It's the Great Pumpkin! Feed

31 Days of Halloween: Hot Skwash!

Every now and then I see something that really tickles my fancy! In this case it was these gorgeous velvet pumpkins from Hot Skwash! I was in Neiman Marcus last month and I saw a display of them that really caught my eye. I can't help but wonder how a few of these might look in my antique wooden salad bowl or tucked around my Williamsburg hurricane. They are expensive but well a girl can dream right? Or a crafty girl could try to make them on her own! All of those colors? All of those choices? This witch is going to see if she can wave her wand and make a few of them magically appear on her harvest table!

Big red velvet pumpkin hot skwash

Hot Skwash velvet pumpkins rasberry ice group

Hot-Skwash-in-Harvest-Colors

 


Stay tuned for details about the 3rd annual Windesphere Witch Halloween Party & Decorating Contest!

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Wickedly Wonderful playthings can be found everywhere!

 

In the spirit of the season I hope that you'll join me for the 3nd annual Windesphere Witches Halloween Party. The winner will be chosen at midnight October the 31th.  If you're the lucky one, you'll receive a 50.00 dollar egift card from Sur la Table! Details will be coming soon so grab your brooms and dust off your cauldrons..Let the bewitching begin!

And..for a bit of inspiration......

           

 


Announcing the 2010 Windesphere Witch Halloween Decorating Contest!

Decorating contest collage

In the spirit of the season I hope that you'll join me for the 2nd annual Windesphere Witch Halloween Decorating contest. It's simple to enter....just email pictures of your seasonal decorations as well as your mailing address  to me at [email protected]  no later than  the stroke of midnight, October the 30th. The winner will be announced and pictures of their lair will be posted on this blog on Samhain eve. If you're the lucky one, you'll receive a 50.00 dollar gift certificate from World Market!  This year, there will be a runner up prize ....a one year subscription to the new Food Network Magazine! So grab your brooms and dust off your cauldrons..Let the bewitching begin!

And..for a bit of inspiration......

   


And the winner is!!!

   Happy Halloween!


There were so many wonderful entries into the first ever Windesphere Witch Halloween Decorating Contest!!  But choose we had to because there can be only one! This years winner is Brendan Stewart! 

Congratulations Brendan and many thanks to all of you who participated! We can't wait to see next years entries........Why oh Why does Halloween come only once a year?
 

Hal1 Hal2Hal3Hal4






Jack O' Lanterns and Roasted Pumpkin Seeds!

I love to carve Jack O' Lanterns and for years until my son was too old to do such silly things (about 16 so don't waste a precious minute moms !) we'd sit together on the floor of our old century farmhouse and carve as many as we could. We'd put them out everywhere, light them and then we'd roast the seeds for the snacks in his lunches. I came up with many different ways to roast them, but eventually we settled on a favorite! Here's the recipe!

 Make sure that the pumpkin seeds are washed clean and dry. Spread them out on a non - stick baking sheet and brush with a mixture of tamari, maple syrup, a wee touch of cayenne pepper and melted butter.  Put them into a preheated oven (around 325) and bake until caramelized and golden. You'll need to flip them once or twice but watch them carefully.  You'll know when they're done by the smell, they'll be absolutely toasty, like delightfully roasted nuts. These also make a great addition to an autumn mixture of nuts and other munchies that you'll serve with cocktails. Just make your basic Chex Mix recipe and add them!  Truly a seasonal treat to not pass up!

The only downside with carving pumpkins is how quickly they rot. To minimize this sad effect keep the top opening smaller and dip the entire surface of the lid into a dish of powdered cinnamon. You can also sprinkle the cinnamon on the inside of the pumpkin and when you light the candle inside the scent wafting from it will be amazing. The cinnamon has antibacterial properties and will keep your Jack O' Lanterns fresher longer! You can buy pumpkin carving kits but to be honest I never have. I prefer to do it the old fashioned way with a magic marker and a kitchen knife and donuts and cider all the way around.  Come to think of it, my son will be home from college for Halloween this year!  Maybe just maybe he'll indulge his mama.......


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