Humane Halloween: 22 Quirky, Fun and Bewitching Recipes for the Spirit of the Season

Hello fiends! I know it's been a minute, but I wanted to pop in and share a frightfully fun Halloween recipe ebook that I received to preview. It is called Humane Halloween, and it features 22 spooktacular recipes that are perfect for the season. Within its pages you will find eerie appetizers, sinister snacks, dreadful dinners, and macabre meals you and your family can enjoy to celebrate the scary season! 

The Stay At Home Girlfriend Zine #29 - Halloween 2018 Edition

My friend Kendy P. (aka MissMuffCake) creates some incredible zines (several which I've had the pleasure of contributing to or featuring here, like Cemetery Gates volumes three and five and Catsploitation). I recently had the pleasure of contributing a Halloween playlist to her latest zine, The Stay At Home Girlfriend volume 29. I just received my copy and it is packed full of Halloween treats! Get a sneak peek below...

10 Spooktacular Vegan Recipes For Halloween

I haven't had a chance to do that much cooking or baking this Halloween season, so I thought it would be fun to revisit some of my Halloween recipes from the past ten years (wow, I can't believe it's been 10 years since I started this blog!!). I am by no means a pro at baking or cooking, but I always love putting a spooky spin on recipes - it is so much more fun to eat Halloweenized food, am I right?!

Below you'll find some of my fave past recipes, from eerie appetizers to creepy cookies! All recipes are vegan and contain no animal ingredients, because no one wants that trick for Halloween.

10 Spooktacular Halloween Recipes to make this Halloween season:

Pumpkin Spice S'mores Cookies Recipe

This is one of my favorite cookie recipes to make this time of year! I came up with it last year after adding Dandies' Pumpkin Marshmallows to my pumpkin spice chocolate chip cookie recipe, which gave these a delicious flavor evocative of marshmallows roasted over a bonfire on a crisp fall night.

The cookies themselves are fluffy and cake-like, delectably sweet with a light hint of spice. The marshmallows give them an ooey-gooey consistency that makes them a perfect autumn treat. Whenever I've served them, they are always a huge hit with vegans and non-vegans alike! Today I'm happy to share the recipe with you below:

Make Your Own Pumpkin Spice Coffee Scrub

My sister gave me a recipe for a DIY coffee scrub several years ago, and I love making it to this day! I use it in the shower and not only does it make my skin silky-smooth, but the coffee perks me up and I swear it firms up my behind! With pumpkin season upon us and pumpkin spice coffee so readily available, I had a lightbulb moment and thought to make a pumpkin spice coffee scrub based on my sister's recipe. All I did was replace regular ground coffee with pumpkin spice ground coffee and it came out incredible!

I love everything pumpkin spice, so I usually end up buying pumpkin spice coffee this time of year, despite the fact that I'm not a big fan of flavored coffee (the cute packaging always gets me!). With this recipe, I can use up the pumpkin spice coffee I buy and continue using it all year to make this recipe.

I love how this Pumpkin Spice Coffee Scrub smells and how it moisturizes and exfoliates my skin. Plus, this is such a quick and easy recipe, and you probably already have the ingredients on hand. Check out how to make your own Pumpkin Spice Coffee Scrub below:

Creepy Crunch Halloween Cookies

Photo by Kendy aka MissMuffCake

Today, I have special guest Kendy aka MissMuffCake sharing her recipe for Creepy Crunch Halloween Oreo Cookies! I have been an admirer of Kendy for quite some time now. I've been reading her website for years and love her vegan recipes, beauty posts, and more. She also writes several zines, is a champion for mental awareness, has killer style, and has written for Super Cute Kawaii and VegNews. I am thrilled to have her on the blog today to share the recipe for these delectable Halloween cookies. Check out her recipe for them below:

Spooky Summer: Goth Lemonade To Quench The Darkest Thirsts

Goth lemonade, made with activated charcoal, is an eerily easy way to spook up your summer, whether you make a refreshing glass for yourself or an entire pitcher to serve at your next goth pool party (see other goth essentials for summer HERE). It is the perfect drink to make on hot, lazy summer days and has the added bonus of matching your clothes...and soul! No to mention it is an eerily impressive beverage that photographs wonderfully! Besides serving this in summer, it would also work just as well for Halloween. Check out the quick and easy recipe below.

Halloween Stuffed Peppers, or Pepper-o-Lanterns

Pepper-o-lanterns! I made a fanged fiend and a kitty cat!

How adorable are these Halloween stuffed peppers?! These boo-tiful babies are so fun and easy to make that I wanted to share my quick recipe for them here. Also, these don't have to be just for Halloween - when you are really missing the autumn season, these are perfect to make and you can find the ingredients at any time of year! And, as always, they are all vegan!

These vegan pepper-o-lanterns use only a few ingredients, can be customized to whatever your palate desires, and are fast to prepare, which means they are perfect for busy October nights where you just want to kick back and watch some scary movies with your boo. All you need is a few ingredients and about 20 minutes to make these precious pepper-o-lanterns! Find the recipe below:

Recipe: Vegan BBQ Chick'n Pizza

Pizza is my fave food group and I'll pretty much demolish any vegan pizza put in front of me. Recently I was craving a BBQ chick'n pizza, and realized I hadn't enjoyed one in quite some time! I drool over a zesty BBQ chick'n pizza, and once I whipped up this quick and easy recipe it made me question why I don't make this type of pizza more often!

This pizza is super simple, and with the help of of few pre-prepared ingredients it comes together in less than 20 minutes - that's prep and cooking time combined! This pizza doesn't require too many ingredients and is very tasty! It's so easy to throw together that I kinda feel silly sharing it here, but I thought, what the heck, everyone needs more vegan BBQ chick'n pizza in their life!

Vegan Quiche with Follow Your Heart's VeganEgg

I've had such great success with Follow Your Heart's much-coveted VeganEgg! I've made vegan scrambled eggs and omelets with it and experienced mouth-watering results, so I decided I HAD to make a vegan quiche with this magical product!

While I've had vegan quiche at restaurants (like a very memorable quiche from Timeless Coffee up in Oakland!), I've never attempted one myself. Before the VeganEgg, it just seemed unattainable and too difficult to try. Now, thanks to Follow Your Heart, I can make a vegan quiche in about an hour! And not only is it really quick and easy, but the results are delicious! Check out the recipe below...

Candy Corn Pizza

Ahhhhh how I miss candy corn! The candy corn you find in stores isn't vegan, and I woefully miss it around this time of year (hey vegan companies, how about someone makes a vegan version pretty please??).

I gotta get my candy corn fix somewhere, so that's where this pizza comes in. No, it doesn't taste like candy corn, but its triangular slices sure do look like the sweet stuff! I was inspired to make a vegan version after seeing a recipe in the Ghoulish Goodies cookbook. 

Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Bagels

In keeping with the Goosebumps theme, I was inspired by R.L. Stein's The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb to make these creepy cute bagels! I made these with the last of my Violife stash (sadly, this Greek-made vegan cheese is only available in Europe - I wish we had it in the U.S., though the makers of this cheese also make the Field Roast Chao and Follow Your Heart sliced cheeses)! Anyway, these mummy bagels are so easy to make and so cute!

The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight Bean Dip

Do you remember R.L. Stine's Goosebumps book The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight? And, later, the episode from the TV show? I was obsessed with that story as a kid, and still think it was one of the best Goosebumps stories! Anyhow, that is how I came up with the name for this fun and easy dip!

Creepy Crawly Bug Bite Appetizers

Bug Bites plus Spiderweb Dipping Sauce

These plump little critters are perfect for your next Halloween get-together! They are so easy to make, require few ingredients, and even the kiddos (and kids-at-heart) find them fun to assemble!

I found the recipe in the Betty Crocker Halloween Cookbook, though it obviously wasn't vegan-friendly. Well, a few quick swaps of ingredients and it was easily veganized! You can find the cruelty-free, dairy-free, veganized recipe below:

The Ghoulish Gourmet: A Bewitching Collection of Vegan Halloween Recipes

The Ghoulish Gourmet e-book is now available!

Eeeeeek the cookbook that I have been waiting for my whole spooky life is here!

I always have a blast veganizing Halloween recipes from non-vegan cookbooks, but I've always wished there was a Halloween cookbook that was ALL vegan. Well, it finally looks like my wishes have come true, because The Ghoulish Gourmet, a completely vegan Halloween e-book, was released today! It is by vegan cookbook author Kathy Hester, who has written vegan cookbooks like The Vegan Slow Cooker, The Easy Vegan Cookbook, and many more.

The Ghoulish Gourmet features 25 vegan Halloween recipes for all kinds of creepy cookery, including Swamp Monster Slow Cooker Jackfruit Gumbo, Deviled Purple Potatoes, Creepy Bats and Cats Chocolate Graham Crackers, Cackling Caramel Pecan Bourbon Liqueur, and many more!

You can buy this e-book over at veganhalloweencookbook.com!

Pumpkin Spice Crispy Treats featuring Dandies Pumpkin Marshmallows

I had the absolute delight of receiving the NEW Dandies Pumpkin Marshmallows from Chicago Vegan Foods, and I was soooooo excited to get them (FYI, they can be purchased online at the moment and will soon be available in stores!). It's like they made a product specifically for my pumpkin-loving heart!

It has been a crazy month, so I hadn't had a chance to try them until recently. I decided to make some Rice Crispy Treat-inspired dessert with them, but add my own twist and and shape them into little pumpkins. I got a recipe for Pumpkin Spice Crispy Treats from Dandies, which calls for just a few ingredients - a bag of their Pumpkin Marshmallows, vegan butter, cereal, maple syrup, and pumpkin spice blend. Instead of using Rice Krispies, I decided to use Nature's Path Envirokidz's Jungle Munch cereal! It is dusted with cinnamon, which I thought would make a great addition to the flavor of the treats!

Recipe: Castagnaccio or Tuscan Chestnut Flour Cake

Tuscan Castagnaccio or Chestnut Flour Cake

Next in my series of veganizing traditional Tuscan food, I want to share with you a recipe for a rustic peasant cake called castagnaccio (otherwise known as migliaccio in some regions of Italy). This is a slightly sweet, slightly savory flat chestnut flour cake. It uses only simple, seasonal ingredients to create a distinct, unique dish!

My Babbo (Italian for daddy) showed me how to make castagnaccio, and got me hooked on this treat! He remembers eating it growing up in Fiesole, Italy, though outside of Tuscany he doesn't think it is very well-known. It's such a traditional taste of Tuscany that I wanted to share it with you! Below you'll find the recipe my dad handed down to me, which was handed down to him from his mother, my Italian Nonna.

Recipe: Rustic Tuscan Summer Bread Salad

Not many people know this, but I was actually born near Florence, Italy and moved to the States with my parents when I was around 4 years old (my mom was American, and my dad Italian, so I have dual citizenship). Even though we moved to the States, I grew up on Tuscan cooking, with recipes handed down to my dad from my Italian Nonna. These recipes are near and dear to my heart since I was never able to meet my Italian grandparents.

With some help from my parents, I've decided to veganize the Tuscan dishes I grew up with, and share these veganized recipes with you. Luckily, some are already vegan (like today's recipe), so I'll be sharing those as well, since many aren't commonly know outside of Tuscany.

My first recipe I'd like to share is Panzanella, which is a bread salad dish typically served on hot summer days. I know that bread salad sounds a little weird, but trust me, it's actually quite delicious! And if you're a carb queen like myself, you'll love it!!

Food Review: Neat Egg Replacer Mix Plus S'mores Cookie Recipe

I previously reviewed all of Neat's meat replacement mixes (check 'em out here!), but I wanted to do a separate post to highlight their awesome new egg replacer, called the Neat Egg! I used it in all of the Neat mixes I tried, and it worked wonderfully, but I also wanted to try baking with it.

The Neat Egg is pretty awesome if you ask me! Not only is it versatile and can be used in cooking and baking, but it is also only made with two ingredients - chia seeds and garbanzo beans! That means it is totally natural, plus it is gluten-free, non-GMO, soy-free, and, of course, vegan! It comes in a dry mix, and to replace one egg you just mix together one tablespoon of the Neat Egg with two tablespoons of water and add to your recipe! It's so easy and it is a fantastic binder!

Pizza is My Valentine

Pizza is My Valentine by Bare Wolfe

[image source]

Valentine's Day has always left me feeling meh, and I usually don't do much to celebrate (well, except maybe for splurging on the Fatally Yours chocolate box and watching Valentine's Day horror movies). However, since Friday the 13th coincided with Valentine's this year, I was inspired to do a little something special. Last night, I whipped up some killer Valentine's Day pizzas! Check out "The Heartbreaker" and "The Lover" below, plus some perfect pizza-themed Valentine's Day cards!