Trick the treats

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It’s time to let your evil side reign! Halloween might still largely be a western festival but the fun and spunk that it brings along is something that’s enjoyed across the globe. You don’t have to be going on “trick or treat” rounds across the

neighbourhood or dress up in elaborate costumes to get into the celebratory mood that Halloween brings with it. Try some of these interesting dishes to add that touch of “horror” to bring in the Halloween festivities.

Scary cookies
These are essentially butter-vanilla cookies with some chocolate chip garnish that fits in with the theme.

Ingredients
2 cups maida
1 cup of unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1 tsp of vanilla essence
1½ tsp of baking powder
1 egg, beaten
½ cup of milk
1½ cups of powdered sugar
1 tsp of salt
To garnish: Chocolate chips and cashewnuts

Method
Sift the salt, maida and baking powder into a bowl. Now add the sugar, egg, butter and milk to it in the prescribed order and knead the dough well. Shape the dough into a log and wrap it with cling film, place this in the fridge for about an hour or two. Once you take it out and unwrap the cling film, cut the dough into slices of half-inch each and place two chocolate chips to represent a pair of eyes and a cashewnut to indicate a nose on the cookies. Bake at 180 degrees for 12-15 minutes until done. Allow them to cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container.

Ghost wraps
You can use any filling that you like for these wraps. Using tortillas instead of chappatis is another option too.

Ingredients
4 leftover chappatis
2 potatoes, peeled, boiled and mashed
1 green chilli, minced
1 tsp of red chilli powder
1 cup of grilled chicken breast, cut into strips (or paneer for vegetarians)
1 carrot, julienned
4-5 lettuce leaves, torn
4 tbsp of coriander chutney
Juice of half a lime
Salt to taste
To garnish:
4 olives, cut into halves
1 cheese slice, cut into strips

Method
In a bowl mix the mashed potato with green chilli, lime juice, chilli powder and salt.
On a chappati, spread a layer of the green chutney, followed by lettuce and carrots, then add the potato mixture and add the chicken/paneer. Roll up the chappati and secure with a toothpick if necessary. Place the olives to denote eyes and twist the strip of cheese slice to form a mouth and place it below the eyes. Serve immediately before it gets soggy.

Pumpkin cake
Pumpkins are synonymous with Halloween and this is one of the most common things made using leftover pumpkin after the festival.

Ingredients
2 cups of red pumpkin, chopped
2 cups of maida
1½ tsp of baking soda
1 cup of sugar
2 tbsp of honey
¾ cup of butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
½ cup of curds
1 tsp of cinnamon powder
½ tsp of clove powder
¼ cup of raisins
Some icing sugar to dust

Method
Sift the maida, baking soda, cinnamon powder and clove powder together. Keep this aside for a while. Meanwhile, boil the pumpkin for about five minutes with some water, drain and mash into a pulp.
In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until smooth. Now add the pumpkin pulp, eggs, curds and honey to this, beat well for about 5 minutes using an electric beater. Add the flour mixture to this now and mix well, stir in the raisins and mix again to form a smooth batter without any lumps.
Pour the batter into a greased baking tin and bake in a pre-heated oven for 30-40 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius or until the cake is done. Allow it to cool down completely, dust with icing sugar and cut into slices.

Rainbow sorbet
Sorbets are a refreshing end to a heavy meal especially in the summer. Here we use a basic lime sorbet with different hues for an element of fun.

Ingredients
Juice of 5-6 lemons
¾ cup of sugar
2 cups of water
½ cup of soda or aerated water
¼ tsp of lemon zest
Green, yellow and orange food colouring

Method
Simmer the water in a saucepan and when it begins to bubble add the lemon juice and sugar, stir well until dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool down completely. Now add the soda to this along with the lemon zest and mix well. Divide this mixture into 3-4 bowls and add 2-3 drops of colouring into each. Freeze these for an hour or two and remove from the fridge, stir with a whisk or a beater. Repeat this process about 4 times before you scoop them into bowls and serve. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

Spiderweb cupcakes
These vanilla cupcakes with a chocolate topping are always a hit.

Ingredients
1 cup of maida
1 egg, beaten
½ cup of butter, at room temperature
¾ tsp of baking powder
½ tsp of baking soda
½ tsp of vanilla essence
¾ cup of sugar
½ cup of milk (use only if the batter is too dry)

For the topping:
100 gm of dark chocolate, melted with a teaspoon of butter
1 cup of fresh cream
¼ cup of sugar
A few drops of vanilla essence
Method
Sift the flour, baking soda and baking powder together. Keep this aside. Meanwhile, cream the butter and sugar together until smooth, add the egg and vanilla essence to this and mix well to form a smooth batter. Now add the flour to this and mix well to combine everything.
Grease and line a cupcake tray, spoon the batter into the cavities and bake for 15 minutes at 180º Celsius or until done. Remove from the oven and allow them to completely cool down before icing them. Mix the fresh cream, sugar and vanilla essence together, whip this until it begins to form soft peaks. Pour this mixture into a piping bag with a narrow nozzle. Once the cupcakes have cooled down, spread the chocolate evenly on the surface. Let this set for about half an hour, after this use the piping bag with fresh cream to draw concentric circles followed by diagonal lines to represent a web. Let the cupcakes rest for 15 minutes before serving.