The Book: The Goopy Ghost of Halloween; The Bite: Pumpkin Shaped Shortbread Cookies

Welcome! This marks the first blog post for Read a Book Take a Bite!

The Book!
In honor of the fall season and Halloween, I thought I'd showcase the adorable children's book "The Goopy Ghost of Halloween" by author and friend V. R. Duin.

The Goopy Ghost of Halloween: "With vivid illustrations that sing the praises of the darkest and most delightful aspects of Halloween, The Goopy Ghost by V. R. Duin is a fantastically fun rhyming tale that celebrates the goopiest of ghostly goo. When siblings Steven and Sally trace the lines of what can only be described as the fiercest of all pumpkin faces and have their father carve the expression, they never imagine that the goo they toss in the rubbish bin will return to haunt them. A goopy ghost whose “Boo!” includes candy thieving, this ghoul roams the house to find a new house—one that isn't on fire. Absolutely unforgettable, this ghost story is perfect for even the youngest of beginning readers and is sure to become a Halloween classic."
Book Stats:
Genre - Children's
Page Count - 24
Target Age Group - 4 to 8 years
Theme(s) - Halloween

The Bite! 
Pumpkin Shaped Shortbread Cookies

What else can be more fun for kids (okay, and adults too!) than making shortbread cookies shaped to resemble little pumpkins, just in time for Halloween. You can use any simple shortbread cookie recipe. Here is the pictorial step by step guide to making your own. Enjoy!

My five year old helped mix the cookie batter. For a simple shortbread cookie recipe, you can use Food Network's "Classic Shortbread Cookie" recipe. We used food coloring (red and yellow mixed together) to create the orange color. 

Shape the cookie batter into medium sized balls.

Place shaped balls on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Take a toothpick and create lines to resemble the shape of a pumpkin.

Bake in the oven according to recipe instructions. In this case at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool completely. Once the cookies are completely cooled, insert a pretzel stick for a stem; then use "writing icing" to create the look of leaves. You can actually stop at this point if you wish to just have the look of a pumpkin without a face.

Continue to use the writing icing (with the aid of a toothpick if necessary) to create the pumpkin's face.

Aren't they cute?!
Pumpkin Shaped Shortbread Cookies

Pumpkin Shaped Shortbread Cookies!

Pumpkin Shaped Shortbread Cookies!