Ever since Bela Lugosi portrayed the prince of Transylvania in the 1931 Universal release "Dracula", the ghoulish vampire has become one of Hollywood’s most beloved ghouls.

Using a variety of Dracula movies and posters as backdrop, from the serious"Bram Stoker’s Dracula", to the lighthearted "Love at First Bite" and Mel Brooks’ "Dracula: Dead & Loving It", you can celebrate Halloween this season with a party menu centered around GARLIC, one designed to keep your guests vampire-safe but well satisfied.

The Stinking Rose Restaurant (www.thestinkingrose.com), with operations in Los Angeles and San Francisco, is the country’s premiere source of creative ideas for incorporating GARLIC into your menus.

Decorate your buffet table with GARLIC braids and whole BULBS of GARLIC accented by black and orange glitter. To get the party started, serve The Stinking Rose’s signature dish - "Bagna Calda" with bread or fresh vegetables, a blend of GARLIC cloves, extra virgin olive oil, butter and anchovy served piping hot in a bowl or skillet. A fondue with GARLIC, SWISS CHARD and Fontina cheese is another tasty appetizer, along with Roasted GARLIC POTATO ONION soup.

Set up a pasta bar offering some of The Stinking Rose’s favorite preparations: Angel Hair Pasta with olives, BASIL, roasted GARLIC and fresh TOMATOES; Black Linguine with fresh shellfish in TOMATO sauce; Black Linguine with clams in a GARLIC PARSLEY SHALLOT sauce; Ravioli with GARLIC basil Alfredo sauce; and Lasagna layered with wild MUSHROOMS, roasted EGGPLANT, GARLIC, PEPPERS, ONIONS, SWISS CHARD, mozzarella and TOMATO sauce.

Serve an assortment of entrees in bite-sized pieces for easy eating, including Forty Clove GARLIC chicken; Italian GARLIC Meat loaf; "Silence of the Lamb" Shank with FAVA BEANS; and Pork chops pan-roasted with GARLIC relish and caramelized APPLES.

GARLIC YUKON GOLD Mashed POTATOES, GARLIC French Fries, Steamed vegetables with olive oil and GARLIC and roasted GARLIC bulbs are satisfying side dishes.

And for dessert – gift each party guest with a tin of breath mints, of course!

New crop GALA APPLES are among the best fruit values this week, perfect for adding to lunch boxes or for dipping in caramel as a Halloween treat. HONEY CRISP, RED DELICIOUS and GRANNY SMITH are additional varieties now in good supply.

California STRAWBERRIES continue steady in supply at very reasonable prices. RASPBERRIES are another good BERRY value, perfect for topping breakfast oatmeal or granola.

HASS AVOCADOS are plentiful, with prices reflecting good volume.

Excellent value continues on California-grown BARTLETT PEARS.

NAVEL ORANGES and MINNEOLA TANGELOS are among the best bets in the CITRUS FRUIT category. Bake your own ORANGE-CRANBERRY bread to use for turkey sandwiches. RUBY RED GRAPEFRUIT are also plentiful at economical prices. Squeeze and serve over crushed ice for a quick pick-me-up.

California vineyards are producing steady volume on GREEN, RED and BLACK SEEDLESS GRAPES.

BANANAS are an economical value this week. Sauté in butter, add chopped NUTS and pour over bread pudding.

ASIAN PEARS are decreasing in price as volume improves. Serve this sweet and crispy fruit sliced as an after-school snack.

Look for the availability of NUTS in the shell to increase as holiday baking season gets underway, with WALNUTS, ALMONDS, PISTACHIOS and HAZELNUTS among the many choices.

ROMA TOMATOES continue to be economically priced.

HONEYDEW and CANTALOUPE MELON are in steady supply at moderate prices.

HARD SHELL SQUASH is in plentiful supply at very reasonable prices, making this versatile vegetable one of the week’s best values. Choose from DELICATA, ACORN, BUTTERNUT, SPAGHETTI and KABOCHA. Roast slices and serve with honey-PECAN butter and a dash of maple syrup. PUMPKINS are in peak supply, but the best shapes and sizes sell out early. Good values continue on MINIATURE PUMPKINS, perfect for microwaving or for coring and using as individual salad or soup dishes.

RUSSET POTATOES are an excellent value. They make a great one-dish meal baked or microwaved, then stuffed with chili topped with AVOCADO slices.

As ASPARAGUS volume improves from off-shore sources, prices are decreasing. Steam and serve with LEMON butter or seasoned with chopped SHALLOTS.

ROMAINE LETTUCE and GREEN CABBAGE are two of the best salad offerings this week. Salad toppings in steady supply include CUCUMBERS, CARROTS, POMEGRANATE SEEDS, MUSHROOMS, CELERY, RADISHES, GREEN ONIONS and SPROUTS.

Both cut and potted HERBS offer ROSEMARY, BASIL, SAGE, THYME and CHIVES for seasoning roasted meats.

BROCCOLI, CAULIFLOWER, ZUCCHINI and WHITE CORN are among the best values in side-dish vegetables this week.

ANAHEIM CHILI PEPPERS and RED BELL PEPPERS are both in plentiful supply.

MUMS and AZALEAS are the best values in potted blooming plants this week. GERBERA DAISIES, STARGAZER LILIES, ROSES, SUNFLOWERS and CARNATIONS make gorgeous cut bouquets. 

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