The Night of Nights is here....

Let the fun begin to howl, cackle and scream! It's Halloween!

We are coming down to the barbed wire here...little Trick or Treaters (hopefully about 500 of 'em) will start their merry dance in a few hours. Still lots of finishing touches to do...

Cute pumpkins, monstrous feet

                                                         

Here's a look so far...

Come on in!

Pumpkin carving...serious stuff!

Pumps...Ready to roll

By daylight, cute. By nightfall, howling!

Our cemetery still needs work. The monsters need to show up...so do the light and sound folks. While still a "work in progress", I borrowed some "tombstone moss" and bone shards for this salad. The stew (in wonderful lidded soup bowls) is a fall fave's...with dried eyeballs, of course!

Tombstone Moss and Bone Shard Salad (eerily adapted from Bon Appetit!)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon minced shallot

1 small garlic clove, minced

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

1 bunch Tuscan kale, leaves stripped from stem and thinly sliced into ribbons

6 ounces Brussels sprouts, trimmed and grated

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup almonds with skins

1 cup finely grated Pecorino

Combine lemon juice, mustard, shallot, garlic, sea salt and pepper in a glass jar. Shake well. Add olive oil (all but 1 tablespoon). Mix together shredded Brussels sprouts and kale.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet and pan toast the almonds until browned and fragrant. Transfer nuts to a paper towel and let cool. Chop coarsely and sprinkle with a little sea salt, if desired.

Add dressing and cheese to kale/Brussels spouts mix and toss to coat. Garnish with chopped almonds and serve. Serves 4.

Smile..it's your Night of Nights!

Many brooms make

Ghouling more fun! Last night, daughter Lissa jetted in on her broomstick from Gotham City to help with the Halloween hauntings. She will lend her artistic eye and cackle to our fun. When I was in New York last week, we talked about our family's traditional Halloween menu: Witches Brew Stew, Scaredy Cat Punch, Snow Ghost Pie and I realized, what...no munchies?

I found this recipe for Dracula's Dip from Dr. Barnard...my fave go-to, deliciously green doctor. Seems just the thing to munch on while carving up those pumps! Have a great weekend...

This delicious spread uses no added fat and the sun-dried tomatoes (dried blood!) give it a wonderful smoky flavor. Spread it on crusty bread, use it as a dip for pita chips or spread on my new fave base, a Napa cabbage leave and roll up.

6 sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil)

1 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups cooked or canned great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice and zested rind, if desired
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed, or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon each: salt and dried sage
1/2 cup vegetable broth

Place the sun-dried tomatoes in a heatproof bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let soak until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain, thinly slice, and set aside.

Combine the beans, rosemary, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and sage in a food processor and process until smooth. If desired, add some or all of the vegetable stock for a creamier texture. Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes. Taste and add more salt or lemon juice if needed. Makes about 2 cups.

I Love Halloween!!!

I had so much fun drooling my way around Economy Candy!! I saw candies I hadn't seen since I was a Trick or Treater myself...ruby red wax lips, wax fangs and moustaches, those little wax bottles full of sugar-y colored liquids, Beeman and Clove gum, Mary Janes, even candy cigarettes and of course, licorice of all kinds...ropes, swirls, Scotty dogs, twist sticks, gummies and drops. It was so much fun and it got me thinking...what's in those??? Probably don't want to know. 

Aside from those old-fashioned candy memories, another of my fondest memories of going out on Halloween was a stop off at my "headmaster's" house for apple cider, cinnamon doughnuts and caramel apples. While homemade goodies are impossible now as a public offering, perhaps you are having a private witch-y affair this year and want to try your hand at some old-fashioned Halloween treats?

Here is a yummy recipe for Caramel Apples. I am not quite ready to make mine yet or I would guide you through them. They really are super easy. You go ahead and get started. Click caramel apples and let me know how yours turn out!

In case you want to "green up" your Halloween trick or treats, here is a candy suggestion: Yummy Earth Lollipops with such fun names like "Wet Face Watermelon" and "Pomegranate Pucker". They are made by a great company, too, and can be found at Whole Foods.

Also, try DIY costumes or a costume swap. Those mass-marketed costume fabrics are scary. So is the made-in-China make-up. I know it is only for one night, but....remember, beets make great bloody lips and fangs, perfect oozing wounds, too. Just mix beet juice with your favorite non-toxic lip balm and apply.

Need more green make-up tips? I am repeating these Halloween Make-up suggestions from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics website...I'll be mixing up a batch for my mug, too!

Choose a base of: unscented lotion OR pure cocoa butter OR safe, fluoride-free toothpaste, avoiding mint flavors.

Check your pantry for: turmeric (I have LOADS if you need some!), raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, beets, avocado, spirulina, cocoa, chocolate sauce (share!), squid ink or other colorful foods, juices, herbs and spices

Yellow: Add 1/4 tsp. and a large pinch of stale turmeric to base Add some berries or a little beet juice to make Orange).
Pink: Using a sieve, mash the juice from 3 fresh or thawed frozen raspberries, blackberries or beets directly into the base. Or, use a deeply colored berry juice or puree.
Mint green: With a fork, mash 1/4 of a small avocado until creamy. Mix this into your base. Emerald green: Add small amount spirulina or bright green chlorophyll to base.
Purple: Using a sieve, mash the juice from several fresh or frozen blueberries into the base. Or, use blueberry juice.
Brown: Add cocoa powder or chocolate sauce to base.
Black: Use a small amount of squid ink in base for true black.
White: Mix powdered sugar and water.

Happy Women and Wednesdays! Here's to making an ever ghoulish but safer and greener Halloween!

Cruising the Mother Ship

Oh yeah...now we are talking and walking, I am right in front of the mother ship...

And from here, it is just a short 50-60 block stroll to Economy Candy to load up on Halloween goodies. Wonder of wonders...It's almost Halloween!

Have a Happy Monday and make it meatless. "Meatless" is definitely part of the race for life. Need a recipe? Our whole blog is full of de-lish meatless salads, entrees and tips! Go grab your black kettle and stir up something "good and green" for tonight. I will be making a simple lentil soup that cooks up in a flash.

Lightening Bolt Lentil Soup

Wash and pick through 1 pound bag of lentils. Add to a pot with 7 cups of filtered water. Toss in herbs of choice. I add bay leaves, a sprig of rosemary or heaping teaspoon of other herbs, some salt, fresh pepper and red pepper flakes for a little punch. Feel free to flavor the broth as you like it...spicy or aromatic. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and let simmer for about 45 minutes or until tender. Towards the end of cooking time, add in whatever soup veggies you like and let those cook until tender. Makes a very hearty soup, almost like a stew. You can add more water if you like a brothier soup. Here is what mine looked like and of course, not an eye of newt or bat wing in the mix...

Rosemary for Remembrance

I have a lovely rosemary bush in my backyard. It is a stand out in my yard...for many reasons including the fact that I moved it a little late one year and although it was clearly upset, it made such a splendid comeback. Now it is about 4 feet in diameter and covered in new life. A stellar beauty.

This whole week I am sprinkling rosemary on everything. It is the herb of remembrance.

I am remembering many this week as it is our town's Race for the Cure and I am choosing to remember them with something green...so green, so fragrant and so hearty that it breathes new life into every dish I have prepared. It is an herb that stands out and that is how I want to remember those on my heart. As stand outs. As stellar beauties.

I am also using rosemary to remind myself that I have a choice every day about how I live. The choices I make make me and I have more power to choose than I sometimes give myself credit for or use.

For me, the only color of the race for any cure is green. A beautiful color. Worth exploring in its fullness. Worth remembering. Worth running that race every day for the new life it gives.

And, at the end of the day, a nice long soak is perfect...

Rosemary Rejuvenating Bath

Fill tub with warm, not too hot, water and several handfuls of epsom salts. Stir the water up to dissolve them.Toss in several sprigs of fresh rosemary and, if you've got it, a few splashes of rosemary essential oil.  Slip quietly into the silky, fragrant water and soak away the day and get ready to welcome the next. Green...peace of health, green...peace of mind.

Happy Women and Wednesdays.