Get out the rutabaga, it's time to carve a jack-o'-lantern. You don't have a rutabaga? Well then, a potato or turnip will do.
In Ireland, where Halloween began, the first jack-o'- lanterns weren't made of pumpkins. They were made out of rutabagas, potatoes, turnips or even beets!
There is an old Irish legend about a man named Stingy Jack, who was too mean to go to heaven and had played too many tricks on the devil to go to...the other place. When he died, he had to walk the earth, carrying a lantern made out of a turnip with a burning coal inside.
Stingy Jack became known as "Jack of the Lantern" or "Jack- O'-Lantern".
From this legend came the Irish tradition of placing jack- o'-lanterns made of turnips and other vegetables in windows or by doors on Halloween.
The jack-o'-lanterns are meant to scare away Stingy Jack and all the other spirits that are said to walk the earth that night.
It wasn't until the tradition was brought to the United States by immigrants that pumpkins were used for jack-o'- lanterns.
JACK O' LANTERN SOUP
1 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup red bell pepper
1 cup chicken broth
Pinch curry
Pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 can pumpkin or 1 1/2 cups cooked fresh pumpkin
1 cup skim milk
Lightly spray a Dutch oven style pan with vegetable oil
cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Saute the onion,
garlic and peppers about 3 minutes. Add a 1/2 cup of the broth
and the spices and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and
cook until the onions and peppers are tender. Add the onions and
broth to the blender with the rest of the ingredients and blend
until smooth. Bring back to a boil and serve hot. Optional
garnish: black olives, cut in different shapes to look like the
face of a jack-o'-lantern. Serves 4.
STUFFED PEPPER LANTERNS
4 green peppers
1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
1 1/2 cups cooked or canned beans, drained
1 cup diced tomatoes with juice
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut the tops off the green
peppers and remove the seeds; reserve the tops. Carve a small
jack-o'-lantern face in each one, taking care not to make any of
the holes larger that 1/4 inch. Combine the remaining
ingredients. Stuff the peppers with rice/bean mixture and place
the pepper tops back on. Place them in a covered container with
a little water on the bottom and bake until the peppers are
tender, about 25 or 30 minutes. You can also microwave them
until tender, about 15 minutes. These stuffed peppers go well
with a tossed salad. Serves 4.
CANDYLESS HALLOWEEN TREATS:
Stickers
Colored pencils
Note pads
Mini stamps
Stamp markers
Mini tubs of Playdoh (usually with the party favors)
Toy cars
Lunch-size applesauce packs
Lunch-size pudding packs
Juice packs
Fresh fruit
Party favor toys
Balloons
Packs of raisins
Plastic coins
Fruit roll-ups
