halloween-totoro- witches brew (add pics)

Whilst I´m keyboarding, I can hear the charmingly comforting sounds of clippity cloppity of a horse-drawn wooden cart going past. It´s a usual sound here, and I often hear it throughout the day if I´m home studying or doing whatnot. There are several horse farms, farms and similar near. It´s very nice, always makes me smile, stop what I´m doing, look out one of the windows to catch a glimpse:).

The kids have been making noises about halloween:)....and I was supposed to go get pumpkins today, as the organic shoppe that I get locally-grown pumpkins from just started recently getting them in again, as it is pumpkin season again! Small sugar pumpkins, not the huge gigantic ones. But pretty none the less, and more than enough for carving, decorating, and making pies! I love pumpkin pie, and nothing beats a homemade pie made from pumpkin. For other times of the year, as I like pie and pumpkin pie is one of my faves, I keep frozen pumpkin or canned Libby´s (which mind you costs about 15 bucks a can it seems like here! yaknow it´s imported and not exactly anything any local would usually ever eat other than for the sake of being polite to someone like me making it for the unknown thanksgiving or halloween meal,))

Cut up a pumpkin, after washing, and gutting it,). The kids like to gut the pumpkin, wash off the seeds, and roast them for eating later. No need to peel the pumpkin before cooking but if you want, use a vegetable peeler or sharp fish knife, or sharp apple peeling knife. Roast the pieces in the oven, not with the seeds (or the seeds will burn). Cool, and peel. (Roast the pieces til the pumpkin flesh is tender and a fork easily goes through it. Peel if not already peeled. Cut up into smaller pieces, and mash with a potato masher. Use enough pulp for whatever recipe you have. It´s fantastic flavour is great on its own, or in soups, stews, pie, pumpkin souffle, pancakes, waffles...well, you get the idea. We like pumpkin.

Besides the pumpkin, I´m sketching out designs for halloween cookies: totoro, susuwatari (the sprite trolls, dust trolls), acorns, leaves, umbrella, poison mushrooms. For cookies, and for a halloween cake I will make!

PHOTO OF MY SKETCHES

For the kids costumes, which is the main reason I´m starting this early, is I´ll be the one making the costumes---Skeleton or Flash Gordon for N, n will have a black and yellow dress with bubblewee wings (no typo!) tiny bubble wings of bubblewee (the bumble in Thumbelina!), and E will also have a pretty fairytale dress, from a video I saw of Witches Brew (first video just the song, second link is kids singing the song wearing costumes)


Witches Brew song

Witches Brew singing, costumes

Note to self:

n= black and yellow; yellow ruffle; yellow tulle long tutu skirt. paint bumblewee Thumbelina face. LONG not sleevless fabric (yellow solid? any leftover fabric is fine that goes with). Black edge along tulle. Wire and gauzey black fabric for wings.  Butterfly wand (fabric, glitter, paint, long birch branch, long ribbons)

E= leopard fabric  long rectangular trunk to hips with long rectangles for arms. Wrists have colorful textured cuffs (faux fur feathery), black tulle medium tulle skirt. Cat ears headband = fabric matching main dress, cardboard and stuffing to shape ears wrapped in fabric. Tail = long cuff inside out of fabric matching main dress, with textured end matching cuffs. Black stromperbukser. Paint cat face. butterfly wand. (Fabric, glitter, paint, birch branch, long ribbons)

N= red, yellow fabric, yellow winged ear cap with eyeholes. yellow belt fabric velcro.

HA. Clippity Clippity Cloppity. Horses go by again:)

what to cook or bake with pumpkin from Libby Pumpkin site

Sånn! A link from Libby Pumpkin, savoury and sweet things to cook and bake with pumpkin. I do use their canned pumpkin a lot too, when pumpkins are not available. I´ve got 4 cans now in the larder. A few recipes I like are pumpkin chili, pumpkin and cream cheese swiss roll, pumpkin pasta, pumpkin pancakes and quick bread (not sweetened though).

My pumpkin pie recipe:

3 eggs, dash salt, 3/4 c sugar (Tate & Lyle superfine mixed with a third light brown sugar)

spices (Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice...as I don´t have any pumpkin pie spice)

3-4 cups roasted, peeled pumpkin, cooled, mashed

about the same amount of liquid (half heavy cream, half whole milk)

1 pie crust, not prebaked or just barely baked. I used Martha Stewart Pate Brisee recipe

about a half pint of heavy cream, whipped into whipped cream (a little superfine sugar, pumpkin spice and vanilla added to give more flavour)

nutmeg, for sprinkling a little on the top of each piece

(Or, the Libby´s recipe using their canned pumpkin is great too).

Mix all ingredients together. Pour equally into two pie shells (as my recipe has enough for two pies), bake in oven 176C. til done, about an hour with two in the oven. About 40 minutes if one in the oven. Done is when the filling is cooked through but still has a tiny amount barely in the middle which still almost wiggles, but fork comes out clean. Take out, cool, chill overnight, serve cold with whipped cream, sprinkled with a little nutmeg. Pumpkin pie slice with a cafe au lait makes excellent Fika! or quick breakfast. (instead of say a pain au chocolat pastry with a cup of coffee)