Halloween is the perfect night for letting your imagination run wild in the kitchen.
With mysterious creatures and spooky atmospheres, October 31st is the perfect occasion to bring fun and eye-catching dishes to the table, without compromising on taste.

After last year’s witch fingers, “Halloween Night” pasta and mummy potatoes, we’ve come up with a new menu where potatoes take center stage once again in three different recipes, all delicious and equally terrifying.

Appetizer: potato bats

Ingredients for 4 people

• 500 g èVita Armonia Gourmet potatoes
• 1 egg
• 50 g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 50 g breadcrumbs
• 100 g smoked scamorza cheese
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• Rosemary, to taste
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed

Method

Boil the potatoes with their skins on. Allow them to cool slightly, then peel and mash them until smooth. Add the egg, Parmigiano Reggiano, breadcrumbs, a pinch of salt and pepper, and finely chopped rosemary. Mix until you have a firm, compact dough.

Roll out the dough on a sheet of parchment paper until it is about 1 cm thick. Using a small bat-shaped cookie cutter, cut out the shapes and place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Place a small piece of smoked scamorza cheese in the center of each bat, then cover with another potato shape, gently sealing the edges.

Brush with a little extra virgin olive oil and bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for about 20 minutes, until the bats are golden brown and crispy.

First course: black moon risotto

Ingredients for 4 people

• 320 g Carnaroli rice
• 250 g èVita Residuo Zero potatoes
• 150 g red radicchio
• 100 g Gorgonzola cheese
• 1 onion
• Approximately 1 litre of vegetable stock
• ½ glass of red wine
• 30 g butter
• 40 g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• Black olives, as needed

Method

Peel the potatoes, cut them into small cubes and boil them in salted water for about 8–10 minutes, leaving them slightly firm. Finely slice the radicchio and finely chop the onion.

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a saucepan and gently sauté the onion until softened. Add the rice and toast it for a few minutes, then pour in the red wine and allow it to evaporate. Add the potatoes and radicchio, then begin cooking the risotto by gradually adding the hot vegetable stock, a little at a time.

When the rice is al dente, remove from the heat and stir in the butter, Parmigiano Reggiano and Gorgonzola until creamy. Season with salt and pepper.

To evoke the “black moon”, garnish each serving with a few thin slices of black olive. Serve the risotto on a dark plate, shaping it into a compact circle, like a great moon in the Halloween night sky.

Main course: stuffed potato spiders

Ingredients for 4 people

• 600 g èVita Patata di Campo potatoes
• 200 g ground beef
• 80 g provola cheese
• 1 egg
• 50 g breadcrumbs
• 30 g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• ½ onion
• Tomato passata, as needed
• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• 8 thin breadsticks
• Black olives, as needed

Method

Boil the potatoes with their skins on, then peel and mash them while still hot. Allow them to cool slightly, then add the egg, Parmigiano Reggiano, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper. Mix until you have a smooth, even mixture.

Meanwhile, finely chop the onion and gently sauté it in a pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Add the ground beef, brown it well, then add a few spoonfuls of tomato passata. Cook for about 10 minutes, then leave to cool.

Take a portion of the potato mixture, flatten it in the palm of your hand and place a teaspoon of the meat filling and a small cube of provola cheese in the center. Close the mixture around the filling and shape it into a ball. Repeat until all the ingredients have been used.

Place the potato balls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, brush them with a little olive oil and bake at 200°C for about 20 minutes, until golden brown.

Once cooked, turn them into little spiders: cut the breadsticks into pieces about 5–6 cm long and insert four pieces into each side of the potato balls to create the legs. Finish with small pieces of black olive to make the eyes.

A menu like this not only brings all the deliciousness of potatoes to the table, but with bats, spiders and a mysterious black moon, it turns Halloween dinner into a fun and appetizing experience, with guaranteed spooky thrills!