SAMHAIN IS UPON US...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

So, time has come for all you ghouls to worship the Pumpkin God, play spooky tricks on the living, roam the streets like zombies and threaten the good people with your incantation-like "trick or treat" spine-chilling sentence...

The 31st of October marks Samhain (or All Hallow's Eve), the end of the harvest as well as that of the "lighter half" and the beginning of the "darker half". According to Gaelic tradition it is a time during which the borders between the world of the living and realm (otherworld) of the dead, the home of deities and the stronghold of supernatural spirits similar to elves or fairies become thin.

If you are hiding home behind boarded windows and trying to stay away from the monsters that are amongst us, you might want to make a few recipes to uplift your soul and keep you sane, so don't forget to check my "Halloween Food Ideas" Page.

PUMPKIN CUPCAKES

Autumn is a wonderful season on all levels. Culinarily speaking, it is harvest time and the stalls are full with gorgeous vegetables and fruits. Nature is colorful and so are our plates too...

On Halloween morning (Saturday the 31st of October), I still had not yet prepared anything in order to celebrate this special day, so I thought that I'd better get busy in the kitchen and come up with something to mark the event.

As I usually do when I'm looking for ideas, I went online and googled my way through the net. I was looking for an easy recipe that would both be scrumptious and not too fussy to make (time was limited). That's how I stumbled upon a "Pumpkin Cupcakes" recipe that would give me the opportunity to use the pumpkin puree and the tons of cream cheese I had on stock in my fridge.

I could not have chosen a more delightful recipe. Those "Pumpkin Cupcakes" turned out wonderfully spicy, lusciously moist as well as light and so pretty with their delightfully fluffy frosting. The pumpkin pie flavors of the cakes blended so well with the orangy, sweet and slightly tangy taste of the cream cheese frosting.

Heavenly like a kiss and regressively irresistible like playful innocence!

~ Pumpkin Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting ~
Recipe by Gastronomer at "Gas-tron-o-my" (USA) and adapted by Rosa @ Rosa's Yummy Yums.

Makes 22 cupcakes and about 2 cups of frosting.

Ingredients for the cupcakes:
2 Cups (255g) All-purpose flour
1 Tsp baking soda
1 Tsp Baking powder
1 Tsp Sea salt
1 Tsp Ground cinnamon
1 Tsp Ground ginger
1/4 Tsp Freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp Ground allspice
1 Cup (240g) Packed light-brown sugar
1 Cup ( 210g) Granulated sugar
1/2 Cup (120g) Unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 Cup (105g) Vegetable oil
4 Large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 oz/450g) Pumpkin puree
Ingredients for the frosting:
8 Ounces (240g) Cream cheese, at room temperature
8 Tbs (1 stick/120g) Unsalted butter, cut into pieces, room temperature
1 Cup (120g) Confectioners’ sugar
1 Tsp Pure vanilla extract
1/2 Tsp pure orange extract

Method for the cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 180° C (350° F).
2. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, oil and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth.
5. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
6. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about 2/3 of the way.
7. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed.
8. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

Method for the frosting:
9. Place cream cheese in a medium mixing bowl. Using a rubber spatula, soften cream cheese. 10. Gradually add butter, and continue beating until smooth and well blended.
11. Sift in confectioners’ sugar, and continue beating until smooth.
13. Add vanilla and orange extract, and stir to combine.
14. Top the cupcakes with the frosting and decorate as desired.

Remarks:
I recommend you to use the following pumpkin: Potimarron (French) = Hokkaido Pumpkin = Chestnut Pumpkin = Baby Red Hubbard = Uchiki Kuri = Chinese Pumpkin = Japanese Pumpkin = Sugar Pumpkin. You can also make this pudding with Butternut squash, but it will be less tasty.
To obtain fresh puree, take your pumpkin, cut it in half, deseed it and peel it, then cut it in cubes and steam. Once it is cooked, mash the pumpkin flesh. It has to be a very smooth and thick (not to wet) puree.

Serving suggestions:
Serve those cupcakes for afternoon tea with a hot drink of your choice (tea, coffee, caffè latte, hot milk, etc...).

***************

~ Cupcakes Au potimarron, Glaçage Au cream Cheese ~
Recette par Gastronomer de "Gas-tron-o-my" (USA) et adaptée par Rosa @ Rosa's Yummy Yums.

Pour 22 cupcakes.

Ingrédients pour les cupcakes:
255g de Farine blanche
1 CC de Bicabonate de soude
1 CC de poudre à lever/cake
1 CC de Sel de mer
1 CC de Cannelle en poudre
1 CC de Gingembre en poudre
1/4 de CC de Noix de muscade en poudre
1/4 CC de Tout-épice en poudre
240g de Sucre brun clair
210g de Sucre cristallisé
120g de Beurre non-salé, à température ambiante
105g d'Huile d'arachide
4 Gros oeufs, à température ambiante
450g de Purée de potimarron
Ingrédients pour le glaçage:
240g de Cream cheese, à température ambiante
120g de Beurre non-salé, à température ambiante
120g de Sucre en poudre
1 CC d'Extrait de vanille pure
1/2 CC d'Extrait d'orange

Méthode pour les cupcakes:
1. Préchauffer le four à 180° C.
2. Placer les caissettes en papier dans les moules à cupcakes.
3. Dans un bol moyen, mélanger ensemble la farine, la bicarbonate, la poudre à lever, le sel et les épices.
4. Dans un grand bol, battre ensemble les sucres avec l'huile et le beurre. Ajouter les oeufs, puis incorporer les ingrédients secs. Bien mélanger afin d'obtenir une pâte homogène.
5. Incorporer la purée de potimarron.
6. Remplir les caissettes au 2/3.
7. Cuire pendant 20 à 25 minutes ou jusqu'à ce qu'un couteau inséré au centre d'un cupcake en ressorte propre.
8. Mettre les cupackes sur une grille et laisser refroidir.

Méthode pour le glaçage:
9. Mettre le cream cheese dans un bol moyen et le ramollir à l'aide d'une spatule.
10. Ajouter le beurre et battre afin d'obtenir un mélange léger.
11. Ajouter le sucre en poudre tamisé et continuer à battre le mélange afin d'obtenir un mélange homogène et léger.
13. Ajouter la vanille ainsi que l'extrait d'orange et bien l'incorporer.
14. Glacer les cupcakes et les décorer selon votre envie.

Remarques:
Je vous recommande d'utiliser les courges suivantes: Potimarron (potiron doux d'Hokkaido/courge de Chine) ou la courge Butternut (bien moins goûteuse que le potimarron).
Pour obtenir de la purée fraîche, prenez votre potimarron, coupez-le en deux, enlevez les graines et pelez-le, coupez-le en cubes grossiers et faites-les cuire à la vapeur. Une fois cuits, écrasez-les (ou passez-les au mixer) afin d'obtenir une purée fine et épaisse (pas trop liquide).

Idées de présentation:
Servir ces cupcakes à l'heure du thé avec une bonne boisson chaude (thé, café, caffè latte, lait chaud, etc...).

HAPPY HALOWEEN 2009

Halloween food ideas...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

On the night of the 31st of October, Halloween will be celebrated by many people around the world. Although, the trick-or-treating tradition, the bonfires, the macabre decorations, the ghoulish baking frenzy and the habit of wearing fiendish custumes/disguises isn't as popular here as it is in the US or in Canada (and certain other regions of the world), I still like to do my own thing and set my mood to a fiendish modus...

I really love this time of the year marking the last day of the bright half of the year and the beginning of winter according to the Pagan tradition!

'Tis now the very witching time of night,
When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out
Contagion to this world.
~ William Shakespeare ~

HALLOWEEN - FOOD IDEAS

On the night of October the 31st, all the children and gown-up kids that we are will be celebrating Halloween (All Hallow's Eve or Samhain), a typical Anglo-Saxon fall event (USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, New Zealand Australia, but also other non-english speaking countries such as Mexico and Puerto Rico) reminiscent of paganism (see my older post for more info concerning Halloween).

In order for you to explore the darker side of your personality and release the beast in you, and also to experiment with your skills as a cook/baker, I thought that it would be a good idea if I recommended a few recipe links as well as one or two of my festive recipes...

My Halloween Recipes:
Blood Sausage Stir-Fry (see recipe)
Bloody Banana Ketchup (see recipe)
Luscious Pumpkin Jam (see recipe)
Pumpkin Apple Bread (see recipe)
Pumpkin Challah (see recipe)
Pumpkin Latkes (see recipe)
Pumpkin Muffins (see recipe)
Pumpkin Pasta Bake With Speck (see recipe)
Pumpkin Pie (see recipe)
Roasted Pumpkin & Bell pepper Salad (see recipe)

Interesting Halloween Recipe Links:
All Recipes (see link)
BBC Food (see link)
BBC Good Food (see link)
Britta.com (see link)
Canadian Living (see link)
Cdkitchen (see link)
Cooksrecipes (see link)
Epicurious (see link)
Food Network (see link)
Halloween Recipes (see link)
Halloween Recipes 101 (see link)
Razzle Dazzle (see link)
Recipezaar (see link)
Southern Food (see link)
The Holiday Spot (see link)
Wanda's Halloween Cookbook (see link)

Have fun!!!

ROASTED PUMPKIN & BELL PEPPER SALAD

Halloween is very close and pumpkin season is here again, so I thought that it would be a good idea to share with you the recipe for a delightful pumpkin salad that I invented on the spur of the moment, as I was asked to bring a salad on the occasion of a delectable Sardenian (Italy) dinner at Jessica & Jonathan's place (see Jessica's post here)...

I wanted a dish that would be very flavorful, vibrantly colorful, festive and Italianesque. After a long session of googling, notetaking and thinking, I finally came up with a gorgeous idea: I was going to make an antipasti-like salad that would be very versatile and could be paired easily with just any main dish and served at any occasion (picnics, parties, potlucks, Sunday meals, Halloween, Thanksgiving, etc...).

Although I'm not the kind of person who likes to praise my exploits in the kitchen, I must say that this "Roasted Pumpkin & Bell Pepper Salad" was/is awesome. The flavor of the vegetables are sublimated by this dishe's delightfully garlicky, mustardy, maple-kissed, nectarous and sour dressing, and by it's nut and bacon sprinkles. With it's rich, smoky, sweetly acidulated, caramelly taste as well as it's interestingly contrasting textures (crunchy and soft), this salad will captivate your tastebuds and conquer your gourmet heart!

It feels like being on holiday in the Mediterranean...

~ Roasted Pumpkin & Bell Pepper Salad ~
Recipe by Rosa @ Rosa's Yumy Yums 2008.

Serves 4-6 people.

Ingredients for the "Salad Dressing":
6 Tbs Virgin olive oil
The juice of 1 big lemon
1 Tbs Sweet mustard (see remarks)
1 Tbs Maple syrup
1 Tsp Thai sweet chili sauce
1/2 Tsp Pimenton (or any smoked paprika)
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
Sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Ingredients for the "Salad":
700g Pumpkin (see remarks), peeled, seeded, and cut in 4cm (1 1/2-inch) chunks
3 Bell peppers (red and green), halved and seeded
3 Big onions, halved and sliced
A handful hazelnuts, roasted and chopped coarsely
6 Slices of bacon, fried until crispy and broken into chips

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 250°C (450° F).
2. Line a baking tray/sheet with baking paper.
3. Place the pumpkin chunks, bell peppers (face up) and sliced onions in a single layer on the baking tray.
4. Spray with some olive oil and turn to coat evenly.
5. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
6. Roast the vegetables, turning once, for 20-30 minutes or until golden and tender (not overcooked/you might have to remove the bell pepper halves before the pumpkin chunks).
7. Remove from the oven. Wrap the bell pepper halves in aluminium foil. Set aside to cool (totally or not).
8. Meanwhile, mix together all ingredients for the dressing.
9. Peel the bell peppers and cut them into strips.
10. Cut the pumpkin into bite-sized cubes.
11. Place in a dish and drizzle evenly with the dressing.
12. Let marinade a few minutes at room temperature (if served warm) or in the fridge for a few hours or overnight (if served cold).
13. Just before serving, sprinkle with the roasted hazelnuts and bacon chips.
14. Serve.

Remarks:
If you want to use another oil (vegetable or nut), feel free to experiment (walnut, flaxseed, peanut, colza, etc...).
I used Münchner mustard (German) for this salad, but you can also use any other sweet mustard (Swedish, etc...).
Choose a variety of pumpkin which is sweet, flavorful and which doesn't disintegrate during the baking process (sugar pumpkin, butternut squash, kabocha, baby bear, etc...).

Serving suggestions:
Serve this salad warm or cold, as a starter dish or as a side dish, alone or as an accompaniment to meat, fish, cheese, hard-boiled eggs, etc...

**************

~ Salade De Courge Et Poivrons Rôtis Au Four~
Recette par Rosa @ Rosa's Yumy Yums 2008.

Pour 4-6 personnes.

Ingrédients pour la "Sauce A Salade":
6 CS d'Huile d'olive extra vierge
Le jus d'un gros citron
1 CS de Moutarde douce (voir remarques)
1 CS de Sirop d'érable
1 CC de Sauce au piment douce (thaï)
1/2 CC de Pimenton (ou n'importe quel autre paprika en poudre fumé)
3 Gousses d'ail, écrasées
Sel de mer, à volonté
Poivre noir fraîchement moulu, à volonté
Ingrédients pour la "Salade":
700g de Courge (voir remarques), pelée, nettoyée et coupée en morceaux de 4cm
3 Poivrons (verts et rouges), coupés en deux et nettoyés
3 Big onions, coupés (pas trop finement) en demi-lune
Une poignée de noisettes, torréifiées et hachée grossièrement
6 Tranches de bacon, grillées et croquantes, émiettées

Méthode:
1. Préchauffer le four à 250°C (450° F).
2. Couvrir une plaque de papier sulfurisé.
3. Y déposer les cubes de courge, les moitiés de poivron (peau en dessus) et l'onion - en une seule couche.
4. Sprayer avec de l'huile d'olive, de manière homogène.
5. Assaisonner avec du sel de mer et du poivre noir moulu.
6. Faire cuire au four pendant 20-30 minutes (en retournant une fois) jusqu'à ce que les légumes soit tendres (pas trop cuits/les poivrons devront être retirés un peu avant la courge) et bien dorés.
7. Sortir du four. Emballer les poivrons dans du papier aluminium. Mettre de côté et laisser refroidir (complètement ou non).
8. Pendant ce temps, mélanger tous les ingrédients pour la sauce à salade.
9. Peler les poivrons et les couper en lanières.
10. Couper la courge en bouchées.
11. Mettre les légumes dans un plat et recouvrir de manière homogène avec la sauce.
12. Laisser mariner pendant quelques minutes (si la salade est mangée tiède) et quelques heures ou toute une nuit au frigo (si la salade est mangée froide).
13. Juste avant de servir, décorer avec les noisettes et le bacon émiétté.
14. Servir.

Remarques:
Pour cette salade, vous pouvez utiliser l'huile de votre choix (noix, lin, arachide, colza, etc...). Expérimentez!
J'ai utilisé de la moutarde douce bavaroise en provenance de Munich (Allemagne), mais vous pouvez prendre n'importe quelle autre moutarde douce (Suède, etc...).
Je vous recommande de choisir une courge qui ne se désintègre pas à la cuisson, qui a du goût et qui est sucrée (courge musquée, butternut, courge baby bear, courge kabocha, etc...).

Idées de présentation:
Servez cette salade tiède ou froide, en guise d'entrée ou d'accompagnement, avec de la viande, du poisson, du fromage, des oeufs durs, etc...

HALLOWEEN - ALL HALLOW'S EVE - SAMHAIN

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

As you all must already know, on the night of the 31st of October, Halloween will be celebrated by many people around the world. Although, the trick-or-treating tradition, the bonfires and the habit of wearing custumes/disguises isn't very popular here as it is in the US or in Canada (and certain other regions of the world), I still like to do my own thing...

This time of the year is very important for me, because it is the season of pumpkins and my most favorite time of the year. Autumn is a season that I adore and Halloween is closely linked to fall!

If you want to learn more about this festive day or find some special recipes, then here are some links that might interest you:

All about Halloween (see link)
Luscious Pumpkin Jam (See recipe)
Pumpkin Apple Bread (see recipe)
Pumpkin Challah (see recipe)
Pumpkin Latkes (see recipe)
Pumpkin Muffins (see recipe)
Pumpkin Pasta Bake With Speck (see recipe)
Pumpkin Pie (see recipe)

Halloween Pic By www.phrenologik.com