

2 eggs

3 medium apples, small dice

 "You make it too comfortable for me to eat all the time." E.L. Hooven


 Shouldn't we always be comfortable with the food we are eating? I believe in this scripture and I also think that the colder months are the perfect time to practice this. My friend and I recently spent time together and realized that we were both going to sacrifice each other to the food gods if we weren't fed immediately. We were getting coffee and decided to grab some croissants and a terrible beauty was born.

Autumnal Toasted Cheese Sandwich

Mmmmmm, fig jam. This is the first layer of the sammich.

Give that pastry a dainty layer.

He's pretty good with dainty things.

Next, pick your cheese. I went with pure cheddar while my friend opted for a cheddar/provolone combo. Try different cheeses, if you please.

Good luck!

While that jon is getting real toasty, you'll want to slice some apples thinly and mince some rosemary. 

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Evenly place the apple slices and the rosemary.

Lastly, I topped our sandwiches with a maple-ginger aioli. To do this, I added a touch of maple syrup and powdered ginger to store-bought mayonnaise. Sorry I didn't make my own aioli, I couldn't concentrate enough with all of the battle cries emanating from my stomach.  

Battles were won that day. Our savage stomachs were soothed and sated. 

"A gourd by any other name would taste as sweet, dear Bromeo."


I have been waiting for the official start of Autumn to jump into the apple/pun'kin category of living and have to say, although it's tasty, I'm still sweating my summer skin off. Gross. That being said, I did see a righteous recipe for pumpkin frozen yogurt that I think I'm going to preview soon. Let's just put something out in the open here. I have maybe, like, three pictures for this post. This is partially due to the fact that my visiting sister helped me make it and and I got caught up in us quoting Marcel the Shell. The other issue was I immediately dug into the bread with my hands, preparing for consumption, and totally ruined the shot. As is life.

Chocolate Pumpkin Loaf

Super easy recipe. Combine all of the dry ingredients together. I sifted these together into a bowl and added two tablespoons of cocoa powder. You don't have to sift, but I think a bit of magic makes its way into the bread if you do. Spooky.

Next, cream the butter with the sugar in another, larger bowl. The recipe called for oil but we had none. Sometimes you just have to trust in the almighty powers of butter. Amiright?

To this mixture, add the eggs, vanilla, water, and pumpkin puree. I have used Libby's my whole life and suspect it's the best. I have used Trader Joe's summinsummin once or twice with similar results.

Fold the dry into the wet just to combine and throw in a handful of chocolate chips for good measure. I must warn that I have rather little paws so don't get mad if the amount isn't up to snuff. Pour into a lined pan. Sprinkle some chips on top too. Why not? Fall is YOUR season, ladies, is it not?

Place your loaf in the oven and let it chill out for around an hour. I found that my loaf needed more time than that. Follow your nose, you lil toucans. 

Allow loaf to cool until the lil guy doesn't burn your hands off, should you happen to enjoy eating with your grubby hands, like myself.

Randog was so excited for the loaf he fell asleep during the process. 

Recipe

(Adapted from "The Art and Soul of Baking" by Cindy Mushet)

9x5 loaf pan--350 F--55-70 min

Dry:

2 c AP flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

2 Tbsp cocoa powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1 1/2 c sugar

1/4 tsp salt

Wet:

2 large eggs, room temp

1/3 c water

1 c pumpkin puree

1/2 cup butter, softened 

1 tsp vanilla

1 c chocolate chips