Halloween Costume Ideas

I'm not going to lie, I love Halloween. My inner soccer-mom-with-a-crafting-room comes to life as soon as mid October rolls around. If you're not convinced, just flashback to last year when I was drowning in midterms, essays, assignments, and planning a conference, I managed to hand sew on gold ribbons and buttons for my royal couple costume. #dedication

Below I've rounded up my top five costumes in case you need a little costume inspo this Halloween season.

1. Frat Boys

Arguably the easiest Halloween costume to throw together and excellent in groups, the frat boy ensemble made it acceptable to chug beer and call myself [Mack] for the night. You better believe there was a lot of dabbing on the dance floor.

What you need:

Shorts, button down shirt, baseball cap, red solo cup in hand, loud voice for yelling out fraternity cheers. Optional: large cardboard greek letters for holding and small printed out greek letters for sticking on your shirt.

2. Whoopee Cushion

(the letters aren't backwards IRL, this was a self timer....... no comment)

Definitely not your sexy kitten seeing as I first wore this in grade 7, this costume is pretty awesome. In all honesty, I'm still bitter that I came second to the kid dressed up as a clown in the costume contest. A clown? How original! The whoopee cushion costume is so comfortable and warm if you're going to be outside. Probably not the best if you're going to be inside in a packed house party.

What you need:
Large quantities of pink felt, a black sharpie, and a mother with sick sewing skills. Yes, my wonderful mother just threw this costume together sans pattern. 

3. Royal Couple

A note to all DIY costume makers: it's seven million times easier to make your costume look realistic if you have a picture to base it off of. My friend Elizabeth and I had a blast in these costumes (not pictured are our friends dressed up as lady Di, Prince Philip, Queen E, Pippa Middleton, and even baby Charlotte). Did I say I was committed to Halloween or did I say it??

What you need:
A picture of the royal family, a trip to dollarama to buy ALL the ribbons and gold buttons, a mini sewing kit, and some random clothing that looks somewhat suit ish/something a royal would wear.

4. Tooth Fairy and Toothpaste

I can't even count the amount of times my friend Maggie and I have gone out wearing couples costumes. Who said you need a significant other to pull off great paired costumes??

What you need:
For the fairy - white tutu and a toothbrush and/or wand. Optional wings and crown.
For the toothpaste - a large white sheet sewn in a tube shape and a steady hand for painting on the logo.

5. Martha Stewart

My girl Martha has been an inspiration of mine for years and what better way to pay tribute to your idols than to dress up as them for Halloween! This was kind of a low key costume but it gave me the opportunity to walk around all day in khakis with a plate of brownies.

What you need:
Preferably a blonde bob, khakis, a pastel button down, an apron, and handcuffs (too soon, Martha?). Optional: Baked goods to hand out.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN KIDS!!!!!!! 

Pizza Dough (+NEWS)

You know when you want something so badly but it's so insanely unlikely to happen that you kind of let your dreams fade away? Well that was me and the dream of owning my own wood-fired pizza oven. See what I mean by unrealistic?? I'd say I'm pretty ambitious with goals and dreams but there was no situation in the near future that involved moving a three thousand dollar monstrosity into my backyard.

But then something beautiful happened. Some could even call it a Thanksgiving miracle. I found out that there is a wood-fired pizza oven at [Bayshore Park] in Ottawa that is open to the community every few Saturdays a month!! *dances around the room with pizza* You bring your own dough, or pie, or whatever baked good you've made and then you can cook it to wood-fired perfection. I'm super excited to try it out and lucky for you and me they're open tomorrow, October 8th from 1-2:30.

To celebrate I'm sharing my favourite pizza dough recipe that I make ALL THE TIME.

Ingredients

1 tsp instant yeast

1 tsp sugar

1 cup warm water

2 cups flour

1 tsp salt

Preparation

1. In a bowl add the yeast and sugar, and then the warm water. Give it a little mix to make sure all the yeast is wet and then let it sit for five minutes until the mixture foams on top.
2. Mix in the flour and salt with a wooden spoon. 
3. Add the flour to the yeast mixture and then knead on a floured surface for a few minutes.
4. Next, pour a little olive oil in a clean bowl and then place the dough in it. Cover with plastic wrap.
5. Let the dough rise for at least an hour in a warm area (like the oven with the light on, but no heat). I like to let mine sit for a couple of hours so it gets nice and light and fluffy.
6. Roll out the dough, add your sauce and toppings, and then bake at 500ºF for 10-15 minutes.
7. This dough also freezes super well!

For more details about the wood-fired oven you can check out their [Facebook page] or subscribe to their [newsletter].

// recipe from Ricardo Cuisine

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Apple Pie

One of my favourite holidays is coming up this weekend. You guessed it, Canadian Thanksgiving!! When I was studying at Bishop's, Thanksgiving was the best thing ever. I can remember being in first year and being stupid enough to bring a WHOLE DUFFLE BAG of books home to study lol. I actually had to recruit a random passerby to grab a side and help me carry it to the bus stop. And to think I was going to get any studying done during my favourite time of year in the capital. I always made sure my Thanksgiving weekends were filled with hiking in beautiful scenery, and tons and tons of pie! Speaking of pie, here is an amazing apple pie recipe to share with your loved ones this weekend. And do me a favour, tell them you love them and how thankful you are for them.

Okay, now let's get down to the real talk. That fancy pie crust was wayyyyyy easier than it looks. And trust me when I say that you shouldn't let all the myths that pastry is finicky get in the way of wowing your guests with the apple pie of their dreams. I turned to Pinterest and Instagram to get some ideas and then I was off! All it takes is determination and a heck of a lot of butter to nail this recipe.

Ingredients

Pie Crust

2 1/2 cups flour

1 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 cup unsalted butter

1/2 to 1 cup ice cold water

Pie Filling

8-9 small/medium apples (I used cortland apples, but granny smith work well too)

1/2 cup butter

3 Tbsp flour

1/4 cup water

1/3 cup white sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp vanilla

Preparation

Pie Crust

1. I have used this pie crust recipe since I baked my very first pie. It requires a gazillion steps but it's reliable AF. Here we go! Fill a cup measuring cup with water and some ice to get it supppppper cold. 
2. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, a tablespoon of sugar and a teaspoon of salt.  
3. Grate a cup of cold butter into the flour mixture. This is the easiest way to get all your ingredients integrated. 
4. Use a fork, or your hands to mix everything together. 
5. Drizzle half a cup of cold water into the mixture. Mix together and then add in more water a tablespoon at a time till the dough holds together.
6. Knead the dough and then divide it in half. One half will fill the pie plate and the other will be used to make your fancy pie top.
7. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and then chill in the fridge for at least an hour. If you're in a pinch you can pop it in the freezer for 10 minutes.
8. After chilling, roll out the dough into a thin layer and then fit into a 9 inch pie shell. Tuck the excess that hangs over the edge under to create an even and pretty edge.
9. Cover with plastic wrap and then pop it in the fridge again for about 30 minutes this time.
10. Roll out the other half of the dough. At this point you can stop and watch netflix and call it a day. OR you can get your pinterest on and measure a rectangle that is 10 inches in length. Cut out strips for your lattice top. They can all be the same width or you can use my example and create all different widths and even braid some.
11. Pop these guys into the freezer on a flat plate or baking sheet for about 15 minutes. This way they keep their shape.

Pie Filling

1. At some point during the pie crust process (like when your dough is chilling in the fridge), you can make the filling for your apple pie. In a medium pot, melt the butter and then mix in the flour to create a paste. 
2. Add in the rest of the filling ingredients (sugars, spices and vanilla). Let this mixture boil for a minute or two until it thickens slightly.
3. Peel and slice the apples and then toss with the sauce you made.
4. Pour the apples into the prepared pie shell and then top with your lattice crust. I made tiny leaves out of pastry to go around the edge of the pie shell. I get that that's a bit excessive haha and you can totally skip this step.
5. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes at 425ºF. 
6. After that, reduce heat to 375ºF and bake for 40 minutes. Take the aluminum foil off for the last 10 minutes to let the crust get all golden.

//Pie crust recipe via America's Test Kitchen & filling adapted from Audrey's Apron.