Thursday, October 30, 2014

Chocolate, Spooky Goodies

I had this already to publish when I got an email from Costco. They are advertising a chocolate gift basket, full of lots of different chocolates and quite a lot of it. But it's $1,699.99. I am absolutely gobsmacked. Who in their right minds would pay that much for a basket of chocolate. OK it's full of good stuff such as Lindt and Godiva, but I just couldn't believe anyone would pay that much not even a company. For that kind of money I would want something in gold not just something which disappears over time.


Hallowe’en is getting close now. I am being inundated with spooky recipes which I just have to share with you. I couldn’t resist these cookies, biscuits in England of course.

Chocolate bat biscuits



Recipe from Good Food magazine, October 2014

Servings

Makes 25-30 biscuits, depending on cutter size

chocolate-bat-biscuitsLet a friendly bat perch on your glass of milk or cuppa this Halloween with these spooky biscuits - add vanilla buttercream for bourbons

Ingredients

  • 125g butter, softened
  • 85g icing sugar
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp milk
  • 175g plain flour, plus extra for rolling
  • 1 tsp fine espresso-style powder coffee (I used Azeera)
  • 50g cocoa powder
  • ¼ tsp salt
To decorate
  • 100g bar dark or milk chocolate
  • chocolate hundreds and thousands
  • coloured writing icing (or make your own with 100g icing sugar, 3-4 tsp water and some colouring)
  1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and line two baking sheets with baking parchment. Beat the butter and sugar together until creamy and pale, then beat in the yolk, the vanilla and milk. Sift the flour, coffee, cocoa and salt into the bowl, then mix together to make a soft dough. Shape the dough into a disc, wrap and chill for 15 mins.
  2. Dust the dough all over with a little flour, then roll it between two large sheets of baking parchment, to the thickness of a £1 coin. Remove the top layer of the paper, stamp shapes with an 8cm bat (or other) cutter, and carefully lift to the lined sheets using a palette knife. Re-roll the trimmings. Cut a 1.5cm x 5mm notch at the base of each bat’s body. This is about right to sit the bats on thick tumblers; if your glasses are finer-edged, make the notches thinner so that the bats stay put. Bake for 10 mins or until the biscuits feel sandy and smell rich and chocolatey. Cool on the sheets for 5 mins, then lift the cookies onto a wire rack and cool completely.
  3. To decorate, melt the chocolate over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave. One biscuit at a time, brush chocolate over the bat ears and wings with a small paintbrush, then cover with chocolate sprinkles. Tap off the excess. Pipe faces and fangs onto your bats, then leave to dry. Keep in an airtight container for up to a week.
Then there’s these spidery eggs from My Recipes. Now this one I would advise you to make your favourite recipe for devilled eggs and then just add the spider decoration.

Halloween Spooky Spider Devilled Eggs


Halloween Spooky Spider Deviled Eggs. Photo by Delicious as it Looks
By Lighthouse Rita




Servings 8
6 hard-boiled eggs, halved
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
black olives
 
Directions:
1. Cut eggs in half lengthwise. Slip out yolks and mash.
2. Stir in mayonnaise, mustard, salt, and pepper.
3. Cut whole olive in half.
4. Put one half on mashed yolk for the spiders body.
5. Thinly slice the other half for the spiders legs. Put four legs on each side.

Have a great day
Jo_thumb[2]

20 comments:

  1. Hi Jo - that is a lot of dosh for chocolate - I'm just glad I'm not that enthusiastic about chocolate ... it's good when I have some .. but not around normally!!

    The spookerly biscuits and eggs look brilliant ... cheers Hilary

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    1. I love chocolate Hils, but not that much. That's absolutely ridiculous. I always keep some for a treat for me - do you have Hershey's Kisses in the UK?

      I thought so although the recipe for the devilled eggs sounded tame, I put lots of Tabasco in mine as well as Coleman's mustard.

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  2. Those are perfect for Halloween.
    Not paying that much for any kind of food.

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    1. Funny I replied and it disappeared. I love these for Hallowe'en.

      Nor me. It's a ridiculous price.

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  3. Those deviled eggs are adorable!!!! I've been having the worst time trying to peel hard boiled eggs w/o half the white sticking to the shells. What a pain. And Costco is crazy to think people are going to pay that kind of coin for chocolate. I wonder how many baskets they will sell?

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    Replies
    1. I thought so, but I love the bats too. I THINK eggs that are difficult to peel are not totally fresh, but I could be wrong. I boil 4 eggs for us and you can guarantee one of them will be like that.

      It would be interesting to know how many they sell wouldn't it?

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  4. Gosh to have that kind of money, I'm sure someone will buy it. I read today that chocolate is good for memory loss - any more reasons to eat it? But yesterday they also said milk is bad, especially for women. Have always been allergic, but really, what next - breathing will kill you - yes it will - pollution! We're doomed, doomed - I tell you! LOL

    Happy Halloween!

    ReplyDelete
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    1. I can't imagine anyone being foolish enough to shell out for that. I guess some people will. In my long life, I have heard this is bad for you, then it's good for you then something else is bad then good. I don't take any notice any more.

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  5. Holy mess 2k for some chocolate? Does a model come and feed it to you?

    I love the bats that would be fin to do with the kids.

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  6. I am doing those eggs!! My family loves deviled eggs. Thanks Jo- it's will be the perfect surprise. (And yes, for that much money- that chocolate better make me magically skinny too!)

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    1. I might have a go but have to get some good olives. The ones I have in house wouldn't be good enough.

      Now there I would agree, magically skinny.

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  7. Love the spider egg. Those chocolates still aren't high-end enough for that price tag. That's nuts but I'm sure some fool will pay.

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  8. I love those eggs Jo .... we're meeting a bunch of 'old friends' tomorrow evening for Halloween and I've got all the ingredients together to make the cheesy spider you posted about a while back ... couldn't get black sesame seeds (just white ones which look boring) so am going to use black poppy seeds. And, I've bought some coloured pipe-cleaners to use for the legs instead of painting garden twigs .... Fingers crossed it will work OK.

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    1. I was thinking poppy seeds would work just as well. I like the idea of pipe cleaners so long as the fluff doesn't come off. Let me know how it works.

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  9. I wouldn't spend more than twenty dollars on a box of chocolates let alone that exorbitant price. Someone rich will probably buy it. Oprah maybe. Love the bat biscuits. We're expecting all the little kids to come a knocking tonight and have stocked up on lollies.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Nor me Pinky. Here we give them all kinds of candies and chocolates not lollies as far as I know. Maybe some people do. Many manufacturers come out with small versions of their chocolates such as miniature Mars bars etc.

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