Hello my Foodie Friends!

This year will be unique for many households in how to allow each of our little ones to take part in the festivities that surround Halloween. Throughout my neighborhood, many of the homes have decorated their yards with amazing creativity. It’s safe to say that these folks have been planning their Halloween decorations for some time now. These elaborate haunted house displays are quite breathtaking in their scale and really do bring happiness to all of us during a time when treating may be different for our trick-or-treaters. 

Looking back (many years) at Halloween memories, the Reardon household was the same when we were children as it is now — except back then there were only a few days a year that we were allowed to have candy and bad snacks.  My mother’s kitchen always had bowls of different kinds of fruits and vegetables depending on the season. There was never any candy, potato chips or bad snacks. If we wanted something sweet, it would be an apple or orange or tomatoes and cucumbers from the garden. Candy and snacks had not taken over America yet. When Halloween night arrived, my siblings and I would be almost too excited to eat our dinner before we went trick or treating. 

To get us to eat, my mother would try to do something creative with what we were having for dinner. On Halloween evening after eating dinner, the four of us would be off with orders to stay together “or else.”  I was told that — since I was the oldest ­— it was my job to keep a count on my brothers and sisters or I would lose my candy. When we got home we would brag about how much candy we had.  The next two weeks were spent dipping into our stash of candy. 

As you plan how to approach this Halloween, fill up your trick-or-treaters with something that will keep them warm during the chilly Halloween evening this year. Have fun with being innovative with simple recipes while creating your own Halloween memories with stories that can be told for years. Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store to assist with your “scary” treats. Remember my Foodie Friends that “Life Happens in the Kitchen!”

 Take Care,
John & Paula