Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble...Hello my little pretties...It's time to get ready for All Hallows Eve. We've waited all year and the time is finally upon us, so fire up your cauldrons and get ready to fill up the kiddies with this mysteriously delicious Toil and Trouble Soup. Don't let the name scare you. You won't be stuck stirring your cauldron all day, it comes together as easily as a wave of your wand. Gorgeous roasted violet cauliflower and two kinds of purple potatoes are blended with sauteed onions, white carrots, garlic and fennel to make a satisfying and beautifully festive Halloween Meal. It's sure to keep the kids warm as they venture out for a night of trick-or-treating. Serve it all by itself or with BLT sandwiches. I topped my soup with crispy homemade potato chips, sour cream and chives, but feel free add cheddar cheese and bacon bits, just like a loaded Baked Potato Soup. Enjoy!
🎃🎃🎃 6 days until Halloween 🎃🎃🎃
Toil and Trouble Soup (Roasted Potato Cauliflower Soup)
Adapted recipe from wifemamafoodie.com
Serves 4-6
2 purple sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
5-6 purple potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
1 small head of purple cauliflower, cut up
olive oil
3 very small purple potatoes for frying, sliced thin
1/2 bulb fennel, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small *white carrot, diced (1/2 cup)
4 cups chicken stock(substitute with vegetable stock)
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp Penzeys® Parisien Herbs (substitute 1/2 tsp dried chives & 1/4 tsp thyme)
chives (garnish)
fried purple potatoes (garnish)
swirl of sour cream
NOTE*Do not use Orange or purple carrots for this soup. Remember the color wheel in Art class...Orange + Purple = Brown. Trust me
on this...my first attempt I used purple carrots...BTW they are orange on the inside...and the soup turned a
disturbing shade of brown. No beautiful violet soup...only earthy ugly brown.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees
Prepare potatoes and cauliflower and toss with enough olive oil to evenly coat vegetables. Spread out on a parchment lined cookie sheet and roast for 30-35 minutes or until vegetables are cooked.
While vegetables are cooking quickly fry some sliced purple potatoes into crunchy chips for garnish. Drain on a paper towel and salt. (I sprinkled these with a gorgeous purple sea salt I picked up at Aldi® last year, but don't sweat it if you don't have purple salt, regular Kosher salt works too.)
In a large dutch oven, add 1 T olive oil, onions, white carrots and fennel and saute until vegetables are tender, ~10 minutes. Add chicken stock and simmer for a few minutes. Add roasted vegetables to the pot and heat for about 2-3 minutes to soften some of the roasted vegetables that might have browned in the oven. Add 1 tsp Parisien Herbes or substitute with 1/2 dried chives and 1/4 tsp thyme.
In batches, transfer soup to a blender and puree until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls and swirl in some sour cream, top with purple chips and chives and Enjoy!
More Halloween recipes to try:
Only 23 days left until Halloween and I have a confession to make. I was done with my Halloween recipes for this year. In fact, I'd already moved the recipes that I didn't get to this year, to my list of ideas for next year. I even went so far as to take down my dining room decorations (eek!) so I could begin planning my Thanksgiving table and decorations. So when I found myself home last week and made these little monsters, I was surprised that they came together so easily and that they turned out so creepy-cute and yummy!
So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that I may still have a few more Halloween recipes in me to share before the big day, Oct 31st!
The beauty of this idea is that these peppers can be stuffed with basically anything. Go traditional with ground beef and rice, or make breakfast with scrambled eggs and ham, or even add taco meat, beans, cheese, and salsa for a delicious taco salad over a bed cabbage. How about Indian spiced lentils and tandoori chicken...Yum! Change up the green pepper to orange peppers and carve out some jack-o-lanterns like these. The possibilities are endlessly delicious and fun!
Bell peppers are one of my favorite ingredients and I use them in many of my recipes. But, I know not everyone likes bell peppers, including my kiddos. Not to worry. The best part about this dish and all it's variations, is that it'll save you from having to pick these little buggers out of your kid's food. Just eat the filling and leave the pepper behind! At least that's how I'll sell this dish to my kids.
All kiddo-ing aside, these will make a great addition to a festive Halloween dinner as the perfect side dish or as a stunning main dish. Personally, I like the idea of these delicious potatoes getting so much attention with such a fun presentation because, side dishes are often better than the main course. Happy Halloween!
Franken-peppers (Stuffed Peppers with Potatoes, Chorizo and Onions)
Serves 4
2 T canola oil
6 medium potatoes, peeled, medium dice
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T smoked paprika
1 t. cumin
salt and pepper (to taste)
8 oz. Chorizo (I used Soy Chorizo)
green onions, chopped
cilantro leaves
Spicy Tomato Sauce, or substitute with prepared Enchilada Sauce
4 Green Bell Peppers, carved
Pepper Jack Cheese, shredded
Spicy Tomato Sauce
1/2 cup vegetable broth
3 T tomato paste
1/2 T apple cider vinegar
1 T honey
1 t. cumin
1 t. smoked paprika
salt and pepper (to taste)
red chili flakes (to taste)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a large skillet, add canola oil, potatoes, onions and garlic, cumin and smoked paprika and cook over medium heat until potatoes are mostly done, about 10 minutes. It's okay if they are not completely cooked as they will finish cooking in the oven. Add chorizo and heat until hot. Remove from heat. Salt and pepper to taste. Add green onions and cilantro. Set aside.
An a small saucepan, add all ingredients for the Spicy Tomato Sauce and heat over medium heat until hot, about 5 minutes. Taste and add additional spices as needed to taste.
Cut Bell Peppers tops off with a paring knife in a zig-zag pattern to make Frankenstein's hairline. Carefully remove top and remove remaining ribs from inside the bell pepper with your fingers or scrape with a spoon. Cut off seeds from the top and set aside.
Using a large diameter straw, push straw through the fleshy inside of the pepper to create Frankenstein's eyes, using your finger on the shiny outside as resistance, to help cut through the exterior.
Cut out eyebrows, nose and mouth with the paring knife and add scars with the tip of the blade.
Assembly:
Baste the inside of bell peppers generously with the spicy tomato sauce. Fill each bell pepper with potato chorizo mixture and replace the tops. Place stuffed peppers in a shallow casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray. Cook peppers for 30-35 minutes.
Remove peppers from oven and add shredded Pepper Jack Cheese to tops of peppers and return to the oven. Bake an additional 10 minutes or place under the broiler to melt cheese. Remove from oven and serve.
For other Halloween recipes to try, click here.
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| Spider Caviar |
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| Nightcrawlers con Funghi |
It had been about three weeks since I'd last talked to my mom. Daily life, weekends brimming with things to do, obligations, homework and all around exhaustion taking hold at the end of each day prevented us from talking as frequently as we would've liked. So last Saturday was the day we scheduled to be able to talk and catch up. Yes, we actually had to calendar the phone call.
My husband and the boys were at an early morning Cub Scout event and I was out running errands when she called. I was expecting her call even though I was at the grocery store. It was early and there weren't too many folks there at that time of the morning. But despite my opinion that people who talk on cell phones in public are rude, I was one of those rude people. It couldn't be helped or rather at least I didn't care all that much if I was being rude. I wanted to talk to my mom. We talked and talked as I shopped the aisles. The epitome of rudeness, I know. Yeah, I even checked out with my phone stuck to my ear, completely ignoring the checker! Yikes.
We talked and laughed as I made my way home. (Hands free of course!) We talked about my boys, talked about the food, what we got on sale, and the new recipes we'd tried recently. What was good. What wasn't. She told me about this recipe, from Cuisine at Home that she adapted by adding cauliflower along with the potatoes to this Potato Gratin to make this amazingly delicious Potato and Cauliflower Gratin! The original recipe calls for Swiss cheese, which I didn't have at home, but she told me that she just uses any cheese she has on hand. So I used a blend of Asiago, Havarti and White Cheddar, since I had a little bit of each and it was incredible! Can't go wrong with Asiago and Havarti cheeses!
I made these creamy, cheesy, yummy potatoes that night and it was just what I needed to soothe my weary soul, comfort food and a long phone call with my mom. The perfect day! Thanks Mom, I love you.
Potato and Cauliflower Gratin (adapted recipe from Cuisine at Home)
Makes 8 cups
6 cups potatoes, cut into even chunks
2 cups cauliflower, cut into even pieces
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
1 1/2 c milk
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 T garlic, minced
salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste
1 cup Swiss cheese (I used Asiago, Havarti and White Cheddar)
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Bring potatoes, milk, cream, onion, garlic, and seasonings to a boil in a large saucepan. reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Layer half the potatoes and cauliflower in a greased, 4 quart casserole dish and top with half the cheese. Repeat layering: pour milk and cream mixture on top. Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked through. Let stand 10-20 minutes before serving.
Tomorrow is Halloween and here's my last installment of Halloween-inspired food. This is a really fun, but gross, idea for Halloween. Not that the bloody version of my Ghoulish Goat Cheese Torte wasn't gross enough, these just look like disgusting fingers and toes and the idea of eating them, is just not appetizing. I promise you though, they are devilishly delicious. Previously, I'd been working on a recipe for my Deviled Bat Wings but reluctantly, I had to scrap the idea for Halloween. I'd made them twice and both times I had trouble getting good pictures of them but most importantly, the flavor just wasn't what I wanted them to be for Halloween. I couldn't get them to be spicy 'enough' for some reason. Luckily, I've learned that sometimes things don't work out as planned and it's usually for a good reason. One good reason, was that I had time to make this cool fingerling potato recipe instead and another is that the Deviled Bat Wing dish, oddly enough, will become a Christmas dish thanks to my husband's cool suggestion. XO!
Although, Halloween is coming to a close and you won't see any more of my disgusting Halloween food ideas, Fall is in full swing. I'm looking forward to making soups and stews and countless comforting recipes now that the weather has finally cooled down out here in sunny California. Autumn has officially begun with a bit of rain (slight bit) this week and I've finally broke out my sweaters. So stay tuned for more comforting fall foods and have a Happy and Safe HALLOWEEN!
Roasted Fingers and Toes
Serves: 6 side dish;12 appetizer
2 lbs Fingerling potatoes
1/2 cup prepared pesto
1/4 cup almonds, sliced or halved
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese, grated
Pesto Aioli
3/4 cup mayonnaise
3 T prepared pesto
1 clove garlic, finely minced
or
Pesto Sour Cream
3/4 cup sour cream
3 T prepared pesto
1 clove garlic, finely minced
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Wash and trim potatoes. With a paring knife, cut approximately 1/2 inch down one end of each fingerling potato.(See pictures below) Again, using the paring knife, notch out the 1/2 inch cut to make a space for the almond slice or almond half (fingernail). Place all notched out potatoes in a medium-sized bowl.
Mix prepared pesto with notched potatoes. Salt and pepper to taste and set aside and let set for 30-60 minutes at room temperature, stirring occasionally.
Prepare the Pesto Aioli or Pesto Sour Cream for dipping sauce or if you'd prefer, break out some plain ol' ketchup. :) Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Assemble the fingernails:
Slide almond slices or halves into notched potatoes. It'll be messy but don't worry if you can't slide them into the notch easily, let them sit on the potato while they cook. The pesto will help them stick to the potato. The important thing is that the almonds cook with the potatoes to brown and darken and look ugly. Place fingers and toes onto a parchment lined cookie sheet in a single layer.
Roast at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
Note: Once the potatoes are cooked, you'll be able to easily slide the almond into the soft potato to secure the "almond nail" to the potato.
Generously grate Parmesan Cheese over potatoes and additional salt and pepper to taste and serve.
