It's Halloween: Save the Chubby Unicorns
Happy Halloween! As usual, this year's costume has been underway since the summer. But I only had to make the hat this year. Well, the hat and the oxpecker we attached to the hat. Somehow, the elephant suit I made Wyatt two years ago still fits. This fact is astounding--the pajamas that fit him perfectly six months ago are now, well, very much 3/4 length. The elephant-rhino suit is a Halloween miracle, obviously. And because O-Wool is awesome, it was easy for me to get more matching yarn for the hat.
If you follow me on Instagram here, you will have seen my attempt at a slow reveal of the costume.
And today? It's time to show you the whole costume.
And in case you're looking for some fun cooking inspiration after today (dinner is always a disaster at our house on Halloween, and it makes me feel better to think that the same is true at yours), Gluten Free Girl is doing 100 Days of Making Food. Find her recipes every day on Instagram and Facebook. We made the marvelous dairy-free vegetable gratin over the weekend. It didn't hurt that I got an impressive mortar and pestle for my birthday, and who knew, but we already had someone living with us who loves to grind spices! Our gratin included some sweet potatoes and a celery root, in addition to the vegetables GFG suggested And sure enough, the leftovers were terrific in fritters. Here's GFG's recipe, lifted from her Instagram:
I made a gratin, based loosely on one from @reneeerickson's cookbook. It has an unexpected depth, thanks to the time I spent steeping the coconut milk with a couple of pinches of garam masala. Danny took a bite, looked at me, and stared. "Honey, this is really good." A few more bites, and he said, "We are making this for Thanksgiving." I agree.
5 large russet potatoes, peeled, cut lengthwise, then chopped into quarters
5 large carrots, peeled and cut into 4 pieces
1 13.5 ounce can full-fat coconut millk
1/2 teaspoon garam masala (Kelly's Note: I mostly followed this recipe, but added bay leaves and black cardamom, and omitted coriander because coriander is my kryptonite.)
1 bunch green kale, leaves off the stems, chopped
Heat the oven to 400°. Set a large pot of cold water onto a burner. Add enough kosher salt to make the water taste like the ocean. Add the potatoes and carrots. Turn the burner onto high heat. Let the water come to a boil. Allow the vegetables to cook until a knife slides through the potatoes easily, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and carrots immediately.
As the potatoes and carrots are cooking, put the coconut milk into a small skillet set on low heat. Add the garama masala. Let the coconut milk simmer, in slow surges, and stir it occasionally.
Mash the potatoes and carrots. You're not going for a puree here, but a rough mash, with lumps of each vegetable visible. Add the chopped kale and fold it into the potatoes and carrots. Pile it all into a 9x13 pan.
Drizzle the seasoned coconut milk over the gratin and gently tuck it into the vegetables.
Bake until everything is fully hot and the top is beginning to brown, about 30 minutes.
Feeds 8.
Feel like playing? If you can eat dairy, you can butter the pan before putting in the gratin. You could also cover the top of the gratin with a hard cheese like Parmesan or Gruyere.
If you have leftovers the next morning, stir them up with an egg and a handful of gluten-free breadcrumbs. Make golf-ball size pieces, squash them into cakes, and fry them up.
#100daysofmakingfood
Below are my photos. As if I had to tell you that. So much less impressive than GFG's.