Adults and kids alike, who doesn’t love Halloween?  It’s so much fun to carve pumpkins, dress up, and eat copious amounts of naughty treats.  A great way to celebrate this spooky and fun holiday is with an open house style party.  Since everyone is running around with their children or friends trick-or-treating, it is nice to have a party where they can just stop in say hi and have a bit of food. 

Make Ahead!
The key to creating food for a successful open house party is to make dishes that can be done ahead and kept warm for long periods of time.  Everyone won’t be eating at the same time so the food shouldn’t be something that needs to be eaten fresh or right away.  Soup and snacks are the ideal meal for such an occasion.

Ahhh!-Inspiring Appetizers
Pauladeen.com has some fantastic and fun Halloween recipes.  Impress your guests with the funny Cheese Ball Goblin.  The Pepporincini nose and carrot stick mouth bring this goofy snack to life.  Deviled eyeballs are another fun and festive Halloween snack.  It’s not a party at Paula’s without deviled eggs, and these ones are the perfect spooky bite.  Monster mash is another hearty appetizers for your guests to enjoy.  Black bean and cheddar make the perfect mix for dipping tortilla chips. 

Main Course Monsters
For the main course use some of Paula’s wonderful soup recipes.  Make a variety for your guests to choose from, the best part is they can all be done a day or two in advance.  Creamy squash soup is a wonderful sweet, thick and creamy soup.  Squash is in-season in the fall so it is the best time to get the greatest flavor from this hearty vegetable.  Slow cooker apple and onion soup with cinnamon cheese toast is a delicious twist on the classic French onion soup.  The cooked apples and onion create a sweet and yummy soup and the cinnamon on the toast adds a nice spice to accentuate the apples.  Creamy cheddar soup is so thick and decadent.  The sharp cheddar gives it great flavor.  Chili chicken stew is another hearty fall soup that your guests will love.  It is both filling and healthy.  Ghostly grilled cheese are the perfect sandwich to serve on the side of your soups.  All you need is a ghost shaped cookie cutter!

Devilish Desserts
Ghoulish grins are a fun and healthy dessert for the kids on Halloween.  Sliced apples and peanut butter make up the perfect smile and mini marshmallows look just like teeth. Pumpkin bars are another great seasonal dessert.  Sort of like a pumpkin brownie with a creamy sweet topping.  And, to wash it all down spiced pear and apple cider. 

Also, don’t forget all the fun Halloween decorations, extra pumpkins for carving and prizes for best costume, and most importantly the candy for the trick or treaters!!