Happy Halloween, from Ladles and Linens!

Anyone with an Instagram account could tell you that last weekend was Halloween party central. While I enjoyed the photos, I opted out. Ladles and Linens' own Sarah Nicholas had invited us out to a house on the bay for a little R&R, and we were in dire need of it.

Turns out I didn't miss the festivities after all, because Sarah brought the Halloween spirit to the bay house! The Ladles and Linens tagline is, "It's always a kitchen party, & everyone's invited!" This weekend, it could not be more evident that Sarah practices what she preaches. I've known good chefs and wonderful hosts, but Sarah makes me wonder if she doesn't skip sleep altogether. I don't know how she does it. 

Where to start? A chocolate skull cake with decadent peanut butter and cream cheese filling? Green mac & cheese and mummy hot dogs? How about the glow-in-the-dark skeleton PJs she bought for the children, including mine?

There was hot coffee every morning. A fully-stocked bar. Keeping with the fall theme, we filled up on her hearty pumpkin soup, with a Thai curry kick.

On a private beach, you can drink to your heart's content. And we did just that, with refreshing vodka cocktails. We kept the spooky theme, with flavors like Monster Mango and Poison Apple. 

We played Halloween Twister (below) and somehow, she found the time to make "dirt pudding" - chocolate pudding topped with chocolate cake crumbles (to resemble both mud and dirt) with gummy worms as earthworms. Disgustingly delectable!

There were scary movies to watch and spooky books to read. And during the day, there was salt air and warm sun. Readers, I wish you a very happy Halloween! And stay tuned, because next week, I'll share some great ideas on what you can do with your Halloween candy leftovers!