I love Halloween, but this year I'm switching it up a bit.  Why bother making a fabulous dinner when everyone is dying to get out the door?  This year the frightfully freakish feast will be presented on Devil's Night.

Not everyone appreciates gruesome.  And when I step back and think about it, I really don't want to spend time making a dinner and then have the kids cringe by giving things unappetizing names.  This year I'm going to go more crazy than creepy.

The table setting is probably what anchors the theme.  I bought black sheets as chair covers, so I can use a few to cover the table.  Using a box with something heavy in it for stability (never use tape to secure the box to your good dining room table...oops!) under the cloth adds dimension.  I have a bunch of Halloween themed confetti (purchased last year at 90% off) to sprinkle around.  Add in a few containers filled with candy corn and tea lights, and it's looking good and festive.  Have you bought a bunch of tiny pumpkins that you really have no use for?  I did!  I'm going to draw faces on them, and then put them in front of napkins folded like neckties.  Not sure there's a place for the silverware in all this, so I'll just put it in with the food...

The entree, beef and macaroni will be served in highball glasses, broccoli in the double old fashioned, and breadsticks in juice glasses.  Salad will be served on a platter instead of the usual salad bowl, which is kind of nice because the toppings stay evenly distributed.  But, I have these clown picks from the cake decorating aisle that will make a semi-creepy addition (kids are too young to have read It).  The boys do not appreciate having their milk colored (can't blame them), so I'm going to make chocolate milk, but, serve it from a well washed out wine bottle (decorated, of course).  The one tiny concession to ooze will be lava cakes.  These are really simple to make - no need to buy the scary box mix.

What are you doing for Halloween???