Halloween and pumpkins are like two hands in one. And once your hollowed-out pumpkin is Halloween-ready, incorporate the pumpkin flesh into a steaming fall dish. It can be that easy. Need tips? I'll guide you safely through the Halloween weekend with this blog.

Tip for pumpkin hollowing out

Before you can transform your pumpkin into a spooky Halloween accessory, it must be hollowed out. To do this, first cut a "lid" from the top of the pumpkin. The safest way to do this is with a serrated knife because it gives you a better grip on the pumpkin and reduces the chance of your knife slipping. Place the knife at a slight angle in the pumpkin so the lid will fit back on the pumpkin without falling inside. Also make sure the recess is big enough to scrape the flesh out of the pumpkin with your hand/arm. And then a tip for the hollowing itself: use your ice cream scoop. Those have sharp edges and a handle that fits more firmly in your hand than a regular spoon.

Do not discard the pumpkin seeds. Rinse off all the threads from them and cook them for 20 minutes. Then roast them with some olive oil and spices in the oven. Delicious as a snack or as a topping with Greek yogurt.

Pumpkin face carving

Once you have removed all the threads and seeds and scraped out all the pulp until there is a 1-inch rim left in the pumpkin, then the fun part can begin: carving the face. Some stores already have this face stickered on so you know exactly where to attack the pumpkin. If not, you may want to draw it yourself first. Especially if your kids get to work with it. You can find all sorts of fun variations on the Internet. Job done? Wait until dusk, place the pumpkin in a highly visible spot and place a lighted candle inside. The tone for the weekend is set!

Halloween dishes

Once you've made a Halloween pumpkin, you're ready for the rest. How about:

• Halloween peppers. You process them the same as the pumpkin: cut off the lid, cut out eyes, nose and mouth and fill them. For example, with a mix of rice, minced meat and an onion. Half an hour in the oven is enough to cook the peppers.
• Halloween pizzas. Coat the pizza crust with tomato sauce, sprinkle with Italian herbs and decorate the pizza with ghosts cut from a ball of mozzarella.
• Grafted desserts. Fill small glasses with chocolate mousse and sprinkle a layer of dark sprinkles on top. Then take a roll of cookies and write R.I.P. on it with a chocolate marker. Stick the cookie into the chocolate mousse and surprise your guests with a deliciously lugubrious end to the meal.
• Spider Cookies. Transform Oreo cookies into spiders by inserting pieces of licorice laces or pretzels on both sides and using chocolate markers to stick two Smarties eyes on them.
• Halloween chips. Easily turn tortilla wraps into spooky chips by cutting scary shapes out of the wrap, such as ghosts, bats or spiders. Sprinkle with a spice mix of salt, pepper and paprika and bake them crispy in the oven.

Pumpkin dishes

Not a fan of Halloween, but love pumpkin? Pumpkin is a welcome vegetable on the table even without the horror effects. How about pumpkin soup? Put the flesh of one pumpkin together with one onion, two tomatoes and 500-700 ml of broth in a saucepan and simmer for about half an hour until tender. Then just put the hand blender through and serve with a dash of cream. Or cut the pumpkin (with skin) into slices and put them together with carrots and sweet potato in an oven dish or tagine. Sprinkle them with salt and olive oil and roast them in a preheated oven at 180°C until warm and fragrant. Also delicious: try adding diced pumpkin to your stew. You do this the moment the meat is seared and the garlic and onions are added. A thick-bottomed casserole or slow cooker is ideal for such a stew.

For dessert - or for coffee or tea - I can recommend pumpkin cake. It is delicious and even healthier than regular cake. If you still need a cake pan or baking tin: this pyrex cake pan is an all-rounder. It can go in the oven as well as the freezer. Super handy when you want to freeze some afterwards.

Viewed properly, Halloween is actually eerily easy. And that leaves plenty of time to enjoy your company to the max. What more could a person want...