Halloween Food & Recipes

The Green Brain

a Taylor family recipe | makes 1 (very delicious) medium brain

Ingredients:

• 1 small package Lime Green Jell-O Brand Gelatin
• 1 C boiling Water
• 1/2 C Small Curd Cottage Cheese
• 1/2 C Miracle Whip (or Mayo)
• 1/2 C Evaporated Milk
• 1 C well-drained Crushed Pineapple
• Brain Mold (Oriental Trading or party store)
• Dark Green Lettuce Leaves on Platter

Directions:

1. In a small bowl combine gelatin and boiling water and stir until gelatin is completely dissolved. Let cool until liquid becomes syrupy.
2. Add remaining ingredients and stir until mixed uniformly.
3. Spray Brain Mold with nonstick cooking spray.
4. Pour mixture into the mold. It is all right if it doesn’t fill it entirely, but for a larger brain you may double the recipe and pour leftover gelatin mixture into hand molds (also available from Oriental Trading).
5. Refrigerate until firmly set.
6. Float mold in hot water for a few seconds.
7. Carefully turn mold out onto platter of lettuce leaves.

Suggestions:

• This goes well with almost any spooky dinner or party spread.
• Maintain “The Green Brain” effect longer: slice and serve with a pie server instead of a spoon.
• Play fun halloween music while you eat.

Hypnotic Apple Cheese Pinwheels

from M. Ryan Taylor | makes about 25 appetizers

Ingredients:

• 1 bag of Dried Apples
• 8 oz Cream Cheese
• 2 large Green Spinach Wraps (or other wraps)
• Cinnamon Sugar (optional)

Directions:

1. Using a food processor, dice the Dried Apples until they are in 1/4-inch chunks.
2. Add Cream Cheese and continue processing until well mixed together.
3. Spread mixture onto Wraps, covering entire surface.
4. If you’d like to add some sweetness, sprinkle on Cinnamon Sugar, making sure you only dust the surface lightly. Tamp the Sugar into the mixture.
5. Roll wraps up and cut into 1/4-inch pinwheels and arrange on a serving plate.
6. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until time to serve.

Suggestions:

• Go further: double the cream cheese and use four wraps; you’ll get a lighter apple taste, but twice the appetizers.
• Add cinnamon sugar when you process the dried apples and cream cheese together instead of sprinkling it on later.
• Play fun Halloween music while you eat.

Pumpkin Seed Party Mix

from the mind of M. Ryan Taylor
makes a large bowlful of super-quick-easy, delectably-sweet-and-salty party mix

Ingredients:

• 24 oz Almond Bark
• 2 C Toasted Pumpkin Seeds*
• 1 large bag or 2 medium bags of Chex Traditional Party Mix

* Use the pumpkin seeds from three small sugar pumpkins or buy pumpkin seeds at the store; particularly good (preferred in my opinion) are the shelled pumpkin seeds available from NuttyGuys.com (or similar varieties).

Directions:

1. Melt Almond Bark in a large microwavable bowl, according to the packages instructions.
2. Stir in Pumpkin Seeds.
3. Toss in Chex Traditional Party Mix.
4. Spread mixture on wax paper and let harden.
5. Break into clumps and serve.

Suggestions:

• Almond bark party mixes are not new. I really like this one, but the truth is you can toss almost anything into melted almond bark and it will taste good. Experiment with corn chips, potato chips, cereals (“Golden Grahams” is awesome in it), dried fruits, candies, etc. You almost can’t go wrong.
• One warning about almond bark: do not try to mix food coloring into it. Any water based liquid will cause almond bark to instantaneously harden. I once tried a recipe in which they recommended red and yellow food coloring to make the mixture orange; obviously, they hadn’t tested it because it went hard as a rock. . . . All my recipes have been tested and tasted (Mmmm!)
• Play fun Halloween music while you eat.