Happy Halloween. Trick or Treat.

 

I am already doing my “trick” by staying alive with ALS for almost 4 years, so now I want the “treat.” The porch, front door and interior are decorated, and the pumpkins are carved… It’s time for a party!!! The best part about Halloween parties are the treats. No, no, no… You are at the wrong house (and wrong blog) if you think that we are going to look at Rice Krispy Treats in the shape of Frankenstein. Halloween is the perfect holiday to get your dessert game on. You can get creative, spooky and clever but don’t get disgusting and do desserts shaped like brains or fingers or intestines because that’s just disgusting and you should keep that side of yourself…to yourself, freak.

I’m all about the chic Halloween dessert. Even if you’re not exactly a baker (I’m not) or crafty (I’m not), you can still pull off a cool dessert if you are slightly creative (I am.) And by creative I mean going on the Internet and finding a chic recipe. Voilà! I have taken the liberty and put together, I think, a rather spooky, chic, clever Halloween party dessert board HERE Take a look…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don’t you hate those types of people who don’t share their sources? I do. I think it is nice to share ideas and recipes and I hope you do too because I thought it would be fun if everyone shared their Halloween sources in the comments section of the blog. If you have a great place where you order hand-painted pumpkins, tell us! If you have a great source for chic decorations, share it! If you have a great Halloween dessert recipe, tell us! If you know of a great Halloween decorating book, share it, for God’s sake! Just put it in the comment section of today’s blog and we all win!

A toute!

*Something you don’t know about me? It’s really about my mother but I am going to expose her anyway. For the past 44 years, or more, my mother has bought a giant Thanksgiving Butterball turkey from the grocery store. But, now that farm raised poultry is readily available to order via Internet, my mother has evolved. To get fresh, cruelty free, free range organic turkey for Thanksgiving, look no further than Williams-Sonoma! You can order a famous and much coveted (uncooked) Willie Bird Ranch Thanksgiving turkey on the freaking Internet. Isn’t life grand when you’re not an idiot and can use a computer? You can go to the website HERE and learn all about these turkeys and how they are shipped. I think it’s genius. If I were you though, I would get your order in fast before they are sold out. They have a special Thanksgiving delivery. I actually called Williams-Sonoma today and asked them all the details about these turkeys… how they are shipped, if they are seasoned, do they need to be de-thawed, can you add your own stuffing, cooking temperatures and times, etc. They knew all of the answers so I suggest if you have any questions just give them a quick call. This is going to be the perfect turkey for all my mother’s recipes for Thanksgiving dinner. The cookbook is almost finished!

"Without chocolate, there would be darkness and chaos." Don Kardong

I think Valentine’s Day is the one day of the year that women persuade themselves into thinking that it’s okay to eat a whole box of chocolates even though this is what they want to do the other 364 days of the year. Before I got sick, my idea of a dessert was fruit. I had successfully trained myself from a young age to never ever eat dessert. I convinced myself that I didn’t like it. My poor child did not have that kind of mother who would have a plate of cookies waiting for her after school. We did not even have ice cream in the freezer but we had a whole bunch of mangoes. No wonder she hates me. Just kidding. Anyway, after I got sick and the doctor told me that I would most likely die within three years I decided from that moment on I would shovel into “ma bouche” any and every delicious chocolatey, sugary, meringuey, cream puffy treat I could get my hands on. I have been true to my own word. Living in Paris helps. For example, this week alone I have had a sticky bun, a chocolate eclair, a caramel eclair, 4500 gummy bears, cheesecake, peanut M&Ms, French toast with powdered sugar, three macaroons and probably other stuff I’m forgetting. Here’s the funny thing… Nothing bad has happened. All those years I worried. I haven’t broken out, I’m not a big fatty and I don’t have any cavities. I can’t believe I wasted all those years on fruit. Here is a little collection of beautiful and delicious Valentine’s Day treats. I have included links to the recipes if you feel adventurous. XO XO

www.laduree.com "Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first." Earnestine Ulmer

"Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart." Erma Bombeck

www.thecomfortofcooking.com "I'd consider being a farmer. As long as I could live on the Pepperidge Farm. And raise Milanos." Author unknown

www.foodideasrecipes.com "There are two kinds of people in the world: those who love chocolate, and communists." Leslie Moak Murray

"Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread and pumpkin pie." Jim Davis

www.onefabday.com "Ice cream is exquisite. What a pity it isn't illegal." Voltaire

www.bedifferentactnormal.com "A boy doesn't have to go to war to be a hero; he can say he doesn't like pie when he sees there isn't enough to go around." – E. W. Howe

www.100layercake.com "Is there's no chocolate in heaven, I'm not going." Author unknown

www.pineconesandacorn.blogspot.com "Fruit only angers my need for chocolate." Jason Love

www.excellentrecipe.net "If not for chocolate, there would be no need for control top pantyhose. An entire garment industry would be devastated." Author unknown

www.sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net "When you're dead, you're dead. And until then, there's ice cream." The Mentalist. That's it. Happy Valentine's Day "I hope your wildest dreams come true." Napoleon Dynamite XO XO