Expats cook up scary treats for Halloween(2)

A spread of Halloween-themed food made by expat school teacher Pamela McManus. Photo: Li Hao/GT

"You can't do it in Beijing because it's not part of the culture," said Henderson. "You get people saying, 'What are you doing? Why are you trying to get into my house?' Parents won't let children go to strangers' houses. It's dangerous."

McManus said that it was only when they moved to Shunyi district that they noticed people trick-or-treating.

"Before we moved to this compound three years ago, we lived in Park Avenue, an apartment building in Chaoyang district. We didn't have anyone coming to trick-or-treat," she said. "But in this compound, it's easier to tell. Houses are separated, so if the house has decorations, I would let [my son] go, even if I didn't know the owner."

Chinese Halloween

Henderson said that in Beijing, Halloween was about dressing up in costume and having a good time.

"For [Chinese people], it's not a cultural thing, but [an occasion to celebrate]," he said, adding that he and his friends would be attending a Halloween party in 798 Art Zone after their scary feast.

Paul Garcia, a 25-year-old journalist originally from the Philippines, found a novel way to integrate the multicultural element of celebrating Halloween in Beijing.

Rather than abiding by tradition, he will be hosting an international-themed Halloween banquet at his home.

"Halloween parties here are big and they are crazy. I'm also surprised how people really prepare for this, how people are really willing to spend for the party," he said.

Garcia has invited around 20 friends from the US, the UK and Australia to prepare spooky-looking food that is inspired by dishes from their home countries.

"We tasked ourselves to prepare something at home and to surprise each other, so we'll see how we view Halloween from our own respective countries," he said. "It's a challenge for us in terms of preparation, because a lot of us do not cook!"

Scary recipes for Halloween

Spooky mouth

Ingredients: Apples, peanut butter, white marshmallows

Slice an apple into equal portions. Separate the slices into groups of two, then spread peanut butter between the grouped slices, as you would with a sandwich.

Cut white marshmallows into "teeth" shapes and stick them to the peanut butter, so they look like fangs.

Witches' fingers

Ingredients: Frankfurters, almonds, ketchup

Use a knife to cut three little lines on a frankfurter, to represent the joints on a person's finger. Place it into boiling water and cook until it floats.

Drain the water out and put the hot dog onto the plate. Push a slice of almond into the end of the frankfurter for the "fingernail." Add ketchup for "blood."

Jack-o'-lanterns

Ingredients: Oranges, chocolate ice cream, cinnamon sticks

Cut off tops of oranges. Gently hollow out pulp, leaving a thick shell. Hollow out pulp off tops also.

Cut jack-o'-lantern faces into each orange.

Pack chocolate ice cream into shells, making sure to avoid letting ice cream

come out of holes.

Cut a hole into the orange top. Set tops back on, over ice cream, and insert cinnamon stick "stem" through the hole. Place in freezer for at least three hours, or until serving time.