Is there Candy at Halloween? - Pumpkin Lassi

October has almost come and gone, and Halloween is practically here. Growing up, my mother did not cook with pumpkins or squash often. She did have a delicious squash or doodi halwa she would make, and I still have to find that recipe. I mostly associated pumpkins with Halloween and pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving.

Emigrating to a new country and learning the customs and norms is difficult. I think this is a big understatement as I can only begin to understand all the hurdles my parents faced in a new country. There are so many things to navigate, like the language and customs, and how to raise children in such a new environment. To do this takes an immense amount of time, effort, and faith.

My Mom told us of her first Halloween in the States. She remembers not knowing what the holiday was all about and not realizing that children were knocking on the door for candy. As kids, we would laugh and joke about it, but it must have been incredibly hard. G's mother remembers asking his father what Halloween was. He said it's a day that you give children sweets, so she handed out ice cream in dishes. The children exclaimed, "She's giving us ice cream!" She handed out one in each little kid's hand, and they looked at this sweet sticky dessert quite puzzled—in a bowl and definitely no way to put it into your candy bag.

Times have changed, and our families have celebrated more Halloweens than we can count. This week, I blended the best of the season, pumpkin, and lassi, a delicious Indian drink. It was always a treat when my Mom made lassis as a kid. Lassi is a yogurt-based drink from India. It's like a milkshake and delicious. Sweet lassis have sugar. A salty lassi has just a touch of salt. Mango lassis typically use mango pulp or fresh mango. Each is great to enjoy depending on what you are looking for.

Just like in baking, all pumpkins are not equal. You want to use a sugar or pie pumpkin for the recipe. Or you can easily use pumpkin puree. I love it because it's kind of like summer and fall in a glass. I like using cane sugar as the sweetener, but brown sugar or jaggery can add a hint of depth.

So as you celebrate Halloween this year, enjoy a cool sweet lassi.

Pumpkin Lassi

It's like summer and fall in a glass. A blend of yogurt, pumpkin and a few spices makes a refreshing drink or dessert. You can easily substitute almond or soy milk to make it vegan.

Serves 3

• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree or roasted pumpkin
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup ice
• 1/2 cup yogurt
• 2-3 tablespoons jaggery (or brown sugar or honey)
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cardamon (ground)
• 1/8 teaspoon clove (ground)

1. In a blender, add the pumpkin puree, milk, ice, yogurt, brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamon and clove.

2. Blend until smooth and creamy. Add more or less sugar depending on how sweet you'd like it.

3. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or cinnamon.

You can easily make your own pumpkin puree.

Cut a sugar or pie pumpkin into 2 inch pieces and roast on a roasting sheet at 425 degrees for 30 - 40 minutes until soft.