| The Owl Gazette Issue: 59 Page 4 |
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| Lyrics to the Monster Mash, A Popular Halloween Song
By: Boris Pickett (Submitted by Amanda Dasaro) I was working in the lab late one night When my eyes beheld an eerie sight For my monster from his slab began to rise And suddenly to my surprise He did the mash He did the monster mash The monster mash It was a graveyard smash He did the mash It caught on in a flash He did the mash He did the monster mash From my laboratory in the castle east To the master bedroom where the vampires feast The ghouls all came from their humble abodes To get a jolt from my electrodes They did the mash They did the monster mash The monster mash It was a graveyard smash They did the mash It caught on in a flash They did the mash They did the monster mash The zombies were having fun The party had just begun The guests included Wolf Man Dracula and his son The scene was rockin', all were digging the sounds Igor on chains, backed by his baying hounds The coffin-bangers were about to arrive With their vocal group, "The Crypt-Kicker Five" They played the mash They played the monster mash The monster mash It was a graveyard smash They played the mash It caught on in a flash They played the mash They played the monster mash Out from his coffin, Drac's voice did ring Seems he was troubled by just one thing He opened the lid and shook his fist And said, "Whatever happened to my Transylvania twist?" It's now the mash It's now the monster mash The monster mash And it's a graveyard smash It's now the mash It's caught on in a flash It's now the mash It's now the monster mash Now everything's cool, Drac's a part of the band And my monster mash is the hit of the land For you, the living, this mash was meant too When you get to my door, tell them Boris sent you Then you can mash Then you can monster mash The monster mash And do my graveyard smash Then you can mash You'll catch on in a flash Then you can mash Then you can monster mash |
| Sugar Skulls
By El Mariachi What's needed to make sugar skulls? Granulated Sugar (adjust amount depending on how many skulls you will be making. Approximately 1 cup per 6 small sugar skulls, 4 medium or 1 large whole skull.) Large bowl Water Sugar Skull molds (shape and size of your preference. (Some are faces only and some include two parts that you put together to make a whole skull.) Meringue powder, 1 teaspoon for each cup of sugar. (Helps to hold the sugar together.) Powdered sugar for the icing. Food coloring to color the icing. Icing decorator bags A large, dry area for the skulls to dry in. (Once for the sugar to dry in the mold, and once for the icing to dry.) Any other decoration you like such as foil, beads or feathers. Method: 1. For every cup of sugar, mix in 1 teaspoon of meringue powder and sprinkle 1 teaspoon of water on top. 2. Work the water into the sugar with your fingers. This takes a few minutes, so be patient. The sugar is ready when you can press your finger or thumb into it and the print will stay. 3. Fill the mold with sugar and press firmly with the palm of your hand. When the skull is full and pressed into mold, use the back of a knife to scrape off excess sugar and flatten back. 4. Lightly re-press the scraped surface to smooth it. 5. Place a piece of cardboard or flat plate over the sugar skull. Hold the skull on the plate tightly and flip it over. Set the plate down and carefully remove the mold. Let the skulls dry for 12-24 hours. 6. In a large mixer, mix 2/3 cup water, 1/2 cup meringue powder and 2 pounds of powdered sugar until icing peaks or about 9 minutes. 7. Separate the icing into smaller portions (disposable cups and popsicle sticks work well for this) and use the paste food colouring to colour the icing. 8. Place the icing in the icing decorator bags. Snip the end of each bag when you're ready to decorate. Start very small with the snip, you can make it bigger if necessary. 9. Use your icing to decorate the skulls. Notes- If you're adding foil, beads or feathers, use the icing as a glue to attach them. If you add non-edible items to the skull, do not attempt to eat it! If you have any larger 2-piece skulls, use the icing to "glue" the pieces together. Let the icing dry until it becomes hard. Then you can decorate and display them as you like. Tips: 1. Meringue powder cannot be omitted. Some people use egg white but with mixed results. 2. Try to make sugar skulls on a very dry day. If it is too humid outside, they may not dry well. If this happens put them in a 125 degree warm oven until dry. 3. For the larger skulls, you may scoop out some of the front and back pieces to make the finished skull lighter. Let the skull dry for 2 hours, then scoop out a hole in each one leaving a 1/2 inch solid flat border around the edge to glue them together. The scoopings may be re-used to make more skulls. 4. Lightly sprits sugar with water if sugar gets to dry while working. 5. If you use the molds, you should follow each manufacturer's instructions as some molds only work with certain recipes. 6. The "dough" should be the consistency of damp sand. Just moist enough to hold them together. If "dough" is too dry and crumbly, add 1 teaspoon of water at a time to moisten. 7. If "dough" is too moist, add sugar one tablespoon at a time until "dough" is the right consistency. |
| All the following reciepes were submitted by a Slytherin. |
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| Bleeding Human Heart
By A. Valaria & B. Fang INGREDIENTS 4 cups of water Four 3-oz. boxes or two 6-oz boxes of peach or strawberry gelatin dessert mix. 4 envelopes unflavored gelatin One 12-ounce can unsweetened evaporated milk 1/2 cup grenadine syrup 1 cup light corn syrup One small bottle (0.3 fl. oz.) red food coloring 3 drops blue food coloring One 1-gallon food-storage bag (the plain kind without the zip closure) 6 1/2 cup heart-shaped gelatin mold or cake pan PREPARATION Boil the water. Put the packaged gelatin dessert and unflavored gelatin in a bowl and pour the boiling water over it, stirring constantly. Cool to room temperature (very important or the next step may present problems). Stir in the evaporated milk. Pour the mixture into the gelatin mold. Cover the bottom of the mold (this will be the top when you serve it) with a layer about half an inch think. Refrigerate until the gel becomes firm. Meanwhile, prepare the blood. Stir together the corn syrup, grenadine, and food colorings. For the bladder (the bag that keeps the blood together inside the mass of gelatin) take the gallon-size food-storage bag and turn it inside out. Pour the blood mixture into one corner of the bag and twist it closed so that no air bubble is caught between the sauce and the twist. Tie a knot in the twisted plastic. Adjust the position of the knot so that when the bag lies on the counter, it's about 1 1/2 to 2 inches high, and tighten the knot. With a pair of scissors, snip off the frilly extra plastic outside the knot. When the gelatin on the bottom of the mold is stiff and firm, position the bladder of blood in the mold, with the point of the bag just inside the point of the heart. Make sure there is at least 3/4" of space between all sides of the bag and the walls of the mold (this will ensure that your guests don't see clues ahead of time). Pour in the remaining gelatin until the mold is as full as you can handle. Don't worry if you see a little of the blood grazing the surface of the gelatin, as longs as it doesn't project too much; the side you are looking at now will be the bottom when you serve it. Refrigerate until gelled firmly to the texture of fine, lean organ meat. It takes about 4 hours. To unmold, put about 2 1/2 inches of hot, but not boiling water in your sink. Set your mold in the water so that the water comes just below the edge of the mold for 15 to 20 seconds; the time depends on the thickness of the mold pan. Remove the mold from the water, and run the blade of a knife around the edge of the gelatin. Invert your serving platter, ideally a white pedestal cake plate, on top and hold it firmly in place. Then use both hands to turn over the mold and the plate. Remove the mold; you may need to tap or shake the mold slightly to free the gelatin. PRESENTATION The blood looks prettiest when it flows over white plates, doilies, and table linen, which it may stain permanently�oh well, it's the effect that matters. To serve, use a nice, big Psycho-style chef's knife and stab the side of the gelatin about one third of the way up from the pointed end of the heart. Twist the knife slightly, and blood will start to ooze out. Bare your teeth like a Marine jabbing with bayonet, and widen the wound. When the blood is coming at a good slip, grab a dessert plate, and cut a slice from one of the lobes of the heart. Flip it onto the plate, and drizzle it with blood by holding it under the edge of the pedestal. Add whipped cream and serve. A NOTE ABOUT SAFETY: Be careful not to serve pieces of the food-storage bag to your friends. They could choke to death. We want to help you become a more exciting host, not a criminally negligent klutz. If, on the other hand, you're deliberately trying to murder your guests, please think up your own modus operandi. Don't try anything that might implicate a couple of innocent writers. |
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| Bizarre Brain Pate
By H. Strange 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup 8 ounces Philadelphia cream cheese, softened 1 (.25-ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin, softened in 1/4 cup water 1 bunch green onions, chopped 3 pounds cooked shrimp, coarsely chopped (or 1 pound crab meat) 1 cup mayonnaise 1 Tablespoon lemon juice Tabasco or creole seasoning to taste Heat soup, undiluted, and mix in the cream cheese. Stir in softened gelatin and blend well. Fold in remaining ingredients and pour into a lightly-oiled mold. Chill until firm and serve with your favorite crackers or bread. |
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| Pumpkin Pasties
By B.J. Makes about 3 dozen miniature pasties. 2 eggs, slightly beaten 3/4 cup sugar 1 1 lb. can pumpkin (or 2 cups fresh, roasted in the oven then pressed through a strainer) 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 tsp. ginger 1/4 tsp. cloves 1 2/3 cups evap. milk (1 can) 1/2 tsp. allspice 9 oz pie crust pastry (enough for two single standard pie crusts) Bake the pie filling only (no crust) in a large greased casserole dish in hot oven (425F) for 15 minutes. Keep oven door closed and reduce temp to moderate (350 degrees F/180 degrees Celsuis) and continue baking for 45 minutes or until table knife inserted in center of dish comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Make or purchase pie crust pastry. Roll thin and cut into circles approx 4" in diameter. Put a spoonful of the cool pumpkin mixture towards one side of the center of the circle. Fold over the crust into a half-circle and firmly crimp the edges closed. Slice three small slits in the top for venting, place on a greased cookie sheet, and bake only until crust is a light golden-brown. The pumpkin filling will begin to make the crust soggy, so best baked the day of serving. Can be made ahead by freezing the assembled pasties unbaked on cookie sheets, then thawed and baked the day of serving. Great served at room-temperature. |
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| Light Butterbeer
By M. Rosie Makes 2 quarts. 1 cup sugar-free butterscotch or English Toffee flavoring syrup (Torani's or similar) 7 cups diet cream soda (almost one 2 liter bottle) Carefully mix just before serving, adding the butterscotch flavoring to the soda then stirring gently to mix well, or the fizz will dissipate too soon. To keep butterbeer on hand, pour 1 cup cream soda out of the 2-liter bottle, quickly add 1 cup butterscotch flavoring, and recap the bottle. |
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| Brittle Meringue Bones
By B. Marrow 3 large egg whites 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar 1/8 tsp. salt 2/3 cup white sugar 1/2 tsp. vanilla Preheat oven to 200F. Line cookie sheet with brown paper bag or parchment. In a medium sized bowl at high speed, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt till fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar. Add vanilla. Place in pastry bag fitted with a medium plain piping tip. Pipe 3" bone shapes onto parchment or brown paper bag. Bake 1 hour until set. Turn off oven, dry in oven 1 hour. Be sure to store in airtight containers or they will become soggy. Makes 4 to 5 dozen small finger-sized bones. |
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| Eerie Eyeballs
By M. Monster Yields approximately 9 dozen bite-sized eyeballs 3 oz (small box) lemon gelatin (can be sugar-free) 1 cup hot water 1/2 cup miniature marshmallows 1 cup pineapple juice 8 oz cream cheese (can be lowfat/Neufchatel) Dissolve lemon gelatin in 1 cup water in double boiler, add marshmallows and stir to melt. Remove from heat. Add pineapple juice and cream cheese. Beat until well blended. Cool slightly. If you have a truffle candy mold or round ice cube trays, spray them with non-stick cooking oil first, then pour the mixture in the molds and leave to set in the fridge. Otherwise pour into a deep ceramic dish and chill until thickened or firm enough for scooping into eyeballs. Using a melonballer, scoop full balls of the mixture and set aside for decoration. To decorate, use liquid food coloring and an old detail paintbrush and get creative. You will need black food coloring for the pupils. Also, if you are in a hurry, instead of painting the colored irises, you can carefully dip the ball in a small pool of food coloring to approximate the iris, but still paint on the pupils. Note: if you are using the melonballer method, you might need to add one package of plain gelatin to your mixture. The molds work fine with just the lemon gelatin to make gently squishy eyeballs. |
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| Creepy Witches' Fingers
By C. Van Helsing Yield: 5 dozen 1 cup Butter, softened 1 cup Icing sugar (powdered 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 (optional) 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. |
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| Black Widow Bars
By I.B. Spider 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and hot 1/4 cup peanut butter, preferably chunky variety 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed 3 large eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, coarsely chopped Heat oven to 350 degrees. Very lightly grease bottom of 9-inch round baking pan. Line bottom with parchment or wax paper. For the bars: In a heatproof mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter and peanut butter until smooth. Add brown sugar, eggs and vanilla, whisking until smooth. Add flour and baking powder. Stir with spoon until moistened. Stir in 1 chopped chocolate chips and scrape bowl well. Spoon into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes just until tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes in pan. Run knife around pan edge to loosen. Turn onto cake plate and remove paper. Cool 30 minutes before frosting. For the frosting: In a 4-cup Pyrex measure or heatproof bowl, combine hot melted butter with semi-sweet chips. Stir continuously until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Add 1 cup powdered sugar and 1/4 cup of the chocolate syrup. Stir until combined. Mixture will thicken and become stiff. Add remaining 1 cup powdered sugar, 1/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup chocolate syrup. Stir until smooth. Allow frosting to stand 2 minutes. Add remaining 1/4 cup chocolate syrup, adjusting if too stiff. Frosting should appear smooth and satiny. Frost top and sides of cake. Set aside. For the web decoration: In a small bowl, combine 2/3 cup powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon milk. Stir until smooth, adding milk until a slightly runny glaze forms. Spoon into a small decorating bag fitted with a round writing tip. Alternatively, pour glaze into a small plastic bag and snip off the corner to create a tip. Work quickly; do not allow fudge frosting to dry. Starting in the center of cake, using white glaze, pipe circles on top about 1/2 inch apart. Using cake tester or toothpick, lightly drag lines through the frosting, from outer edges of cake to center, about 1 inch apart. Decorate with spiders and cut into small wedges. Store at room temperature. Serves 20. Tip: For an enhanced chunky texture, add 1/2 cup chopped nuts to the bar base before baking. |
| THANK YOU! CLOSE PAPER! |
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| Frosting
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and hot 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 2 2/3 cups powdered sugar, divided 3/4 cup dark chocolate syrup 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk |
| PAD'S Reminders! * Don't forget the Inner-house Contest, the Ministry of Magic's deadline is nearing! * Don't forget the Three Broomsticks Contest! * PAD'S HALLOWEEN BASH is coming soon, keep an eye our for the date! And finally....have a fun and safe Halloween!! |
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