Tap into your inner ghoul with these insanely fun recipes that will help you and your family get into the Halloween Spirit

The recipes are as follows

Pumpkin soup with coconut 

Ingredients

• 500 gm pumpkin or squash, deseeded, cut into wedges
• 100 ml olive oil
• 150 gm finely chopped onion
• 50 gm finely chopped garlic
• 50 gm finely chopped ginger
• 100 gm roughly chopped sweet potato
• 250 ml vegetable stock
• Salt to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 50 ml coconut milk
• 50 ml coconut cream

Method

Place the pumpkin on a baking tray, season with salt and sprinkle with olive oil.
Bake it in an oven at 180°C until soft and caramelised. Scoop out the pulp and keep aside.
Pour the remaining oil into a soup pot. Sauté the onion, garlic and ginger until softened. Stir in the roasted pumpkin pulp and sweet potato. Sauté for 2 more minutes. Add the stock and season with salt and fresh pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook until the potato is done.
Blend with a tabletop blender until smooth and consistent. Return to the pot through a fine kitchen sieve and heat to boil. Add the coconut milk and the cream, check the seasoning and boil for 1 more minute.
Serve with toasted bread on the side.

Whole-wheat carrot cupcake with chocolate cream cheese frosting

Ingredients

For the carrot cupcake:

• 25 gm oat flakes
• 150 gm whole-wheat flour
• 150 gm all-purpose flour
• 15 gm baking soda
• 8 gm cinnamon powder
• 4 gm ginger powder
• Pinch of salt
• 200 gm light brown sugar
• 150 ml coconut oil
• 150 ml applesauce (unsweetened)
• 100 ml low fat yoghurt
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 100 gm shredded carrots
• 30 gm shredded, fresh coconut
• 75 gm raisins
• 75 gm chopped walnuts For the chocolate frosting:
• 250 gm cream cheese
• 50 gm unsalted butter
• 300 gm powdered sugar
• 50 gm unsweetened cocoa powder
• A pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

 Method

Place paper cups in a muffin baking pan and sprinkle some oats at the bottom. Mix whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt in a medium-sized kitchen bowl.
In a separate bowl, mix the brown sugar and oil using a kitchen mixer. Slowly add in yoghurt and applesauce and mix well. Add the eggs, one by one, and then the vanilla extract.
Manually stir the dry ingredients, using a rubber spatula, into the wet ingredients until just combined and all flour pockets are gone (be careful not to over-mix). Add the carrots, coconut, raisins and walnuts.
Fill up ¾ of each paper cup with the prepared cupcake mix and sprinkle the remaining oats on top. Bake for 20 minutes at 180ºC.
Ensure the cream cheese and butter are of room temperature. Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment, mix them together at medium to high speed until creamy (about 3-5 minutes). Sift the powdered sugar with the cocoa powder into the bowl then add a pinch of salt.
Mix on a low speed until well combined, smooth and whipped (about 1-2 minutes). Add the vanilla extract and mix for another 2 minutes until creamy and silky. Pipe it on the cooled cupcakes and serve.

 Beetroot cured salmon with green pea panna cotta & pumpernickel crumble

Ingredients

For the salmon:

• 20 gm sea salt
• 20 gm caster sugar
• 1 small, peeled, grated beetroot
• Zest and juice of ½ an orange
• 100 gm salmon, skin cleaned, deboned

For the green pea panna cotta:

• 50 gm butter
• 1 chopped shallot
• 1 chopped garlic clove
• 1 sprig of thyme
• 100 ml vegetable stock
• 100 gm garden peas
• 2 sheets of gelatine

For the pumpernickel bread crumbs:

• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 2-3 slices pumpernickel bread
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 20 gm chopped pistachios

 Method

Mix the salt, sugar, beetroot and orange in a bowl. Sprinkle half the mixture in a small container (glass or stainless steel). Place the salmon in the mixture with the skin side facing down. Pour over the other half enough of the mixture to cover the salmon. Place container in the fridge and leave for 24 hours. Once the salmon is ready, wash well in cold running water. Slice the salmon as thin as possible.
For the panna cotta, melt the butter and sweat the shallot, garlic and thyme in a pan. Add the vegetable stock to the pan and simmer for 5-6 minutes. Add the peas and simmer for 2 more minutes, then remove from heat. Transfer to a tabletop blender and blend the pea mix into a smooth paste. Soften the gelatine in iced water then add to the pea mix. Pour the mix into a serving dish and set in the fridge. Remove from the fridge 5 minutes before serving.
For the pumpernickel crumbs, heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the pumpernickel crumbs in it. Add the salt and let it caramelise with the maple syrup. The crumble should be beautifully crisp, therefore, slightly sizzle for about 5 minutes before sprinkling the crushed pumpernickel crumbs and finely crushed pistachios over the panna cotta. Garnish as illustrated and serve.

Pumpkin cheesecake with double chocolate cookies

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 150 gm graham cracker crumbs
• 40 gm light brown sugar
• 1 gm ground cinnamon
• 100 gm melted butter

For the filling:

• 200 gm cream cheese (room temperature)
• 400 gm puréed, roasted pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 60 ml sour cream
• 275 gm sugar
• 2 gm cinnamon powder
• 1 gm ground nutmeg
• 20 gm all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the double chocolate cookies:

• 120 gm all-purpose flour
• 50 gm unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 gm baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• 200 gm dark chocolate (100 gm roughly chopped, 100 gm cut into 0.5cmx0.5cm pieces)
• 100 gm unsalted butter
• 300 gm sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

For the crust, mix the crumbs, sugar and cinnamon in a kitchen bowl and add the melted butter. Knead it for half a minute. Press it to the bottom and on the edges of your cheesecake baking form and set aside.
For the filling, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Add pumpkin purée, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar and spices. Then add the flour and, finally, the vanilla. Mix until well combined and pour into the baking form. Bake in an oven at 160-180ºC for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and cool it down to room temperature. Place in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
For the cookies, mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside. Melt the roughly chopped chocolate with the butter in a microwave on low power. Transfer the chocolate mixture to a bowl and add sugar, eggs and vanilla; mix with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined. Slowly add in the dry ingredients and fold in the remaining chocolate pieces. Make small balls by hand (3-4 cm diameter) and place it on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake it in a preheated oven at 160°C for about 15 minutes.
Decorate as shown in the picture, and serve.

 Rice Krispies and white chocolate lollipop

Ingredients

• 50 gm butter
• 40 regular white marshmallows
• 120 gm Rice Krispies
• 100 gm white chocolate, chopped into small pieces

 Method

Measure everything in advance since you have to work very fast.
Melt the butter over low heat in a big pot. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat and add the Rice Krispies.
Stir until well coated and transfer to buttered lollipop forms. Press down the mixture firmly and let it cool.
Place the white chocolate pieces in a small metal bowl and melt over a pan of simmering water.
Dip the lollipops into the warm chocolate and set aside to cool.

Pear Ghosts with Dark Chocolate Mousse & Pomegranate

Ingredients

For the pear:

• 750 ml of white grape juice
• 250 ml water
• 150 gm sugar
• 1 halved and scraped vanilla bean
• 6 firm Bartlett or Bosc pears

For the chocolate mousse:

• 150 gm chocolate
• 150 ml cream
• 20 gm icing sugar
• 1 egg

For the pomegranate syrup:

• 2-3 fresh pomegranates
•  ½ cup sugar

For the decoration:

• Sugar paste or marzipan for the ghost blanket
• Fresh pomegranate for the eyes
• Pistachio sticks for the teeth

Method

Place the grape juice, water, sugar and vanilla bean and pulp into a small pot over medium heat and bring to a boil.
Peel the pears carefully (leave stalk intact, if possible) and place into the liquid; cover and cook slowly for 20-30 minutes or until the pears are tender but not falling apart. Remove the pears from the liquid and place them in a refrigerator.
Remove the vanilla bean from the pot and increase the heat to high for approximately 30 minutes, to reduce the syrup to one cup. Make sure the syrup does not get caramelised or brownish in colour. Cool and keep in the fridge until serving time.
For the mousse, place the chocolate in a stainless steel bowl and place over simmering water; ensure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl, and stir continually until melted. Set aside to cool slightly.
Whisk the cream and icing sugar together until stiff peaks form. Once the chocolate has cooled slightly, whisk in the egg and mix thoroughly until well combined and smooth, then transfer to a piping bag. Set aside for an hour in the fridge to set.
For the syrup, cut the pomegranates in half and juice them with a citrus squeezer. Combine the juice and sugar in a small pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened and syrupy (10-15 minutes). Cool the syrup and keep in the fridge until serving.
To assemble, make two-inch balls from the marzipan and roll into 2-mm sheets. Remove the core from the pear and cut a thin slice for the base of each pear so they can stand. Turn the pear upside down in your hand (facing the bottom up) and make a hole with a melon baller.
Pipe the chocolate mousse into each hole and place the pears on the serving dish. Cover it with the rolled out marzipan sheet and garnish with pomegranate for the eyes and pistachio for the mouth. Pour over with cooking syrup and drizzle into the mouth the pomegranate syrup.

Recipes by: Gyula Harangi, Executive Chef, Movenpick Hotel Deira

 Photos: Juidin Bernarrd

 

• Food and Dining