At スミス英会話長岡京, we celebrated Halloween on Sunday afternoon by making jack-o-lanterns. It’s a fun activity for both children and adults.
First we cut lids in the tops of our pumpkins and opened them up. Then, we performed the messy job of emptying the insides of pulp and seeds. Roll up your sleeves and reach right in. Eeeeew! We cleaned the seeds and began roasting them with salt and butter; when our jack-o-lanterns were finished, we’d have freshly-roasted seeds to snack on! Next, we drew face patterns on the pumpkins. And finally, we carved the faces. Finished! All that was left was to place them outside the front door, insert candles and watch the surprised smiles on passersby.
If you’ve never carved a jack-o-lantern, give it a try. Finding a large (orange) pumpkin used to be a challenge in Japan, but to my delight, this year the local supermarket (Heiwado) had some giants for sale. If you can’t find them locally, try online. Happy Halloween!
Rick
I love that feeling!
Those are some great big pumpkins. Do you just roast the seeds and sprinkle salt on them, that’s all?
Those were all that remained when I went to Heiwado. Larger of two was on display, but 八百屋 happily sold it to me;) Must admit, bigger than I had ever carved back in Canada. Yes, just rinse the seeds, roast at 150 C. with butter and salt for about 45 min.