3 EASY HALLOWEEN RECIPES!

Hello there, I hope you all have a great Halloween! I promised another Autumn blog post and here it is. Food is the final section of my blog I have yet to fill, and like fashion, it plays a huge role in my life, probably the biggest!

I have always been a foodie. My mam always tells us a story of when we lived in Argentina and we did our weekly grocery shopping in Carrefour. I ran around the supermarket to each food stall that was giving out free samples. Particularly one time where sushi was being made and I jumped at the opportunity and grabbed some, ran back to my mam exclaiming how delicious it was and I was fascinated by it. Seriously, what child enjoys raw fish? I'm still like that to this day, there is virtually nothing I won't eat (bar lamb and liquorice though I'm working on it). Eating out and trying different foods is probably my favourite thing to do. I had friends tell me 'why haven't you blogged about food yet? That's probably what you're most passionate about,' so it seemed like the logical next step.

I could have done one recipe like a normal person but noooooo I had to challenge myself and give you three recipes, because all good things come in threes and this gives more variety in case you don't like something. This post includes a savoury recipe, a baking recipe and a recipe for a drink. I hope you enjoy :)

Tom.

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CURRIED PUMPKIN SOUP

This is one of my favourite soups to make. It's cheap to make, vegan, and uses seasonal ingredients. I used butternut squash for this as it's much sweeter and tastier than a standard pumpkin, though you can use either. The end result is a salty, sweet and spicy soup that hugs you from the inside.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 butternut squash
• 1 vegetable stock cube
• 2 onions
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp medium curry powder
• 1 tbsp honey
• salt & pepper to taste
• a sprig of thyme & nutmeg to garnish (optional)

Method: 

1. Peel the butternut squash and cut it into 1 inch chunks.
2. Chop the onions and mince the garlic.
3. Heat up the olive oil in a pot on a medium-high heat and fry off the onion until translucent. 
4. Add the garlic, cook off for a minute, and then throw in the butternut squash.
5. Add in the cumin and curry powder and coat the vegetables with the spices.
6. Dissolve your stock cube in 500ml boiling water and add to the vegetables.
7. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15/20 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft and cooked.
8. Blend it all together and add water if necessary to reach the desired consistency. You want it creamy, not pureed, and not too liquidy. Season with salt, pepper and honey.
9. Garnish with some thyme and nutmeg. 

BARNBRACK

For those of you who don't know, Barnbrack is an Irish fruit loaf traditionally served on Halloween. The dried fruit is soaked in whiskey and tea and gives it a lovely boozy flavour. A ring is also placed inside the loaf and it's said whoever gets it will get married. This recipe is definitely not for everyone, but I personally love it!

Ingredients:

• 225g plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 350g fruit mix
• 250ml tea
• 50ml whiskey
• 125g light brown sugar
• 1 large egg (or 2 medium)
• 1/2 tsp mixed spice
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• a ring

Method:

1. Soak the fruit mix in the whiskey and tea for as long as possible. Preferably overnight but 30 mins to an hour is fine. The fruit will absorb the liquid and plump up.
2. Grease & line a loaf tin and pre-heat the oven to 170˚C.
3. Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and mixed spice in a mixing bowl. 
4. Break the egg into the centre and with a wooden spoon, stir with the dry ingredients.
5. Add a good bit of the liquid the fruit has been sitting in. You don't need to use all of it, just enough to make the dough wet.
6. Drain the excess liquid and mix in the fruit until everything is combined.
7. Add in the ring and stir through. Spoon the dough into the tin and place in the middle shelf of the oven to bake for 1 hour.
8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
9. Enjoy with a cup of tea and a generous helping of butter! 

ORANGE HOT CHOCOLATE MONSTER

When this time of year comes and it starts to get cold, there's nothing more comforting than a cup of hot chocolate. This is a twist on the regular hot chocolate, flavoured with orange-flavoured chocolate and it's sooooooo good.

Ingredients:

• 1 Terry's Chocolate Orange
• a cup of milk
• whipped cream (optional)
• 2 large marshmallows (optional)
• 2 maltesers (optional)
• orange peel for decoration (optional)

Method:

1. Heat up the milk in a pot over a gentle heat. Don't let your milk burn, you want it gently heated.
2. Tear up the segments of chocolate and stir them into the milk with a wooden spoon. This is completely to taste depending on how sweet/chocolatey you like it. I think I used about 6 segments for a large mug.
3. That's it! It's that simple. Top with whipped cream and the eyes. You can make these easily by piercing the marshmallows and placing the Maltesers inside. Adorn with orange peel.