Pumpkins will soon be on every street corner and in all the stores and as it is National Pumpkin Month I am going to get into the swing with recipes, trivia and it is also the run-up to Halloween…

I also thought that maybe as y’all make the best pumpkin pies..I mean it is not a Brit thing…not where I come from anyway…Maybe you would share your best recipe for pumpkin pie???

Muffins or pies or maybe a nice latte…You need a  nice Pumpkin Spice Mix…

Here is my recipe for pumpkin spice mix ..Quick and easy you probably have all the ingredients in your store cupboard.

Pumpkin Spice Mix.

• 4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Mix all the spices together and keep in a lidded pot and use as required for muffins, pies or a nice spiced latte…

Halloween...Have you all got your porches decorated or are you still in the planning stages? I know it is big business in the US but not sure when y’all have everything out and on display…

How do you greet Trick or Treaters? Do you have ghosts and/or scarecrows and what treats do you hand out? If you are stuck for ideas a quick and easy one to do is fill some apothecary jars with bright coloured candy. It makes an eye-catching display and your guests can help themselves.

Fill old glass jars with plastic rats, toy bugs and doll heads then add a little-coloured water. Use manila tags to name your specimen – shrunken heads, poisonous tarantulas, baby rats and the like – and wrap the jar with twine and the tag.

 

It is quite easy to make effective decorations from pumpkins or paper lanterns or jars.

But did you know?

The Jack ‘O’ lantern comes from an old Irish tale about a man named Stingy Jack. According to folklore, Stingy Jack was out getting drunk with the Devil when Jack convinced his drinking partner to turn himself into a coin to pay for the drinks without spending money. Jack then put the Devil, shaped like a coin, into his pocket, which also contained a silver cross that kept the Devil from transforming back. Jack promised to free the Devil as long as the Devil wouldn’t bother him for a year, and if he died, the Devil could never claim his soul. Jack tricked the Devil again later, getting him to pick a piece of fruit out of a tree and then carving a cross into the bark when the Devil was in the branches. This trick bought Jack another 10 years of devil-free living.

When Jack finally died, God decided he wasn’t fit for heaven, but the Devil had promised never to claim his soul for hell. So Jack was sent off to roam the Earth with only a burning coal for light. He put the coal into a turnip as a lantern, and Stingy Jack became “Jack of the Lantern” or “Jack O’ Lantern.” Based on this myth, the Irish carved scary faces into turnips, beets and potatoes to scare away Stingy Jack or any other spirits of the night.

Halloween Games :

Toilet Paper Mummies.

This will keep the kids amused for a while so buy some cheap loo rolls and let them wrap each other up like mummies.

Eat the doughnut(donut)

Tie doughnuts on strings and keep the wet wipes handy and watch the little darlings try to eat the doughnut…

Apple Bobbing.

A big bowl or bucket of water and some Apples always fun to watch.

Halloween themed food.

Don’t the kids just love all this spooky Halloween finger food? What is your family favourite food for Halloween…Let me have your recipes with a picture and I will feature them in a Fang-Tastic Friday post…

Today all you need is sausages and pastry strips ..This is an easy one and even the kids could do it…Just wrap the sausages as pictured by winding the pastry round and if you are really good and make your own sausages or know a good butcher even better… Some little white sweets or rice paper eyes and just cook…The kids love them.

For the hardworking adults a Halloween Cocktail… The Black Widow Shot…

Cranberry juice and black Vodka…Yes Please!

I hope you enjoy these  posts and please if you have any tried and tested Halloween recipes I will post them and credit you so please let me have them…xxx

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you all have a creative week ahead xx