Pumpkin bread is a slice of comfort from hair-raising performer Harry ‘Ratman’ Lewetzow
Harry “Ratman” Lewetzow of Kansas City likes to scare up sweet treats for his family: wife Tuesday, four daughters and four grandchildren. He’s a haunted house performer, rat trainer and a maintenance foreman at haunted houses in Kansas City’s West Bottoms district.
Q: Your rats aren’t actually cooking with you in the kitchen, like in the movie “Ratatouille,” are they?
A: No, but the rats eat well, because I feed them the scraps from the fresh vegetables I prepare. They’re not running around in my kitchen, and I train a new group of rats every year to spend hours in my jacket pockets when I’m performing as Ratman. The rats are tame and get adopted out after the season as pets to schools or families.
Q: Why did you choose this recipe?
A: This pumpkin bread recipe is the best because it is moist and to me, it is just a taste of fall. This might seem like a big recipe, but these loaves just disappear. Sometimes I will bake two loaves and fry the rest of the batter as pancakes. Pumpkin pancakes are a good way to start the day.
Q: Are you as fearless in the kitchen as you are in character?
A: A lot of the cooking I do uses older cookbooks from my mother’s era and earlier. I grew up in Kansas City, Kan., as the youngest of five kids, and I remember going to my Grandma Lubow’s house, where she would have the best sit-down dinners.
Those are the kinds of meals I like to make: meat-and-potato dinners with ham, gumbo, chicken and dumplings. When it’s the haunted house season, there’s nothing like coming home to an oven that’s been warming a stew all night in the Dutch oven.
Q: Has Halloween always been your favorite season?
A: I think it is the best holiday. Not just because people dress up and are openly creative, but there’s also something about this time of the year in Kansas City. The fall is usually a welcome relief after a hot summer, and I just enjoy being on the streets entertaining crowds as Ratman, which I’ve done since 1990.
Ever since I was growing up and helping with 4-H haunted houses, I’ve always enjoyed tapping into people’s primal fears. But Halloween isn’t just about the drama, it’s also about the fun. I don’t think you’re ever too old to put on a costume and enjoy Halloween.
Mary G. Pepitone is a freelance writer who lives in Leawood. Email her at pepi@kc.rr.com to nominate a cook.
Haunted houses
West Bottoms haunted houses will be open Thursday through Sunday and Nov. 6-7. Kansas City haunted houses include the Beast (1401 W. 13th St.), the Edge of Hell (1300 W. 12th St.) and Macabre Cinema (1222 W. 12th St.). Go to FullMoonProd.com for tickets.
Ratman’s Famous Pumpkin Bread
Makes 3 loaves, with 27 (1-inch) sliced servings
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 (29-ounce) can pumpkin
2/3 cup water
3 cups sugar
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup canola oil
Spray 3, 9-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray and dust with flour. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg together in a large bowl. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk pumpkin, water, sugar, eggs and canola oil together until well incorporated. Add sifted dry ingredients to wet ingredients and, using a wooden spoon, stir until ingredients are just combined. Turn out batter evenly into 3 prepared loaf pans. Bake for about 60 minutes, or until bread tests done with a cake tester. Allow loaf to cool 10 minutes before removing from pan.
Let loaf cool completely before storing it by tightly wrapping in plastic wrap or resealable plastic bag.
Per slice: 238 calories (34 percent from fat), 9 grams total fat (1 gram saturated), 31 milligrams cholesterol, 37 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 242 milligrams sodium, 1 gram dietary fiber.
This story was originally published October 27, 2015 at 3:00 AM with the headline "Pumpkin bread is a slice of comfort from hair-raising performer Harry ‘Ratman’ Lewetzow."