October means Halloween

Happy Halloween from the Lovely Lunch Ladies.  We had our Halloween party early which is good because here in Cleveland we had Hurricane Sandy hit our Lake Erie shoreline.  Many are still without power and there was lots of damage from falling trees and high water.  We are glad we were able to celebrate and wish all those suffering from this tragedy that lives will return to normal soon.  

Snake Appetizer Sandwiches made by Stacey

Use frozen bread dough sheets cut in half longways  and then added to each other to create a long skinny piece.  You can use your favorite fillings but this is what I used.  One was made with roast beef (thin sliced), provolone cheese and horseradish.  The other was made with mozzarella and sun dried tomatoes and pesto.  Roll up the sides to make a snake and curl the tail.  Use black olives for the eyes and roasted red pepper for the tongue.  Use an egg white wash colored green, red, and yellow to color the snake skin.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. 

Veggie Platter made by Andrea

Baby carrots

Cucumber

Broccoli

Black Olives

 

Use a round platter and fill it with baby carrots.  Use a small bunch of broccoli for the stem.   Arrange black olives to form triangles for the eyes and nose.  Cut a cucumber in thin slices and cut in half to make the mouth. 

Checkerboard Cheese Platter made by Diane

White Bread

Cheddar Cheese Spread

Cream Cheese

Chopped Olives

Spread  cheese on half of your bread.  On the other half spread the cream cheese and top with the chopped olives.  Cut into squares and arrange in a checkerboard pattern on a platter.  You can improvise with any cheeses that you want as long as they contrast. 

Cheese Pumpkin Appetizers made by Kathy

8 Tbsp. smoked Cheddar cold-pack cheese food (from 8 oz container, well chilled)

2 tsp. finely chopped peanuts

4 butter flavored pretzel spindles or sticks, broken in half

16 tiny pieces fresh parsley leaves, 

Line a small serving platter with waxed paper.  For each pumpkin, roll a level Tbsp. of cold-pack cheese food into a ball and plate on the plate.  Refrigerate for 10 to 15 minutes for easier handling.  With the end of a toothpick, draw ridges around the balls to look like the lines on a pumpkin.  Dip bottoms of the cheese balls in the chopped peanuts.  Just before serving, insert pretzel halves into the cheese balls for the pumpkin stems.  Decorate with parsley for the leaves.  Store in the refrigerator.

Holiday Stuffed Pumpkin made by Diane

a handsome pumpkin about 10" diameter with a solid stem attached

2 cups short-grain brown rice or brown basmati rice

1 cup other whole grains (2/3 cup wild rice and 1/3 cup barley is our standard, but any grain with a different texture from rice-like millet or wheat berries will be fine)

2 tsp. olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion 

3/4 cup cup chopped celery

1 or 2 cups sliced apples

sweet red pepper, chopped finely (optional)

1 tsp. dried safe - or more to taste

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1 to 2 cups cooked garbanzos (or kidney beans or any other mild bean that won't fall apart during baking) or a package of tofu diced very finely or crumbled

1 cup peeled and sliced roasted chestnuts

1/2 cup raisins, sultanas, or fresh cranberries

1/2 cup chopped almonds or filberts or pine nuts or butternuts

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1 tsp. soy sauce or 3 Tbsp. frozen concentrated orange juice (depends on if you like sweet or savory)

grated black pepper to taste

maple syrup or cranberry sauce or a fruit chutney

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Carefully cut the top off the pumpkin with a knife angled toward the center of the pumpkin so the lid won't fall in when baked.  Clean the seeds and strings out of the center of the pumpkin (wash seeds and save for toasted pumpkin seeds), put a couple of Tbsp. of water into it, oil the cut edges of both pumpkin and its lid, and bake both parts on a baking sheet for about 40 minutes or until the pumpkin is quite soft when poked with a fork.  While the pumpkin is baking, cook the grains as usual.  Saute the onion until translucent, then add the apples, celery, chestnuts, herbs and spices, and cook until the apples are just starting to get soft.  (add a bit of water if needed).  Mix in the beans or tofu, raisins, nuts, parsley, soy or orange, and sweet red pepper and heat gently.  Add the grains and mix well.  When the pumpkin is baked, stuff it.  Replace the  lid tightly.  Lower the oven temp to 350 degrees and bake on a baking sheet for about 30 more minutes, or longer if the stuffing was not hot when the pumpkin was stuffed.  Bring the pumpkin to the table and enjoy a new tradition.  Hand someone a pot holder and let them remove the lid.  You will probably get a big puff of steam.  Serve the stuffing with a slice of pumpkin topped with a bit of maple syrup, cranberry sauce, or fruit chutney. 

Chicken with Mushrooms and Cheese made by Lori

Chicken Breasts - pounded thin

Margarine

Egg - beaten

Bread Crumbs

Mushrooms

Cheddar Cheese - shredded

Saute the chicken in margarine.  Dip the chicken into the egg and then the bread crumbs.   After chicken is seared lay it in a pan.  Layer the mushrooms and shredded cheddar cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. 

Asian Chicken Wings made by Kathy

3 lbs. chicken wings

1/3 cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 Tbsp. chili sauce

1/2 cup honey

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne), optional

Wash the chicken wings and pat dry.  Remove and discard the wing tips.  Separate each wing into 2 pieces by bending the 2 parts backward, then cutting through at the joint with a sharp knife.  Place in an airtight container.  Mix the remaining ingredients and pour the marinade over the wings.  Cover and refrigerate overnight, turning occasionally.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Arrange the chicken wings on a foil-lined pan.  Brush with marinade and bake for 25 minutes.  Turn the wings, brush with marinade, and bake for 25 minutes longer. 

Festive Jello with Pudding made by Sandie

Sandie likes to combine various flavors of jello and vanilla pudding to make this pretty trifle.  Use your imagination to make it look like the holiday.  Here she used orange jello, mandarin oranges, red jello, and pineapple inspired by fall colors.  Just layer the jello and pudding letting the layers set before adding the next.

Cheesecake Cupcakes made into a Cupcake Graveyard  made by Andrea

For the cupcakes use a chocolate or white cake mix and follow the directions on the package.  I used white for these.  

Filling:

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1/3 cup sugar

dash salt

6 oz. chocolate chips

Mix the first 4 ingredients until smooth and then stir in the chocolate chips.

Fill the cupcake liners 1/3 full, then add a layer of the cheesecake filling, and then top with more cake mix making sure to cover completely.  Follow the cake mix directions to bake.

One Bowl Chocolate Frosting:

2 cups sifted powdered sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 Tbsp. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1/8 tsp. salt

1 egg

2 envelopes (2 oz) Nestle Choco-Bake

In a bowl combine the powdered sugar, butter, milk, vanilla and salt; beat until creamy.  Beat in the egg.  Blend in the Choco-bake and mix well.  

To make the graveyard sprinkle on crushed Oreo cookies to form the dirt.  Use a Pepperidge Farm Milano cookie for the tombstone and write R I P with black decorator tube.   Gently insert into the frosted cupcake. 

Witches Hats made by Andrea

Fudge Striped Cookies

Hershey Kisses

Chocolate Frosting

Sprinkles

Place a fudge striped cookie upside down on a platter and add a small bank of chocolate frosting around the opening.  Place a Hershey kiss on the top and then add some sprinkles to form a band around the hat.  I then sprinkled the whole cookie lightly with orange colored sugar.