Creepy Finger Cookies 

Happy Halloween! Creepy Finger Cookies

Happy Halloween! Here's my Halloween cookies for this year. I'm off to drop off a plate or two at the library and to friends in a few moments.

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Creepy Witches' Fingers

Yield: 5 dozen
1 cup Butter, softened
1 cup Icing sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp Almond extract
1 tsp Vanilla
2 2/3 cups Flour
1 tsp Baking powder
1 tsp Salt
3/4 cup Almonds, whole blanched
1 Tube red decorator gel


In bowl, beat together butter, sugar, egg, almond extract and vanilla. Beat in flour, baking soda, and salt. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes. Working with one quarter of the dough at a time and keeping remainder refrigerated, roll heaping teaspoonful of dough into finger shape for each cookie. Press almond firmly into 1 end for nail. Squeeze in centre to create knuckle shape. (Accompanying picture showed long rolled shape with bulge at centre for knuckle; you puff it out rather than squeeze it in.) Using paring knife, make slashes in several places to form knuckle.

Place on lightly greased baking sheets; bake in 325F (160C) oven for 20-25 minutes or until pale golden. Let cool for 3 minutes. Lift up almond, squeeze red decorator gel onto nail bed and press almond back in place, so gel oozes out from underneath. You can also make slashes in the finger and fill them with "blood."

Remove from baking sheets and let cool on racks. Repeat with remaining dough.

Cajun Meatloaf

I've always thought, "If you are going to steal, steal from the best!" This recipe comes unchanged from Paul Prudhomme, the famed New Orleans chef.

My kids and several friends absolutely love this spicy meatloaf. It is definitely NOT in the cooking light category. But then this is not a dish one would have every day of the week either.

The recipe looks complicated, but it's really not. You just have to allow time for the veggies, seasonings, and liquid ingredients to cool before assembling the meatloaf. If you are feeding someone who likes a zippy entré, you can't go wrong with this one.

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Cajun Meat Loaf

Seasoning mix:

2 whole bay leaves
1 tbs. salt
1 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne or paprika)
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

4 tbs. unsalted butter
3/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tbs. Tabasco sauce
1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup catsup

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1/2 lbs. ground pork
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup very fine dry bread crumbs

Combine the seasoning mix ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Melt the butter in a 1 quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, bell pepper, green onions, garlic, Tabasco sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and seasoning mix. Sauté until mixture starts sticking excessively, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the pan bottom well. Stir in the milk and catsup. Continue cooking for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool to room temperature.

Place the ground beef and pork in an ungreased 13X9 inch baking dish. Add the eggs, the cooked vegetable mixture (removing the bay leaves), and the bread crumbs. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined. In the center of the baking dish, shape the mixture into a loaf that is about 1 1/2 inches high, 6 inches wide, and 12 inches long. Bake uncovered at 350° for 25 minutes, then raise heat to 400° and continue cooking until done, about 35 minutes longer.

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Prudhomme recommends serving "Cajun Meatloaf" with "Very Hot Cajun Sauce for Beef." So, here is the accompanying recipe.

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Very Hot Cajun Sauce for Beef

Ingredients

3/4 c. Chopped onions

1/2 c. Chopped green peppers

1/4 c. Chopped celery

1/4 c. Vegetable oil

1/4 c. plus 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour

3/4 Tsp. Ground cayenne pepper

1/2 Tsp. White pepper

1/2 Tsp. Black pepper

2 Bay leaves

1/4 c. Minced jalapeno peppers(note

1 Tsp. Minced garlic

3 c. Basic beef stock

Directions

NOTE: Fresh jalapenos are preferred; if you have to use pickled ones, rinse as much vinegar from them as possible. Combine the onions, bell peppers and celery in a small bowl and set aside while you start the roux. (NOTE: Unlike the roux in most other recipes in this book, the roux we use here is light brown. Therefore, instead of heating the oil to the smoking stage, we heat it to only 250 F; this prevents the roux from getting too brown.) In a heavy 2-quart saucepan heat the oil over medium-low heat to

about 250F. With a metal whisk, whisk in the flour a little at a time until smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until roux is light brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Be careful not to let the roux

scorch or splash on your skin. Remove from heat and with a spoon immediately stir in the vegetable mixture and the red, white and black peppers; return pan to high heat and cook about 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the bay leaves, jalapeno peppers and garlic, stirring well. Continue cooking about 2 minutes, stirring constantly. (We're cooking the seasonings and vegetables in the light roux and the mixture should, therefore, be pasty.) Remove from heat. In a separate 2-quart saucepan, bring the stock to a boil. Add the roux mixture by spoonfuls to the boiling stock, stirring until dissolved between each addition. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the sauce reduces to 3-1/2 cups, about 15 minutes. Skim any oil from the top and serve immediately. From Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen