Wickedly good Halloween dinner

The menu

• Jumbo cheese and ham straws

• Main course

  Beef goulash soup (Gulyas leves)

• Light meals & snacks

  Bacon or crackling scones (pogácsa)

• Cakes and baking

  Black Forest gâteau

Menu ingredients

Serves 8

• Fruit and vegetables

  • 2 medium onions, diced

  • 4 medium carrots, diced

  • 2 celery sticks, leaves and all, diced

  • 1 red pepper, seeded and diced

  • 5 garlic cloves, crushed

  • 4 potatoes, peeled and chopped into small cubes

  • 2 x 80g/2¾oz packs of sweetened dried sour cherries

  • fresh cherries, to decorate

• Tins, packets and jars

  • 2 tbsp plain flour

  • 500g/1lb 2oz plain flour, plus extra for dusting

  • 340g/11¾oz jar of morello cherry jam

• Cooking ingredients

  • 1 tbsp celery seeds

  • vegetable oil

  • 4 tbsp good sweet Hungarian paprika

  • 2 tbsp caraway seeds, crushed

  • 60g/4 tbsp tomato purée

  • 3 bay leaves

  • 2 litres/3½ pints good beef stock

  • flaked sea salt

  • freshly ground black pepper

  • 1 tsp dried yeast

  • 1 tsp baking powder

  • ½ tsp salt

  • 1 tbsp caraway seeds

  • 225g/8oz caster sugar

  • 160g/5½oz self-raising flour

  • 65g/2¼oz cocoa powder

  • ½ tsp baking powder

• Biscuits, snacks and sweets

  • 50g/2oz dark chocolate, coarsely grated

• Dairy, eggs and chilled

  • 375g/13oz ready-rolled puff pastry

  • 100g/3½oz gorgonzola, crumbled

  • 1 free-range egg, beaten

  • soured cream and flat-leaf parsley, to garnish

  • 60ml /4 tbsp milk

  • 2 tbsp parmesan, grated

  • 120g/4½ oz unsalted butter

  • 120ml/4fl oz soured cream

  • 2 eggs, beaten

  • beaten egg and a drop of water, to glaze

  • 225g/8oz butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

  • 4 medium eggs

  • 500ml/18fl oz double cream

• Meat, fish and poultry

  • 3 slices Parma ham, cut into strips

  • 1kg/2lb 4oz braising steak or venison

  • 250g/9oz streaky bacon, chopped

• Other

  • 2–3 tbsp Kirsch

  • 100ml/3½fl oz cherry brandy (ideally morello cherry brandy)

By The Hairy Bikers