Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays and of course having worked in the chocolate and candy industry for so many years, makes the connection even stronger.  Our Halloween parties at the home often have as many as 50 guests.  For some of them, I would actually build a haunted house in the basement.  Another one of our party traditions is to do a line dance outside on the deck at midnight while blasting Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” through the PA system. Fall is my favorite time a year and Halloween marks the start of the holiday season which means lots of fun, traditions, and FOOD!  AND where better to get some new holiday ideas and recipes than right here at Taste Of Home.  Here are a couple of my favorite Taste Of Home Halloween recipes:

Try this Yummy Pork Mummy, pork tenderloin wrapped in phyllo dough to look like a mummy in a coffin.  It’s delicious and scary! 

YUMMY PORK MUMMY: If you’re looking for the perfect main entree for a Halloween dinner party, look no further. The pork stays moist under the pyllo “wrappings,” and the sauce adds a dijon zip that guests won’t soon forget

Then for a fun dessert try our Ghostly Custards.

GHOSTLY CUSTARD RECIPE: Here’s a tasteful way to get everyone into the “spirit” of the season! Little ones in particular find her custards irresistible, reals Suzanne Strocsher of Bothell, Washington. “Our young daughter is always eager to help make these desserts,” Suzanne states. “They’re full of sweet pumpkin flavor, and the treats are just the right size for her too.”

Speaking of scary…..what’s your favorite scary movie?  The scariest movie I have ever seen is “The Exorcist”.  I remember seeing that movie when it came out in 1974.  It was released in December and I saw it on a dark and very cold night in Chicago.  I went to a late showing and I remember walking two blocks to my car after that movie and I couldn’t stop shivering and it wasn’t from the cold!

Even re-watching the movie today I still get the creeps.  I read an article about the movie that talked about the profound affect it had on movie goers back when it was released.  The article stated that paramedics were often called to the theatres to treat people who had fainted or had become so frightened that they were hysterical.  Interestingly enough, the movie was inspired and loosely based on a real life incident in 1949 where a young boy was believed to have been possessed.  The boy’s name was Roland Doe.  Religious men from three different faiths attempted to exorcise what they believed was a “demonic possession”.