I may be in the minority but I really really don't like Halloween. I dread the whole thing every year and I'm always heartily glad to see the end of it.
Everything about it seems set up to celebrate darkness and fear whereas I love light. I feel like the world just turns a bit too ugly and all the decor everywhere in the lead up makes me turn away. If you've ever met me you'd know I'm a sensitive soul; I don't watch movies that are rated more than a 12 and even then I'm pretty choosy. I don't like masks, don't like gore, don't like skeletons, basically don't like anything about Halloween. I know most people would say there's no harm in it and it's just a bit of fun, but I feel there's a lot behind it that isn't harmless or fun and I just don't get the fascination. Anyway, recently I have come to think that there is ONE thing that people do at Halloween that can be really lovely, and that is pumpkin carving. Not ugly, scary faces type of pumpkin carving but the pretty ones; the warm amber glow of light through beautiful shapes. That is almost like a prelude to Christmas with all its merry twinkle and it's all about the light. It's cosy, friendly and inviting. I love Autumn and adore October but sometimes feel like the way Halloween is these days has spoilt it for me; I end up looking forward to Halloween being over so I won't keep seeing all the stuff everywhere but I don't want to wish away one of my most beloved months of the year. So I'm taking pumpkins back. They've been a popular of icon of Halloween for so long but do you know what? Halloween does not own pumpkins. Autumn does. And Autumn is about abundance of harvest, and nature's beauty, and ways to get cosy. Pumpkins are so widely available at supermarkets and farm shop these days that you can get them very easily for very little expense. I grabbed these two little cuties today for 75p each.
I've been looking forward to carving out my own little lantern and seeing it all lit up. When it came to it though I didn't really have a very good knife for the job (turns out if you want to do more than the odd triangle here and there you probably need tools such as an awl and a flesher which I definitely want to invest in for next time). So Dad came round with his power drill and we had a fun time making lots of holes in my pumpkin and making a very impressive mess on the floor with the delicate little twists of pumpkin that were being pulled from within.
I could certainly improve upon my first effort now that I've had a go. There are so many designs I'd love to play with but with an active little 7 month old boy I don't think I can spend too much time mucking around with power tools and vegetables. For now I will be content with popping my lantern on our porch and seeing it glow.
I've also been itching to make some little pumpkin pies. I've excitedly unearthed my overflowing box of cookie cutters as I wanted some autumnal leaves to decorate the pies.
There are many wonderful recipes out there for pumpkin pie but I knew roughly what should go in so I wanted to have a go myself. I love making pastry and have a really great pastry recipe I always use but today time was of the essence and I didn't want my little chap to be bored while I was in the kitchen so I bought some pre rolled shortcrust from the supermarket. Do whichever you like. If using the shop bought stuff though, I recommend tossing a bit of flour over the surface as it can be a bit moist and sticks to the cutters. It's also quite effective to keep flouring your cutter.
Here is my recipe. I hope you enjoy making them. And eating them!
While everyone else is doing their own thing this year, I will be content knowing that I'm letting my own little light shine whilst also filling the kitchen with some yummy treats for my man and my boy and me, and anyone else who may wish to join us.
And then soon there'll be the joy of Bonfires, sparklers, fireworks and the lead up to Christmas. That's a whole lot of light in the dark!
I could certainly improve upon my first effort now that I've had a go. There are so many designs I'd love to play with but with an active little 7 month old boy I don't think I can spend too much time mucking around with power tools and vegetables. For now I will be content with popping my lantern on our porch and seeing it glow.
I've also been itching to make some little pumpkin pies. I've excitedly unearthed my overflowing box of cookie cutters as I wanted some autumnal leaves to decorate the pies.
There are many wonderful recipes out there for pumpkin pie but I knew roughly what should go in so I wanted to have a go myself. I love making pastry and have a really great pastry recipe I always use but today time was of the essence and I didn't want my little chap to be bored while I was in the kitchen so I bought some pre rolled shortcrust from the supermarket. Do whichever you like. If using the shop bought stuff though, I recommend tossing a bit of flour over the surface as it can be a bit moist and sticks to the cutters. It's also quite effective to keep flouring your cutter.
Here is my recipe. I hope you enjoy making them. And eating them!
While everyone else is doing their own thing this year, I will be content knowing that I'm letting my own little light shine whilst also filling the kitchen with some yummy treats for my man and my boy and me, and anyone else who may wish to join us.
And then soon there'll be the joy of Bonfires, sparklers, fireworks and the lead up to Christmas. That's a whole lot of light in the dark!
No comments:
Post a Comment