Happy Halloween

No trick or treating for us this year but I did manage to bake some Halloween biscuits (albeit very last minute).

I used Martha Stewart's recipe (found here). I have reprinted below with my changes in red.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups plain flour 
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) (170g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• Small candies or sprinkles, for decorating (optional) (smarties)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (190 degrees celsius - I did fan forced). In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, and salt; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy; beat in egg. On low speed, mix in flour mixture. Divide dough in half, and form into 2 disks, each about 3/4 inch thick. Wrap disks in plastic; chill until firm, at least 45 minutes and up to 2 days. (I didn't have 45 minutes so I did 10 minutes in the freezer).
3. On a lightly floured sheet of waxed paper, using a floured rolling pin, roll dough 1/2 inch thick. (If dough becomes too soft to work with, refrigerate for a few minutes.)
4. Using 2- to 3-inch Halloween cookie cutters, cut out shapes, dipping cutters in flour as necessary to prevent sticking; place on a baking sheet, spacing them 1 inch apart.
5. Bake until surface is dry to the touch, 10 to 15 minutes (if decorating, press candies into dough halfway through baking). Cool cookies 1 to 2 minutes on baking sheet; transfer to a rack to cool completely.

And this is the result:

And this was a happy afternoon tea:

And here was my Halloween in 1986 (I am the hunchback):

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween.