Halloween treats

(article, Culinate staff)
The tricks of Halloween are around the corner; here are some treats on our minds.

[[list(culinate8).

#(n1). Go to a local farm to pick out the prettiest, weirdest, biggest, and most colorful pumpkins. And apples — see No. 4, below.

#(n2). Clean all those slimy pumpkin seeds, then toast and spice them for a crunchy snack.

#(n3). Roast some of those pumpkins instead of carving them (OK, so we have to buy cooking pumpkins, not carving ones, for this) and make a few loaves of pumpkin bread with the soft, squashy results.

#(n4). [%image promo-image float=right width=300 caption="Plentiful pumpkins."] Concoct candy apples for a Halloween party, or coat them in caramel sauce instead. (And we're sad that we can no longer give these away at the door to trick-or-treaters.)

#(n5). Whip up a batch of homemade candy. Here we give kudos to Chow, which has made something of a specialty out of DIY versions of junk-food classics, such as Twinkies. Check out their latest article on DIY Halloween candy, including homemade versions of peanut-butter cups, Almond Joy, Twix, and Snickers.

#(n6). Sample a pumpkin-flavored beer, such as Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale, Blue Moon's Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale, and Brooklyn Brewery's Post Road Pumpkin Ale.

#(n7). Make soup to eat before hitting the streets. Some fall favorites? White Bean, Chard, and Pasta Soup and Potato-Kale Soup.

#(n8). And finally, build a bonfire, then stand around it sipping hot mulled cider (cider simmered in a pot with cinnamon sticks, cloves, and a little ground nutmeg and allspice).

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