Halloween Black Dinner Party

Remember, it’s about having fun, so don’t aim for perfection—it’s more about the atmosphere, not slaving in the kitchen all day! So dim the lamps, light the candles and prepare for a ghoulish, delish time!

The color scheme:

Basic black, that goes for dress, décor, drinks and food! Black food…can’t think of anything? Not to worry there’s a lot of easy things you can do.

Dress:

Just ask your guests to wear all black and a little creativity will take care of the “costume”.  Things like super crazy false eyelashes, spiders in the hair, cat ears and mask, Dracula teeth, devil horns, some fake blood…whatever you have laying around or can easily pull together.

Décor:

Turn your home into an abandoned haunted house with some easy tricks…. Throw “dustsheets” over the furniture, sheets work well for this. Tip all the pictures, paintings and mirrors and drape with fake cobwebs and hang some fake spiders in the webs. Drape thin black fabric over the table and mirrors. For a great “dripping effect” on the candles, blow air from a fan or hairdryer on them to get the wax to melt quickly. I use up all my half burned down candles at Halloween. I got some awesome “fake” black roses at a dollar store—they looked great and can be used again and again and the best part—they were only $1.00 each! Spraying baby pumpkins black and writing names with a silver marker can make fun place settings.

Drinks:

Keep it simple with Black Velvets. Equal amounts of champagne and Guinness, sounds weird? They are delicious! Pour the Guinness into the champagne flute first, let it settle then tilt the glass and slowly pour the champagne. Cheers!!

Appetizers:

Black olives, black grapes, cheeses with black rinds and there’s a fabulous black cracker from Edward & Sons: Black Sesame Rice Snaps made with organic brown rice, really different and delicious. And, if you are feeling like really celebrating, a little caviar can go a long way! It doesn’t have to be the super expensive kind, American Sturgeon-Hackleback-Caviar is a great option and there’s also some terrific “soy” caviar on the market.

Dinner:

This year I served a caramelized pumpkin soup, followed by black bean and sirloin chili (this had a kick to it) and then black fettuccine with lobster (my personal favorite). For dessert a roasted black fig tart (there was an apple tart too!). Top off the evening with black truffle chocolates and black Sambuca.

So, this Halloween, don’t let the kids have all the fun, try a “black” party of your own. Happy Halloween!