I refuse to do scary Halloween decor! I also refuse to treat Halloween like it’s a big deal, or decorate as if it’s Christmas. I love pumpkins though, and fall leaves… so we use pumpkins, fall leaves and blooming mums on our front porch, and this way the decorations cover my Autumn decorating needs until we change it up for Advent. (We just turn the pumpkins around once they’re carved and keep them as long as we can…)
Halloween has always been about dress-up at our house! We all enjoy picking out costumes! And candy is good! But we especially enjoy small children in costumes learning to say “trick or treat,” and urged to say “thank-you!” Even the somewhat older kids that come with no costume, and pillow cases seem to respond with a shy smile to a heart-felt “Happy Halloween!”
Our historic neighborhood is sandwiched between a lower socio-economic area and a rather upscale neighborhood. Each Halloween, the orange cones, and “no parking” signs come out, as well as the police protection which prohibits ”non-residents” from visiting our wealthier neighbors’ safe, well-lit and beautifully landscaped public streets. Sadly, more and more people on my street choose to turn the light off and not host the “non-residents” for a light-hearted evening of pumpkins, candy and costumes.
In any case, we had a great time! Grace trick-or-treated with some little friends from church, who live nearby, and Ian and I handed out candy. Loads of it! Ian brought his electronic keyboard outside and managed to theme his repertoire to the costumes at least some of the time. (Pirates of the Caribbean, Winnie the Pooh, and a rap song on occasion). Our light went out a little before 8 PM, alas, we were completely out of candy!
We usually have chili for dinner after trick-or-treating on Halloween night. Lately, Ian has developed a sudden and serious dislike of chili, perhaps because it’s a bit of a staple, or used to be. So, we had Tortellini Soup (this recipe is pretty close to what we do, but we also slice up a low-fat chicken sausage like Al Fresco, seasoned with Italian spices for our resident carnivores) and Asiago, Apple and Rosemary quick bread! YUM! The recipe is below…
Savory Asiago, Apple and Rosemary Quick Bread
1 loaf, 12 slices, 9×5, 350°F
Ingredients:
3 ½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour,or combination of whole wheat and white flours
1 T baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
4 T cold, hard butter shredded
4 oz shredded Asiago cheese (or cheddar)
1 lb (4 or 5) apples cored/shredded
2 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves or 3 sprigs (chopped)
2 large eggs beaten
Topping:
1 T Olive Oil
1 t fresh rosemary (chopped)
½ cup shredded asiago (or cheddar)
Directions:
Put together in same order as ingredients. Bake for 1 hour. Spread topping and bake for 20 more minutes until skewer comes out clean.
What I did: 1 1/2 c white, 1 3/4 c wheat, ¼ c flax, ¼ c olive oil (instead of butter), 1 large granny smith apple grated.
