Happy Halloween!!

MWAH - HA - HA - HAAAA!!!

If you haven't guessed it that was my impersonation of a horribly haunting, deep and echoing evil laugh.
Not been frightened stiff or chilled to the bone by my murderous hackle? Then i shall begin...

Apologies for my Halloween Esq style start to my blog, it cannot be helped for i am a slave to this hell - ish havoc causing holiday ( more Halloween inspired alliterations to come ), the cheap and tacky costumes, the gory make up, the persistent trick or treaters, i revel in it all but one particular association to this nightmare of a night brings a particular witch like wicked grin upon my face - Pumpkins.

Excessively and cruelly used and abused by supermarket giants who take great effort in giving these glorious globes of orange a mere week of glory when this spooky time of year approaches, elaborately displaying hundreds at a time usually at the front of the store they are mainly advertised as ' great for carving ' with no kind word or tantalising picture given to that of their sweet squash like taste or their versatility in the autumnal kitchen.
I'm not adverse to a carved pumpkin (artistically drawn or savaged with a blunt kitchen knife), i myself have done many and decorated the exterior of my cottage as to ward off and terrify any evil spirits that may well be attracted to our dwelling, i just find it a shame that as soon as we wave a hasty goodbye to another Halloween pumpkins once again take a back seat and are hidden away, usually nestled somewhere between the more fashionable sweet potatoes and the butternut squash.
Time should be taken to acknowledge these voluptuous beauties for the uses that they were first intended, discovered by native American farmers who first pioneered the versatility of this vegetable using its sweet flesh in roasting,baking, boiling , seeds were eaten as well as used medically and the hollowed out shells were used as containers and pots. Even dried out pumpkin flesh was ground into strips and woven into mats. We actually use to use carved out potatoes, turnips and beets to shun any spectral guests, it wasn't until European settlers arrived in America that they discovered that the pumpkin would be more suited to the job of scaring off unwanted guests.

So if when you retrieve your Halloween guardian from your front door you find it is still quite well in tact and free from mould and damp, try and tempt yourself and your family by transforming it into a aromatic wholesome soup , a spicy, pungent and sweet smelling curry or a welcoming addition to a vegetable or meat Moroccan tagine. If your pumpkin has not lasted the test of time scour the supermarkets and farmers markets and if you have no luck do as Im going to do and cause a fuss and make some noise then hopefully they will get the same celebratory status as the more revered  ( but not as brave in face of all of those Halloween ghouls ) butternut squash .

I'm a sucker for anything that makes Halloween look cute and cuddly rather than gory and ghastly so when my eyes came across these charmingly adorable cake decorations i couldn't resist and  armed with a pumpkin and ginger cupcake recipe by the incredibly, fascinatingly talented Dan Lepard i hope these fruity and mildly warming pumpkin wonders tempt any young budding vampires, witches and zombies that may dare to come knocking at my door tonight.

Dan lepard Pumpkin and Ginger Cupcakes