Spooky Treats
Mini Cupcake Fright Bites Decorate regular-size cupcakes with larger gumdrops and marshmallows. Yields: about 90 mini cupcakes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line mini muffin tins with paper liners. Prepare cake mix according to package directions to make mini cupcakes. Cool in pan on wire rack. Divide frosting evenly between two medium bowls. To one of the bowls, add 6 drops red
food coloring and 6 drops yellow food coloring. Stir to make orange frosting. Frost some
of the cupcakes with the orange frosting and some with the white frosting, reserving at
least 1/4 cup of the white frosting. To make cat decoration: Slice a gumdrop horizontally into 3 pieces. Cut ears from the middle piece. Use the bottom piece for the body, the top piece for the head, and a licorice piece for the tail. To make spider decoration: Use a slice of gumdrop for the body, a chocolate chip for the head, and 8 pieces of licorice for the legs. To make ghost decoration: "Glue" 2 marshmallows together with white frosting and place on top of cupcake. Cover with more frosting and add 2 bits of licorice for the eyes.
Peanut Butter Creepy Crawlies See what other crawling critters your kids can come up with! Yields: about 36 cookies
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat sugar, butter, and peanut butter until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. With mixer on lowest speed, gradually add the flour mixture and mix until blended. Shape dough into 2 logs. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. To make snakes: Break off a piece of dough and roll into a ball about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Then roll into a snake about 5 inches long, making the head end slightly larger than the tail. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Use the tines of a fork to press markings along the snake. Use a small piece of pretzel for the tongue and chocolate chips for the eyes. Decorate body with sprinkles, if desired. To make beetles: Roll a piece of dough into a ball about 1 inch in diameter and flatten slightly. Place 2 pretzels on work surface, pointed ends touching. Place dough on top and press into pretzels. Use a smaller ball of dough to form the head and pieces of pretzel to make antennae. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and make ridges with a fork. Use chocolate chips for the eyes. Bake snakes 8 to 10 minutes and beetles 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.
Cheesy Deviled Egg Mice Here's a clever twist on deviled eggs. My two-year-old loves them. Yields: 12 mice
Peel eggs and slice in half lengthwise. Scoop out yolks and place in a medium bowl. Add cheddar cheese, cream cheese, mayonnaise, and salt. Mash with a fork to blend. Spoon the yolk mixture into the whites and level off with the back side of a knife. Set aside remaining yolk mixture. Place the egg halves on a work surface, yolk side down. Cut small slits in the whites and insert radish slices for ears. With a toothpick, poke holes for eyes and noses. Insert currants for eyes and little pieces of radish for noses. Place the mice on a bed of sprouts. Use string cheese for the tails. Mold remaining yolk mixture into little "cheese balls."
Wormy Pudding Cups These miniature pudding pies are squeamishly fun to make and eat! Yields: 12 pudding cups
Prepare pudding according to package directions. Chill. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin, including the space between the cups, with shortening (do not use nonstick cooking spray; it will make the cups stick). Slice cookie dough into 12 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece into a 5-inch circle. Fit each circle into a muffin cup, using your fingers to fix any tears. Let the dough extend about 1/4 inch above the rim of the cup and make sure that the cookies do not touch each other. Bake 12 minutes or until edges are lightly golden and the cups have puffed up. Remove from oven and push down the center of each cup. Bake 2 more minutes or until golden. Let cool completely in the tin on a wire rack. Remove cups from the tin. Spoon 1/4 cup of the pudding into each cup. Sprinkle with cookie crumbs and top with worms. |
