The Recipe of the Week from The Happy Chef: Scary Pirate Pear Heads

My children are seven and eight. What a fun age! I have lots of wonderful friends but these two friends are certainly the most fun! I can play like a seven or eight year- old with them and it is not only acceptable but they think I am so great for it! I love my adult friends, but I can’t go to book club and say, “Hey ladies, let’s tape record ourselves talking in a funny voice and play it back.” We have other fun, silly things we do but the tape recorder game is unique to my friendship with Maddie and Anthony. But I know someday my kids won’t want to play the tape recorder game anymore and the thought of that sends a wave of grief over me. I just don’t want them to grow up and feel too “cool” to be silly with mom. I guess Halloween is so wonderful to me for just that reason, the same reason why I love that tape recorder game – You get to be silly and a little bit wild and pretend you are something you are not! The irony of Halloween is we pretend that we are something we are not; yet I believe we are often more our true selves (who we are meant to be) at Halloween than we are at any other time of year. At Halloween kids who have been acting “cool” all fall are suddenly laughing and behaving more like their younger siblings and enjoying the freedom that the “costume” lends them. They finally let go and become a child again. When I am at play with Maddie and Anthony, I become a child too. I not only remember all the fun I had long ago as an eight year old, but I get to share that joyful, carefree experience as well and for just a moment I am able to see life through their eyes. This is a blessing they give to me at this specific time in their lives and I don’t ever want to forget it. Thank you Maddie and Anthony and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! This is a Martha Stewart Recipe that is so fun to do with the kids!

8 firm ripe seckel pears

1/2 pound white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 ounce semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

-Remove the stem from the pears. Using a wooden skewer, make a hole in the stem end of each pear. Insert a lollipop stick in each hole.

-In a double boiler or a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt white chocolate. Let stand until cool. Dip the pears in the chocolate, turning to coat. Stand the pears up in a piece of foam or oasis. Let stand until set, about 40 minutes.

-In a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt the semisweet chocolate. Let cool for 5 minutes. Fit a small pastry bag with a #4 tip, and fill with melted semisweet chocolate. Pipe chocolate onto pears to create facial features. Let stand until set, about 10 minutes.

By Leigh Sackett
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