All Hallows Feast

All hallows feast.
Trick or treat…treats please! 
Here is the perfect meal to keep your trick or treaters full of energy for collecting all their goodies using any left over pumpkin from the pumpkin carvings.  Enjoy the risotto before they go out and then serve up the delicious muffins as a slightly more healthy treat to all the sweets they will be stashing on their return!  Yum!
Simple pumpkin risotto:
200g Arborio rice
1 litre of chicken stock
120g butter
700g diced pumpkin
3-5 rashers diced bacon
1 onion finely chopped
200g mushrooms diced
Parmesan cheese to serve
Pre heat the oven to 190°C
Melt the butter and fry the onion, bacon and mushroom until the bacon is crisp.
Add all ingredients to an oven proof dish and mix well
Cook in the oven for 30mins
Add  parmesan to taste
Pumpkin and chocolate chip muffins:
150g caster sugar
60ml vegetable oil
2 eggs
175g pumpkin puree
60ml water
200g plain flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
90g chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 200 C / Gas 6.
Grease and flour muffin tin or use paper cases.
Mix the sugar, oil and eggs then add the pumpkin and water.
In separate bowl mix together the flour, bicarb, baking powder, spices and salt. Add wet mixture to this bowl and stir in chocolate chips.Fill muffin cases 2/3 full with batter. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.  Simple and scrummy!
You can buy pumpkin puree in some supermarkets but if you want to make your own, here’s how:
Preheat oven to 160 C  Cut the pumpkin in half, stem to base. Remove seeds and pulp.
Cover each half with aluminium foil.Bake in the preheated oven foil side up 1 hour or until tender.
Scrape pumpkin flesh from shell and purée in a blender or food processor