Monster Munch! Recipes to make this halloween

It’s spooky week! Whether you’re trick or treating with the small ones for Halloween, or lighting some candles as the veil thins for Samhain, you’ll all need some seasonal snacks to keep the festivities freaky!

For these dishes, you might want to wait until you’ve finished your jack ’o’ lanterns, because you’ll need to…

Save your pumpkin flesh!

Did you know that 18,000 tonnes of pumpkin are thrown away in the UK each year at Halloween? And yet there’s so much you can do with a pumpkin! Pumpkin soup, pumpkin stew, pumpkin risotto...or our super simple one-pan favourite, pumpkin tacos, followed up with pumpkin pie! Perfect for little hands (and big ones), load up the table and get everyone round. Any excuse for a party right? Check out our recipes for pumpkin tacos and pie below.

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One Tray Pumpkin Tacos

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This one-pan dinner couldn’t be more simple, easily feeds a crowd, and results in minimal washing up. We’re down with it! Get the gang round and let them help themselves. 

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Ingredients

The flesh of one medium pumpkin

One teaspoon seasalt

One teaspoon ground cumin

One teaspoon smoked paprika

One teaspoon oregano

One clove of garlic, chopped finely or crushed

One can of black beans

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To serve

One packet of tacos or wraps (or homemade ones, if you’re really good!)

Your favourite toppings- we like smashed avocado, a handful of grated cheddar or a blob of sour cream.

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Method

• Heat your oven to 180 C

• Chop your pumpkin flesh and pop it in a large baking tray. Drizzle it with oil, and stir through your seasonings (except the garlic)

• Roast in the oven for half an hour, or until almost tender, tossing every now and again

• Drain your black beans, and add them, along with the garlic, and toss well

• Roast for another ten minutes, or until your pumpkin is tender

• Serve alongside your fixings and let people load up their own tacos

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Pumpkin Pie (Vegan friendly!)

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OK, this one takes a little more effort, but it’s worth it, we promise. Plus, you can make most of it while your taco squash are roasting. Efficient! Or get it done in advance, it keeps beautifully. And trust us when we say that everyone will want to be your friend when they taste it.

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Pie crust ingredients 

(you can also use pre-made pie crust if you want to make things easier)

175g plain flour

115g butter or margarine

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

4 tablespoons cold water

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Pie filling ingredients

440g pumpkin

90g maple syrup

45g brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

225 ml full fat canned coconut milk

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cloves

30g cornstarch

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To Serve

Serve it warm, or cold, topped with cream, or just a dusting of cinnamon. Keep it vegan by scooping out the firm bit from a tin of coconut milk or cream that’s been in the fridge, and whip it into cream. Basically, go wild! It’s your pie.

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Method

For this recipe, you can use pumpkin puree made from the flesh of your Halloween jack-o-lanterns. To make the puree:

• Place your spooned/cut pumpkin in a large saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil.

• Cook for 20 minutes or until pumpkin is tender. Drain well and allow to cool. Then puree the flesh in a food processor or mash with a potato masher.

• Once pureed, keep it in a container, and it can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, or frozen for up to 6 months.

Start your pumpkin pie by making the crust:

• In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar, and cinnamon.

• Cut the butter or margarine into cubes and add them to the dry mixture. Mix together , so that you are left with pea-sized clumps of butter throughout. Be careful not to over-mix.

• Add cold water, and mix until the dough begins to come together. Again, make sure not to over-mix.

• Form the dough into a ball. Cover it and refrigerate for 1 hour.

To make the filling:

• Combine the pumpkin puree with the maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla extract, salt, coconut milk, ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and cornstarch. Whisk until smooth.

Combine and bake!

• Preheat your oven to 180°C (or 160°C for a fan oven).

• Grease a 9-inch pie plate with butter or margarine. Roll the dough out to 12 inches in diameter. Then carefully transfer it to your pie plate and gently fit it in. Trim any excess dough.

• Pour the filling into your crust. There is no need to pre-bake the crust first (but if you prefer, you could bake the crust for 10 minutes at 180°c before filling). Spread the filling out until it's smooth.

• Bake for 45-50 minutes.