pumpkin carving party

Since my pumpkin cupcakes were not scary in the least, I decided that I had to have some creep-out factor to my pumpkin carving party (our library dvd copy of jeepers creepers didn't do the trick after all). A couple of weeks ago, our friends and I went to a pumpkin patch in Richmond to pick out our pumpkins and since we were so close to the fishing village of Steveston, we decided to pick up some fresh prawns off of a fishing boat. I decided that since we picked our prawns the same day as our pumpkins, it would seem only fitting to take them out of the freezer and serve these creepy crawlers of the ocean to our friends.

I've never made prawns before and decided to take the simplest route -- I didn't want to have to devein them or peel them or brine them or do any other myriad of other things I found online. I wanted them simple to prepare and creepy to eat, so that meant heads n' legs n' all for our little Halloween get together.

peel 'em & eat 'em prawns
(ingredients weren't measured so beware!)
Rinse 1-2 lbs of fresh prawns and please watch out for their sharp legs, ouch. In a large pot combine some champagne or beer or white wine (I used left over champagne since that is what I had), lots and lots of crushed garlic, some chopped onion, salt, red pepper flakes, a couple of bay leaves, a sliced lemon, some dried thyme and bring to a boil. Taste liquid and adjust seasonings (I didn't do this step and should have added more salt and maybe some extra hot sauce to the liquid. Live and learn.) Add 1/4 c. of butter. Add the prawns and put a lid on the pot. Let boil for 3 minutes. Add another 1/4 c. butter and stir it around til it melts. Cut up some good rustic crusty bread and dig in! So good and just a the right amount of creepy.


roasted pumpkin seeds
Of course if you are making jack-o-lanterns, roasting the seeds is a definite must. Rinse the seeds well, getting rid of any pumpkiny threads and goopiness. Pat the washed seeds with a tea towel and spread evenly on a walled cookie sheet. Sprinkle with cumin, seasoned salt (the only reason I keep this around is just for roasting the seeds), smoked paprika, pepper, garlic powder and chili powder and give the pan a light shake. No oil needed. Bake in 300 degree oven until you hear popping sounds, about 15-20 minutes. Give the pan one more shake and toss around seeds with a spatula and put back in the oven for another few minutes until seeds are dry and toasty. Eat up immediately while watching a silly scary movie.