Halloween Decor and Treats!

Halloween Tricks and Treats

Hard to believe we are halfway through October and Halloween is fast approaching!  As I mentioned before, even though nobody but us will see our Halloween decorations ( except for the ghostly wreath on our door) it makes life feel a little more normal to have seasonal decorations around the house. The Jack-O-Lantern pictured above was made the first year we were married...I went to a ceramics class and made this as well as two little ghosts.  It survived many moves with just one little chip in the lid that you can't even see.  

This wonderful ghost was made by my dear Aunt Mamie.  She was in her 90's when she made it - and even added a light and cord to it.   I just LOVE it and enjoy getting "Aunt Mamie's Ghost " out of storage each year.

The wine rack has been taken over by this cute witch...the books were discarded from the library a few years ago.  I used black spray paint to hide the covers and silver letters from the Dollar Tree to mark them.  Last week I finished my bottle of vanilla and soaked off the label to make this potion container.

Added some spiders to our foyer...

A wizard hat to the hallway...this is from Target in the Dollar aisle.  Can anybody resist the stuff in that aisle ???

And our ghost wreath that I made years ago...it stays pretty fresh by adding a new ribbon each year.

Love this little pillow!

No Halloween items in our dining room china cabinet...just some fall decoration.

I switched out the pebbles in the candle base for candy corn and added a little jack-o-lantern to the dining room table.

All the decorating made me hungry for a treat and while looking through my recipe box I found my mother's Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe.  If you can read the card it says "Mrs. Buckman's Peanut Butter Cookies" and these are the cookies my mom always made...usually at Christmas time.   I called my sister to ask WHO was Mrs. Buckman ???  Turns out she was a neighbor who moved away before I was born!  I said a little prayer for her, and my mom, as I made this recipe.

Mrs. Buckman's Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup margarine ( I used Smart Balance)

1 cup white sugar ( I used  monkfruit sweetner from Costco)

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup peanut butter ( I used natural peanut butter from Whole Foods)

2 eggs ( I used egg beaters)

3 cups flour ( I used whole wheat)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla

pinch of salt

Put all ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix well.   

When thoroughly mixed chill the dough for an hour or so...

Then roll into balls...

And flatten with the tines of a fork...making cross hatch marks. This made me think of my mom...she always let me do this part.

And sprinkle with sugar.  I used the  Demerara Baking Sugar that I use on most of my baked goods,

Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Let cool on rack and then enjoy!

They turned out great...not exactly the way I remember my mom's, but still delicious. My mom made them mostly at the holidays and used red and green decorating sugar.  We enjoyed them with a cup of tea...and I bagged up a dozen or so to drop off at a friend's door.  The rest I quickly put in the freezer ....before we ate them all!  I forgot to count how many cookies this makes...but it is quite a big batch.  Next time I make them I am going to try using CHUNKY peanut butter and maybe mix in some chocolate chips.

Do you have any cookie recipes from family that you still make ?  Do you follow the recipe or make substitutions.   I am trying to make treats that are "heart healthy" for my dear husband...and me, too!  Hope you try these cookies and hope you enjoy them.   Thank you so much for stopping by Our New Vista today....I would be thrilled if you would leave a message below.  Best wishes to all - stay healthy and be safe!