SWAMP HAG FINGERS HALLOWEEN RECIPE
YAY!!! Halloween is around the corner! Excited? We definitely are!
On this very special day, everyone is allowed to indulge in sweets of all kinds! My kids expect to gorge on candy given out during Trick-or-Treat, while I fare a more homemade approach. Every year, I take the opportunity to get creative with my Halloween eats.
This year, I’ve adjusted our favorite Halloween recipe of old witches’ fingers with a few updates. I wanted a healthier twist of the classic treat so we substituted powdered sugar with honey and used extra virgin olive oil instead of butter.
We’ve also added a little spooky story to get your ready for the Halloween mood. All Halloween recipes should have a story behind them. If you want to know how our swamp hag lost her fingers, keep reading!
How the Swamp Hag Lost Her Fingers
Once upon a time, there was a young Fairy that lived in a forest bordering a human kingdom. She was appointed by the human King to care for that part of the forest and guide human travelers through the woods, away from the darker paths where dangerous creatures would devour them.
One day, the human King sent his soldiers and laborers to clear the Fairy’s forest to expand his kingdom. But when they arrived, they were met with the fierce Fairy protecting the woods. After refusing to compromise, the Kings’ men attacked her and many of them were killed during the battle. Those who survived, returned to the kingdom and spread words of an evil witch that lurked in the forest and devoured travelers. Humans were now avoiding passing through the woods in fear of crossing paths with the evil witch.
The human King was mad and cursed the Fairy with the horrifying visage of a swamp hag and cast her away from the woods, deep into the dark swamp. The Fairy’s soul darkened night by night and eventually she embraced her new nature. Since then, she had been terrorizing humans who dared to travel through the swamp or cross paths with her.
Eventually, a group of adventurers decided to put an end to the horrible creature, so they prepared for months until they’d be ready to face the swamp hag. Once they met the creepy hag, they managed to trick her by offering a deal. The adventurers offered to lift her curse and leave her alone, only if she imbued their weapons with her dark power. Little did she know, they were little liars equipped with iron weapons and iron charms. But as soon as the hag touched their weapons to work her magic, her fingers were immediately cut off and a long and ugly battle occurred that almost cost them their lives. The swamp hag was a very powerful creature but their iron weapons had weakened her so much that she ran away and hid under the dark waters. The adventurers took the swamp hag’s fingers as a trophy. Since then, the swamp hag has been searching for her lost fingers and the ones who so cruelly took them from her.
Years passed and magic was long gone, but there still remains one night when the veil between the worlds is thinned. During the night of Halloween, creatures like her are allowed to freely roam the human realms. Will she be the one who knocks on your door this year?
Swamp Hag Fingers Halloween Recipe
Ingredients
160 ml extra virgin olive oil
120 grams honey
360 grams all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanillin powder
¼ tsp. baking powder
a pinch of natural sea salt
half cup of almonds
green food coloring (optional)
a bit of dark chocolate, melted
For the blood:
1 cup of milk
50 grams white chocolate
2 tbsp. cream cheese
1 tsp. corn flour
half tsp. honey
half tsp. vanillin powder
red food coloring
Directions
This Halloween recipe may seem a bit difficult but it’s not. To be honest, it could be a bit messy with the blood… but what’s a little mess? You can totally skip the bloody part if you’d prefer.
To start, you’ll need to use an electric mixer to combine your extra virgin olive oil with honey in a large bowl, then add the egg and mix again. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, vanillin, baking powder and natural sea salt together. Then slowly add them to the other bowl and mix again to form a dough. Add a bit more flour, if needed. Now, add a few drops of green food coloring until your dough becomes pale green or add more food coloring if you prefer a darker result. Cover and place in the fridge for about half an hour.
While you wait for your dough, prepare the fingernails. Do it by tossing the almonds in boiling water for about 1 minute and their skin will peel off easily. Otherwise, you can buy already blanched almonds. Use a knife to separate them in halves and sharpen it by scraping the the sides to a point.
Prepare a flat surface to work the dough. Separate the dough into 4 parts and only work with 1 part at a time leaving the rest in the fridge. Use only 1 tsp. of dough to form the swamp hag fingers. They’ll expand a bit in the oven so don’t make them too thick. Place each finger on a baking tray, with baking paper underneath and space them at least 2 cm from each other.
Now, add your almond fingernails by pressing them slightly down on the dough. Press the excess dough around the almond fingernails so that they hold together better. Then use the back of a knife to form the lines of the knuckles, creating a realistic finger. Once they are arranged, place them in the freezer for about 15-20 minutes. Preheat the oven at 180°C.
While you wait for the oven to pre-heat, you can make the blood. In a cup, stir the corn flour with a drop of milk. On medium heat, add the cream cheese into the cup and stir thoroughly. Gradually add the rest of the milk, white chocolate, vanillin and sugar. Stir it altogether until the sauce thickens, then remove it from the heat. Add a few drops of red food coloring, until it starts to resemble blood.
Bake your swamp hag fingers for about 10-12 minutes. Use a toothpick to poke the fingers and check if they are ready. If the toothpick comes clean, then your Halloween snack is ready!
Once your fingers have cooled down, brush on a few drops of the blood you made around the fingernails. You can also melt a bit more of dark chocolate and brush it onto the fingers for an even creepier look!
Hope you enjoyed the story and recipe of the swamp hag’s fingers! This bloody Halloween treat will guarantee to spook any Halloween enthusiast.
But be warned… the swamp hag may come knocking on your door this Halloween looking for her lost fingers! In any case… make this Halloween recipe at your own risk!
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