Ready for some eagerly awaited Halloween fun? Get those cauldrons a-bubbling while serving up some of these spook-a-licious treats for your ghostly guests.

Cheddar-Pumpkin Spread

• 5 cups (about 24 oz.) finely shredded Cheddar cheese
• 4 packages (8 oz. ea.) cream cheese, softened
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
• 1/4 cup additional cream cheese and Leaf Green Icing Color, if desired to decorate pumpkin

Line pan with plastic wrap; lightly spray pan with vegetable pan spray.

In food processor fitted with metal blade, combine all ingredients except extra cream cheese and icing color; process until smooth. Spoon into pan, divid-ing evenly between both pan cavities; press with back of spoon to pack mixture tightly into pan. Cover with plastic wrap. Chill several hours or overnight.

Unmold onto serving plate; smooth with spatula or knife. If desired, decorate with green tinted cream cheese. Serve with Halloween Pita Crisps, crackers or cut-up vegetables.

Makes about 8 cups spread.

Halloween Pita Crisps

• 1 package pocket pita breads
• Olive oil, vegetable oil or pesto
• Optional Suggested Toppings:
• Finely shredded cheese
• Minced fresh herbs, finely chopped garlic
• Coarsely ground salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Using desired Halloween-shaped mini cutter, press and
cut shapes from pita; pull apart into two pieces.

Arrange on ungreased cookie sheet. Brush with oil or pesto.

If desired, sprinkle with suggested toppings, salt and pepper.

Bake 5 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp.

Makes 48 to 54 crisps.

Tangled Web Custard Tarts

• 2 9-in. refrigerated pie crusts (one 15-oz. package)
• 1 package (3.4 oz.) instant vanilla or butterscotch pudding mix
• 2 cups cold milk
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon
• Orange, Violet or Black Decorating Gels, Orange Cookie Icing (Optional)

Preheat oven to 425°F. Soften pie crusts following package instructions.

Gently unroll crusts; cut each into about 4 1/2-in. circles, using the 4-in. removable tart pan bottom as a guide. Press each piece into 4-in. tart pan; prick bottom with fork. Bake 5 to 8 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely.

In large bowl, prepare pudding mix with milk following package instructions. If desired, add pie spice. Spoon about
1/4 cup pudding into each cooled tart shell; spread out evenly. Squeeze Decorating Gel, Sparkle Gel or Cookie Icing in con-centric circles over pudding surface; run knife through pudding from center of circles to edge of tart to create spider web. Chill at least 20 minutes.

Makes 8 mini tarts.

Candy-Dipped Halloween Apples

• Medium apples
• Cookie Sticks (8-in.)
• Candy Melts (Light Cocoa, Dark Cocoa, or White)
• Halloween Pumpkin Confetti Sprinkles or
• Halloween Nonpareils
• Orange, Black or Lavender Sugars

Line cookie sheet or pan with parchment paper.

Wash and completely dry apples; insert cookie sticks into tops of apples.

In medium microwave-safe bowls, melt each variety of Candy Melts according to package directions.

Place sprinkles and sugars in small bowls. Dip apples into melted candy, then immediately into desired sprinkles or sugars.

Place on prepared pans, stick up; chill until firm.

Recipes Provided by FAMILY FEATURES

All of us are looking for ways to save money.  With this perfect Fall weather, take the time now to get your home and surroundings ready for Ol’ Man Winter!  When the snowflakes start to fly, you’ll still have plenty of ‘green’ to remind you of Spring!

These 10 tips come from About.com:                         

1. Furnace Inspection

• Call an HVAC professional to inspect your furnace and clean ducts.
• Stock up on furnace filters and change them monthly.
• Consider switching out your thermostat for a programmable thermostat.
• If your home is heated by a hot-water radiator, bleed the valves by opening them slightly and when water appears, close them.
• Remove all flammable material from the area surrounding your furnace.

2. Get the Fireplace Ready

• Cap or screen the top of the chimney to keep out rodents and birds.
• If the chimney hasn’t been cleaned for a while, call a chimney sweep to remove soot and creosote.
• Buy firewood or chop wood. Store it in a dry place away from the exterior of your home.
• Inspect the fireplace damper for proper opening and closing.
• Check the mortar between bricks and tuckpoint, if necessary.

3. Check the Exterior, Doors and Windows

• Inspect exterior for crevice cracks and exposed entry points around pipes; seal them.
• Use weatherstripping around doors to prevent cold air from entering the home and caulk windows.
• Replace cracked glass in windows and, if you end up replacing the entire window, prime and paint exposed wood.
• If your home has a basement, consider protecting its window wells by covering them with plastic shields.
• Switch out summer screens with glass replacements from storage. If you have storm windows, install them.

4. Inspect Roof, Gutters & Downspouts

• If your weather temperature will fall below 32 degrees in the winter, adding extra insulation to the attic will prevent warm air from creeping to your roof and causing ice dams.
• Check flashing to ensure water cannot enter the home.
• Replace worn roof shingles or tiles.
• Clean out the gutters and use a hose to spray water down the downspouts to clear away debris.
• Consider installing leaf guards on the gutters or extensions on the downspouts to direct water away from the home.

5. Service Weather-Specific Equipment

• Drain gas from lawnmowers.
• Service or tune-up snow blowers.
• Replace worn rakes and snow shovels.
• Clean, dry and store summer gardening equipment.
• Sharpen ice choppers and buy bags of ice-melt / sand.

6. Check Foundations

• Rake away all debris and edible vegetation from the foundation.
• Seal up entry points to keep small animals from crawling under the house.
• Tuckpoint or seal foundation cracks. Mice can slip through space as thin as a dime.
• Inspect sill plates for dry rot or pest infestation.
• Secure crawlspace entrances.

7. Install Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors

• Some cities require a smoke detector in every room.
• Buy extra smoke detector batteries and change them when daylight savings ends.
• Install a carbon monoxide detector near your furnace and / or water heater.
• Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to make sure they work.
• Buy a fire extinguisher or replace an extinguisher older than 10 years.

8. Prevent Plumbing Freezes

• Locate your water main in the event you need to shut it off in an emergency.
• Drain all garden hoses.
• Insulate exposed plumbing pipes.
• Drain air conditioner pipes and, if your AC has a water shut-off valve, turn it off.
• If you go on vacation, leave the heat on, set to at least 55 degrees.

9. Prepare Landscaping & Outdoor Surfaces

• Trim trees if branches hang too close to the house or electrical wires.
• Ask a gardener when your trees should be pruned to prevent winter injury.
• Plant spring flower bulbs and lift bulbs that cannot winter over such as dahlias in areas where the ground freezes.
• Seal driveways, brick patios and wood decks.
• Don’t automatically remove dead vegetation from gardens as some provide attractive scenery in an otherwise dreary, snow-drenched yard.
• Move sensitive potted plants indoors or to a sheltered area.

10. Prepare an Emergency Kit

• Buy indoor candles and matches / lighter for use during a power shortage.
• Find the phone numbers for your utility companies and tape them near your phone or inside the phone book.
• Buy a battery back-up to protect your computer and sensitive electronic equipment.
• Store extra bottled water and non-perishable food supplies (including pet food, if you have a pet), blankets and a first-aid kit in a dry and easy-to-access location.
• Prepare an evacuation plan in the event of an emergency.

Instant messaging. Cell phones. VOIP with video. You communicate with your parents in California and your sister in Virginia several times a week because you can. Your extended family has never seemed closer – until you experience the isolating effects of a separation and/or divorce. Even with all the technology tools available today, far away family members can’t be magically transported to assist you with raising your children. With children in different school districts and play dates across town, by the time you get to your home at night, there’s no time or energy for sit-down meals or neighborly chit-chat. It’s time to get to bed and get ready to do it all again tomorrow. What appeared to be a difficult schedule for an in-tact family becomes a Herculean event for a now-single parent. You wonder – where’s that ‘village’ that I’ve heard tales of?

Many single parents are finding that village in the form of a type of intentional community called Cohousing. Cohousing residents are consciously committed to living as a community. The design of the neighborhood, with unattached parking (to prevent driving into the garage and closing the door), a pedestrian walkway down its center and front doors and porches facing each other, is to encourage interaction and communication. Although each private home has its own kitchen and eating areas, the focal point of the community is its Common House, with large kitchen and dining room, library, meeting and play rooms, and guest bedrooms. Community members get together in the Common House (think about the town square in a small town) several times a week for meals, play times, clubs and meetings. Communities are diverse with race, religion, age, and family structure.

Anne Byrne, a single parent of three boys and a resident of Highline Crossing Cohousing, chose this type of community after her divorce. Security and safety was one reason. Out with her 14 year old son late one afternoon, she began to fret about the 12 year old that was at home, alone. “Don’t worry, Mom,” her older son said, “our neighbors will watch out and take care of him.” “Cohousers” experience this safety due, in part, to the physical closeness between homes and the familiarity with neighbors. Byrne also feels that her children have formed relationships with neighbors (both young and old) that are separate from the relationships she has formed. Because of the interaction among all age groups in the community, children may form bonds with elderly residents and toddlers alike. “I knew more people in a week [at Highline Crossing] then I knew in 5 years in my old neighborhood.”

Community members are encouraged to give as good as they take. Participation in the form of attending meetings and serving on committees, fixing meals and helping in yard work improve the community as well as enhance interaction. Communities are run internally (no outside property management), and decisions are based on consensus, not majority rule. This type of management and decision making works well in cohousing communities because neighbors know and respect each other. Cohousing residents generally aspire to “improve the world, one neighborhood at a time.”

Prices and types of housing vary with each community. For more information on the benefits of cohousing, visit the Cohousing Association of the United States’ website, located at www.cohousing.org.