Cooking with Abandon

So the Halloween dinner party went pretty well, though most people weren't able to stay very long past the actual dinner. Some stayed around for the movie, and a pretty good time was had by all.

Recipes that were a hit: definitely the pumpkin shaped cheese ball, which we'll have to put the recipe up for. Also the smores brownies were enjoyed. We deep fried some chicken tenders (pre-cooked) and then tossed some in buffalo sauce and the others in bbq sauce.

The pumpkin tomato basil soup from a couple of posts ago went over pretty well. I fudged a lot of it; I didn't use fresh pumpkin, but instead chose canned pumpkin. It went well, but despite the much larger ratio of pumpkin to tomato, it still had a distinctly tomato taste. Also, there was much too much of it. Even having some leftovers for the next day or two, I still threw most of it out. Must scale back the recipe.

Once again, this is from the back of the heart-shaped skillet frame package, so that would be the mold referred to in the directions.

Ingredients

1 cup flour
2 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tbsp salad oil

Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Combine egg, buttermilk and salad oil. Add to dry ingredients, stirring just until flour is moistened and free from lumps. Spray rings with cooking oil. Pour into molds on a well seasoned hot griddle or fry pan. Makes about six 4" pancakes.

This is a recipe found on the back of a package of heart-shaped skillet frames. They're for making pancakes and eggs in the shape of hearts: an impulse buy, of course.

Ingredients

4 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp salt
Dash of pepper
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp green onion
1/4 cup cooked ham or bacon
1/4 cup shredded swiss or cheddar
1/2 tsp chopped parsley or dill

Directions

Whisk eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Sauté green onions. Add sauteed onions and ham to egg mixture. Spray rings with cooking oil. Pour egg mixture into molds. Cook over low heat covered until eggs begin to set. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and cook until cheese is melted. Place on serving dish and sprinkle with parsley.