Pumpkin and Sausage Baked Pasta

Pumpkin and Sausage Baked Pasta
Slightly adapted from I was Born to Cook

By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

1 lb Italian Turkey sausage
1 small onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree

1 1/4 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon dried sage
Salt
1/3 cup heavy cream (half and half or 2 % milk will work too)

1 box penne pasta, cooked
½ cup Parmesan Cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  

In a large pan brown sausage, until cooked through.  Remove from pan and drain over paper towel.  Set aside.

Using any oil (up to 2 Tbls) from the sausage, sauté onion, garlic and crushed red pepper until soft.  Stir in pumpkin, chicken stock and sage.  Bring to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes. Add a pinch of salt.

Stir in heavy cream and sausage.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until sauce comes together and thickens slightly.  Remove from heat, and add pasta.  Toss everything together.   

Place mixture in a casserole dish sprayed with non stick spray.  Top with Parmesan Cheese.  Bake for about 30-35 minutes, until top is golden brown.

M&M Candy Corn Blondies

M&M Candy Corn Blondies

Adapted from The Little Kitchen

By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla

½ cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup M&M white chocolate candy corn, chopped

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare an 8 inch pan or line with foil.

Cream brown sugar and egg until it's light and fluffy. Add in vanilla and melted butter, mix well

In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and incorporate with a spatula. Stir in M&Ms by hand. Do not over mix.

Pour batter to the prepared pan. Bake for about 25-28 minutes. The top will be dry.  Cool completely before cutting. 

Monster Snack Mix

Monster Snack Mix

Adapted from Gourmet Mom on the Go

By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

Frankensteins

6 cups Corn Chex Cereal
1 package Lemon-Lime Kol-Aid
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Light corn syrup
1/3 cup Butter

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/3 cup chocolate chips, melted

Mix-Ins

Candy Corn

Marshmallows

Cheerios

Corn Chex

Raisins

Peanuts

Preheat oven to 225 degrees.

In a saucepan heat sugar, corn syrup and butter over medium heat until boiling, stirring occasionally. Boil for 3 minutes (do not stir). Turn off heat and stir in baking soda and Kol-Aid.

Pour over 6 cups Chex cereal and mix together gently. Spread onto a lined or greased baking sheet.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Take out of the oven and set 40 pieces (or however many Frankensteins you want to make), onto another lined or greased cookie sheet.  Cool completely, stirring the rest of them occasionally.  (I did not do this and mine ended up in a big block of Green Chex.) 

To make Frankensteins

Dip one end of a Chex square into the melted chocolate for the hair.  Pour the rest of the chocolate into a small zip-loc bag.  Cut off a tiny bit of the end.  Pipe eyes and mouth onto the squares. 

After the chocolate has hardened Assemble your mix using whatever mix-ins you would like.  

Creepy Cookie Pizza's

Creepy Cookie Pizza’s

By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

Round Sugar Cookies (recipe found here)

Red Frosting (recipe found here)

Candy for Decorations

                Gummi Worms

                Eyeball candy

                Chocolate covered Raisins

                Sprinkles

Spread red frosting over the cookies.  Decorate with your creepy toppings!  Enjoy!

Bloody Bones

Bloody Bones
Adapted from Pillsbury
By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

1 can Pillsbury Breadsticks
2 Tbls Butter, melted.

1 Tbls Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp Garlic Powder (plus any other seasons you would like)

Pizza Sauce



Preheat oven to 375.  Open the can of breadstick dough, and separate into 12 sticks.  In your hands roll it to about 12 inches long.  Loosely tie each end in a knot, so they look like bones.  Place on a lined baking sheet.  Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until lightly browned. 


Meanwhile, mix together butter, cheese and garlic.  Brush breadsticks with butter mixture once you take them out of the oven. Serve with sauce. 

Witches Brew

Witches Brew
By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts


Gummi Worms
Water
Ice Cube Trays

Green Kol-Aid (any green drink)



Place the Gummi Worms in the ice cube trays.  Fill with water, and freeze.  Place ice cubes in a glass, and fill with Green Kol-Aid. 

Sausage and Mushroom Risotto

Sausage and Mushroom Risotto

By Erin at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts

3 cups chicken stock

3 cups beef stock

2 Tbls olive oil

1 small onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz Shitaki Mushrooms

½ tsp thyme

1 lb Italian Sausage

1 Tbls butter

Salt and pepper

2 cups Arborio Rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese

Combine Chicken and Beef stock in a sauce pan.  Warm over low heat. 

In a separate skillet, sauté mushrooms and the thyme together.  Sprinkle mushrooms with salt and pepper once lightly browned.  Set aside. 

In another skillet brown the sausage.  Discard the fat, and set aside. 

In a large skillet heat 2 Tbls oil over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic.  Sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add the rice and coat well with the oil.  Lightly toast the rice, about 2 minutes.  Stir in wine, and cook until it is almost evaporated.  Ladle about 1 cup of warm stock into the rice and stir.  Once it is mostly absorbed add in more stock (1 ladle full each time).  Continue this process until the rice is cooked through and nice and creamy.  You might have a little stock left over, but not much. 

Once cooked through, add mushrooms and sausage to the pan.  Stir in the Parmesan Cheese and butter.  Top with additional cheese if desired.