Newsletter: Halloween treats and a focus on autumn vegetables

Spooky treats for Halloween

Halloween (the name is derived from All Hallow’s Eve), on October 31, is swiftly followed by All Saints Day, then the Day of the Dead, or All Soul’s Day. The foods eaten and shared on these related festivals are all linked to autumn harvests – which is why apples and pumpkins are so much a part of Halloween (try these Cinnamon Caramel Toffee Apples for a delightful twist on the sweet classic).

Pumpkins and squashes are everywhere this time of year but be sure to use a variety that is good to eat after you’ve carved your jack-o-lanterns. This Roasted-Pumpkin Ice Cream is a surprisingly wonderful way to use up pumpkin purée. Try it and the other dishes in our Roast Pumpkin Recipes collection. If you’re after more ideas, there are definitely more treats than tricks in our Halloween Recipes collection.

None are too scary to make – and among the pumpkin dishes and sweet treats are a few goodies for the young at heart, such as these Little Monsters.

The Day of the Dead is of particular importance in Catholic countries including Mexico, Italy, and Spain. We have put together these Dishes and Drinks for Day of the Dead Celebrations: recipes to warm hearts as people gather in celebration and remembrance.

Try Green Hominy and Pork Soup (Pozole Verde) for something flavorful and hearty to bring to the table, then share a proper Mexican hot chocolate, Chocolate de Agua (Oaxacan-Style Drinking Chocolate), made the traditional way, with cacao-rich chocolate and water.

Find 374 apple pie recipes

Pictured above: English Gingerbread from Rose’s Celebrations by Rose Levy Beranbaum

🎃🎃 Celebrate Halloween with 25% off ckbk Premium Membership 🎃🎃

Make the most of this season’s harvest

In our latest feature, Ramona Andrews provides inspiration aplenty to get cooking from the season’s vegetable harvest. She highlights the best resources on ckbk, including three new books to expand your repertoire.

Autumn and Winter Cooking with a Veg Box, by Guy Singh-Watson and the cooks from the UK’s Riverford Organic Farmers veg box scheme, continues its pioneering work, encouraging a love of vegetables and discouraging waste. The recipes included in each veg box are based on a broad range of in-season vegetables and are delicious as well as nutritious.

Try Roasted Beetroot, Carrot, Lentil and Cumin Seed Salad, or warm things up with a Parsnip, Cauliflower and Chickpea Korma.

Dundee, Scotland-based greengrocer Fraser Reid’s book Seasonal Soups was inspired by the ‘soup bags’ he started selling in his shop to encourage customers to eat seasonally. He provided ingredients and a foolproof recipe, which developed into this comforting cookbook. Explore a year of tempting and nutritious soups, from January’s Sweet Potato, Tomato and Roasted Garlic Soup, through to December’s Chestnut, Carrot and Thyme.

Winter: Le Cordon Bleu Home Collection takes readers through the chilly season in fine culinary style. Fruit and vegetable recipes abound. Try Pears Poached in Red Wine, push the boat out with Roasted Duck with Turnips, or try Steamed Orange Pudding for a wonderfully indulgent dessert.

Next Livestream: Vegan Cooking Demystified

We’re very excited about our latest ckbk livestream and Q&A. It’s happening on November 2 and is a must if you’re looking for ideas for simple, healthy, plant-based food to cook and serve over the festive season.

Blogger, retreat chef and cookbook author Bettina Campolucci Bordi will show you how to cook Chickpea Omelette, Rocket, Avocado & Mango Salsa from her best-selling cookbook Happy Vegan Food. Bettina will also introduce her insightful guide to key ingredients and proteins and discuss cost-saving options – never more relevant than now, with skyrocketing food prices.

Prepare your plant-based cooking questions – and if you’d like to add your question in advance, please send it to hello@ckbk.com with the subject line ‘Vegan Livestream’. The livestream, demo, and Q&A will take place on November 2 at 6pm GMT / 11am PDT / 2pm EDT. Register and find out more about the event.

What to cook now: mackerel and pomegranate

Mackerel is one of the most healthful fish in the ocean (its oily flesh is high in omega-3 fatty acids), and one of the most versatile and great-tasting, too.

Cooks around the world make the most of this fish in a myriad of creative ways. Its rich flesh goes particularly well with sharp, fresh sauces and accompaniments. Try Mackerel with Lemon & Fennel, Graham Garrett’s Miso-Glazed-Mackerel, Spiced-Cumumber, Yuzu-Mayonnaise, or any of the recipes in our Marvellous Mackerel recipe collection.

The sweet-and-sour tang of pomegranate is the magic ingredient in many Middle Eastern and Persian dishes. The pomegranate tree is native to modern-day Iran, but cooks from the Mediterranean to the Caucasus and India have incorporated the fruit into their cooking over the centuries.

Contemporary cooks have also taken pomegranate molasses and pomegranate seeds to their hearts. Discover why in our 12 Ways with Pomegranates collection.

Try Daniel Galmiche’s Casserole of Lamb & Pomegranate Molasses, or sweeten things up with Rose Levy Beranbaum’s Pomegranate Winter Chiffon Meringue Pie.

6 restorative chicken soups

Chicken soup for the soul, Jewish ‘penicillin’; whatever you call it, it’s a home cure we all need. Here are six warming versions to nourish body and spirit.