THROW YOUR OWN KILLER PUMPKIN PARTY

Love pumpkins more than just your basic white girl?
Then throw your own killer pumpkin festival!

IMAGE SOURCE

Killer pumpkin fest 2016 was a fusion between Halloween Horror and Fall flavors.

 With a cool breeze in the air, the Charleston weather played happily along for our crisp autumn evening. Luke and I gathered the essentials and set forth to create an unforgettable night. 

Step 1: 

Pick pumpkins from a local farm-stand or pumpkin-patch

 (it's half of the fun)

Step 2: 

Polish the pumpkins, wiping away any dirt so you can decorate them.

(We chose pumpkin-pie pumpkins for our guests)

Step 3:

Paint your Pumpkins while listening to "The Monster Mash".

(Using paint markers from Michaels made it easy)

Step 4:

Decorate your home!

(Most of my treasures came from Target and Marshalls)

Step 5:

Dress up your family in fall sweaters

(Comfort and coziness is key)

Step 6: 

Cook a pumpkin dish that smells incredible.

We chose this recipe for a spicy pumpkin chili.

(The aroma of food and fall candles really set the mood for the party)

Step 7: 

Welcome guests and eat.

(Our spread consisted of pumpkin maple muffins, pumpkin mac-and-cheese, pumpkin-apple quesadillas, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin donut munchkins, pumpkin fluff dip with vanilla wafers, pumpkin-spice cheese with harvest wheat crackers, pumpkin tortilla chips, pumpkin pie, caramel-apple popcorn, smore's cookies, apple cider, pumpkin beer, and of course Halloween candy.

 

Step 8: 

Carve pumpkins for cups.

(Pumpkin-pie pumpkins are perfect for holding 16 ounces of your favorite fall beverage. We used wax paper to place the guts on.)

Step 9:

Give the inside of your pumpkin a quick wash to dislodge any fibers.

Drink out of it!

Step 10:

Enjoy the company of your friends.

(We watched Halloween, and Monster Squad while playing cards and dispensing random horror trivia. Later in the evening, the boys lit up a few Cigars on the balcony and enjoyed the chill in the air. The girls stayed warm inside and watched Hocus Pocus)

Bonus Step:

(The most important one)

Be thankful.

Kiss your significant other for helping you put together a great party and making a killer pot of pumpkin chili.

 (Posing as the Brawny Paper Towel Man)

A big thank you to all of my friends for bringing a delicious pumpkin recipe and spending your Saturday evening with us. We can't wait to do it again next year.

 Gather your friends and family and recreate your own killer pumpkin party!

P.S. the leftovers were awesome.

OOEY-GOOEY, TOASTY-GHOSTLY, INDOOR S'MORE RECIPE

MY FAVORITE INDOOR S'MORES RECIPE! 

(Because y'all know I hate camping)

What you'll need:

Marshmallows (I've been thinking about trying the caramel apple ones for this, too)
1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 box of graham crackers
2 Hershey chocolate bars
1 bottle of your favorite Halloween sprinkles (Mine are ghosts from Home Goods!)

1 baking sheet
1 small pot
1 rubber spatula
Aluminum Foil
Wax Paper
1 Plate
*This recipe yields approximately one dozen S'mores*

STEP 1

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. While you're waiting, pull out a baking pan and line it with foil.
You can use Pam for good measure, but its not necessary


STEP 2

Carefully, I repeat, carefully break the grams in half. Save any casualties/scraps for later.
 Place them as you go roughly an inch apart on the baking sheet.


STEP 3

Dress half of the graham crackers with marshmallows and the other half with 2 blocks from the Hershey's chocolate bar.
I give the marshmallows a little squeeze before putting them on so they don't roll.


STEP 4

The oven should be preheated by now. Stick those puppies in and stand by.
I'm telling you based on personal experience, don't walk away!
You can expect to let these bake for approximately 3-5 minutes.

STEP 5

Once the marshmallows have a golden color pull them out and set them on the stove. Save the lined baking tray to use again later.

*Burnt S'mores? If you like your campfire marshmallows extra toasty, don't worry. They still taste great dipped in chocolate! 

STEP 6

Sandwich the S'mores together and place them on a plate.

Once plated, stick them in the freezer for 5 minutes.

STEP 7

While the S'mores are cooling in the freezer, melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips.

I don't have a double boiler so I simply turn the stove on low and continuously stir the chocolate until it is melted.

*Again, don't walk away. Burn't marshmallows are okay but burnt chocolate? Gross.

STEP 8

 Line the baking sheet with wax paper and transfer the S'mores from the plate back to the tray.

Next, dip your S'mores into the chocolate. I typically only dip half of the S'more in.

A rubber spatula will help you stop the chocolate from dripping.


STEP 9

Use the plate from the freeze to put sprinkles on.
Finally, roll the S'mores in the sprinkles and wah-lah!

*Above you can see how in Step 8 I used the broken pieces for tiny dipping sticks.

STEP 10

Place the S'mores sprinkle side down on the wax paper and put them back in the freezer to cool for approximately 10 minutes. 

STEP 11

Grab your favorite Halloween Plate.


STEP 12

Pull out your S'mores and plate them.

STEP 13

Enjoy!
Warning: these are messy! Use a napkin to avoid crumbs and sprinkles everywhere.
Place any leftovers back in the fridge.


Have a favorite Halloween recipe? Share it with me below!