Treats : Spooky Food

As fewer and fewer kids go trick-or-treating, growing numbers of parents are pooling their resources to put on Halloween parties in their homes.

If you’re the host this year and you’re in a quandary over what to serve your hungry “ghosts,” this selection of ideas may inspire you. And don’t let the weird names scare you--these dishes taste great.

Create the right mood by setting a black-draped table with low-lit candles, carved pumpkins and fake cotton cobwebs.

TOAST FINGERS WITH BLOODY RED PEPPER DIP

1 loaf French bread

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Bloody Red Pepper Dip

Slice bread lengthwise in half. Spread with butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cut in finger-size pieces.

Place on buttered baking sheet and place under broiler until golden brown. Serve with Bloody Red Pepper Dip. Makes about 10 servings.

Each serving contains about:

206 calories; 425 mg sodium; 16 mg cholesterol; 8 grams fat; 27 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.30 gram fiber.

Note: If desired, serve pepper dip with cut-up raw vegetables such as jicama (cut in ghost shapes), broccoli, zucchini, celery or cooked asparagus.

Bloody Red Pepper Dip

2 large sweet red peppers, roasted and peeled

2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

Salt

1/2 cup clear chicken broth (homemade or canned)

1 cup chopped tomatoes

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons vinegar

Combine peppers, garlic, salt to taste, chicken broth, tomatoes, cayenne to taste, olive oil and vinegar in blender container or food processor bowl. Process into smooth puree. Adjust seasonings to taste. Makes about 2 cups.

What could be easier than salty black caviar for an impressive black cat (or a witch if you can draw one) prowling across an appetizer spread? Packed with good savory things, a little bite of this mousse-like appetizer on a cracker goes a long way.

BLACK CAT CHEESE AND SHRIMP APPETIZER

1/3 cup butter

1 clove garlic, minced

1 pound baby shrimp, well drained

1 (8-ounce) log goat cheese

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes

2 tablespoons large capers, chopped

Dash cayenne pepper

1/2 pound Brie cheese with herbs, at room temperature

1 (3 1/2-ounce) jar black caviar

2 candy corn or carrot dots

“Eyeball” Garnish

Crackers

Heat butter in skillet until melted. Add garlic and saute until tender. Add well-drained shrimp and saute slightly in butter mixture. Let cool.

Beat goat and mascarpone cheeses until light and fluffy. Stir in chopped sun-dried tomatoes, capers and cayenne until blended. Spread mixture evenly on bottom of 9-inch square tart pan with removable bottom or foil-lined pan. Spoon cooked shrimp mixture over cheese layer, spreading evenly.

Remove rind from Brie cheese and beat until light and fluffy. Spread evenly over shrimp layer. Cover and chill until serving time.

To serve, loosen edges of cheese and invert onto serving platter. Draw cat pattern on paper or cardboard and cut out. Trace pattern onto top of appetizer. Fill in pattern with caviar. Use candy corn for eyes. Chill until serving time.

Surround cheese appetizer with “Eyeball” Garnish and crackers. Makes about 20 servings.

Each serving contains about:

167 calories; 377 mg sodium; 163 mg cholesterol; 13 grams fat; 1 gram carbohydrates; 12 grams protein; 0 fiber.

In low candlelight your guests might think these “eyeballs” are the real thing. But they’re really quail eggs dotted with black or red caviar, with a bit of their colored ooze trickling out from the “eyes.”

“Eyeball” Garnish

1 to 2 dozen quail eggs, hard-cooked and peeled

1 (2-ounce) jar red caviar

1 (2-ounce) jar black caviar

Cut quail eggs in halves. Spoon small amount of caviar on pointed end of each egg half for “pupil.”

Save time by buying the roast duck for this salad from a Chinese deli. For extra-crisp peas and jicama, soak the julienned strips in ice water before adding to the salad. To deceive curious tasters, garnish the salad heap with “cat’s eyes,” easily cut from sweet orange pepper.

CAT’S EYES PASTA-DUCK SALAD

1 whole roasted duck

1 pound penne pasta, cooked according to package directions and drained

2 cups Chinese pea pods, cut julienne

2 cups thinly sliced or julienned peeled jicama

1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced

Dressing

Salt, pepper

1 sweet orange pepper

Remove skin and meat from duck. Chop duck meat. Remove fat from underside of duck skin. Cut skin into 1-inch pieces. Place skin pieces on baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees until crisp, about 5 to 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Combine duck meat, pasta, pea pods, jicama and green onions. Add Dressing and toss well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cut pepper into 1-inch wide strips then cut into triangles for cat’s eyes. Sprinkle over salad. Cover and chill until serving time. Makes 12 to 16 servings.

Each serving contains about:

730 calories; 126 mg sodium; 103 mg cholesterol; 52 grams fat; 34 grams carbohydrates; 29 grams protein; 1.04 grams fiber.

Dressing

3/4 cup olive oil

4 1/2 tablespoons lime juice

3 tablespoons sesame oil

2 to 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup minced cilantro

1 serrano chile, seeded and minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

Combine olive oil, lime juice, sesame oil, balsamic vinegar to taste, cilantro, serrano chile and garlic. Stir well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

This rich vegetable dish looks spectacular and would be a fine accompaniment to a simple roast or a turkey. It’s easy to make and holds its heat for a long time.

PUMPKIN GRATIN

1 (4 pound) pumpkin

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon butter, softened

1/4 pound French bread, cut in 1/4-inch-thick slices and lightly toasted

1 1/2 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup diced onion

1 cup grated Gruyere cheese

Salt, pepper

2 cups whipping cream, about

Cut off top of pumpkin as if to carve jack-o-lantern. Remove seeds.

Combine minced garlic and 1 tablespoon softened butter. Spread on sliced bread.

Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in medium saute pan. Saute onion until tender, about 10 minutes.

Layer bread, onion and cheese in pumpkin, seasoning each layer with salt and pepper to taste. Pour in cream to fill pumpkin about 3/4 full. Replace top, place on jellyroll pan and bake in 300-degree oven about 2 hours.

Let stand 10 minutes. Bring whole pumpkin to table. Scoop out flesh of pumpkin with each serving. Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

363 calories; 228 mg sodium; 104 mg cholesterol; 30 grams fat; 19 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams protein; 1.33 grams fiber.

Steamed cauliflower florets are reshaped into a head--or “brain,” if you imagine further--and drizzled with a rich-tasting hazelnut brown butter sauce. The sauce may also be served separately in a chafing dish to keep it warm.

CAULIFLOWER ‘BRAIN’ WITH HAZELNUT-BUTTER OOZE

2 heads cauliflower

1 quart water

2 bouillon cubes

Salt, pepper

1/2 cup butter

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage

1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts, skinned and chopped

1/3 to 1/2 cup whipping cream

Separate cauliflower heads into florets. Combine water, bouillon cubes, salt and pepper to taste in large saucepan. Bring to boil. Drop in 1/2 florets and boil 5 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon. Repeat with remaining florets. Drain, reserving broth for soup, if desired.

Melt butter in skillet. Add garlic and saute until golden brown. Add sage, then hazelnuts. Stir in whipping cream. Heat, stirring, until lightly browned.

Reassemble cooked florets into 1 or 2 “brains” on large platter. Pour over hazelnut-butter sauce or serve separately. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Each serving contains about:

213 calories; 400 mg sodium; 45 mg cholesterol; 20 grams fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 1.26 grams fiber.

Trick or treat? The treat comes in the form of this batch of cookies. They’re shaped like little pumpkins but made without the squash--just familiar sweet pumpkin pie spices.

SPICED PUMPKIN-SHAPED COOKIES

2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg white, lightly beaten

Orange crystal sugar

Sift together flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Set aside.

Cream together butter and sugar in mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla then flour mixture. Divide dough into 2 parts. Cover and chill for ease in handling.

On lightly floured board, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies with floured pumpkin-shaped cutter. Brush edges of each cookie with egg white. Dip edges in crystal sugar to coat.

Place cookies about 1 inch apart on lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees about 8 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Makes about 2 dozen.

Each serving contains about:

122 calories; 114 mg sodium; 24 mg cholesterol; 6 grams fat; 16 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.03 gram fiber.

Goblins or ghosts, in this case, come in black or white ice cream scoops. Pick your choice or have them both -- they’re equally rich and creamy. The mystery flavor? Anise!

GOBLINS AND GHOSTS ICE CREAM

1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin

1/2 cup water

6 cups whipping cream

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup evaporated milk

1 tablespoon anise flavoring

1 tablespoon vanilla

Nut brown food color

Purple color

Halloween candies

Sprinkle gelatin over water, stir and let stand 5 minutes to soften.

Place 2 cups whipping cream in small saucepan and heat to simmering. Stir in softened gelatin until dissolved. Stir in sugar. Add remaining whipping cream, evaporated milk, anise and vanilla.

Divide mixture in half. To half of mixture, stir in enough brown and purple colors until mixture turns almost black.

Freeze each half in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions. Pack in covered glass loaf pans and keep in freezer until ready to serve. Scoop into chilled stemmed glasses and garnish with Halloween candies. Makes 1 quart each of ice cream, 16 servings.

Each serving contains about:

406 calories; 51 mg sodium; 128 mg cholesterol; 34 grams fat; 23 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 0 fiber.

Sweet, ripe persimmons are perfect for freezing. Freeze the fruit whole until firm and icy cold. Scoop out the thawing pulp and you get instant sorbet.

MELTING PERSIMMON HEARTS

1 dozen ripe persimmons

Place persimmons in freezer and freeze at least overnight until hardened. Serve icy cold and frosty. Fruit will have sorbet consistency upon thawing. Makes 12 servings.

Each serving contains about:

32 calories; 0 sodium; 0 cholesterol; 0 fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 0 protein; 0.38 gram fiber.