Spooky celebration!
Kids in the kitchen is always great fun and helping you make these spooky seasonal treats will flex their creative muscle! These simple snacks are all really easy to make… though you might just want to monitor the kids when they’re wielding the black cake frosting!
Spooky spider cupcakes
These are fun to make though be prepared for black frosting to get everywhere! You can either make your own cupcakes from scratch or using commercial cake mix, or buy the cupcakes ready-made at your local in-store bakery…
Basic home-made cupcake mix
Makes 20+ cupcakes depending on size
Preheat stove to 375°F. In a bowl, combine 2½ cups flour, 2 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp salt. In a separate bowl, cream together 1½ cups sugar, 1 cup margarine, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 4 eggs. Fold mixture into dry ingredients and beat together, gradually adding 1 cup milk. Bake in a cupcake sheet or separate paper cases (you’ll need to remove the cakes for decorating) for 16-18 minutes and allow to cool before decorating. Bake commercial cake mix as per packet instructions.
You’ll need…
Black cake frosting (or buy vanilla and tint it black with food coloring), black food coloring or icing pen, M&M’s, licorice strips or Twizzlers, white cake sprinkles.
What to do…- If you’re not using black frosting, add a few drops of black food coloring to the vanilla frosting and get your child to mix it all up (make sure her sleeves are rolled up out of the way as it’ll be pretty messy!).
- Turn the cupcakes upside down and cover with frosting.
- Position M&Ms to form the spider’s eyes and use the black food coloring/icing pen to draw on the pupils.
- Gently place two white cake sprinkles where you want your spooky spider’s teeth to be (we found it easiest to do this using tweezers so as not to smudge the sprinkles with frosting).
- The finishing touch: use the licorice strips or Twizzlers to make the spider’s legs.
Creepy cookies
Again, make your cookie dough from scratch or save time by using ready-mixed refrigerated dough – you can even get dough pre-cut into Halloween shapes.
Basic home-made cookie mix
Makes around 24 large cookies
Preheat stove to 350°F. In a bowl, mix together 2 cups flour and 2 tsp baking powder. In a separate bowl, cream together ½ cup margarine, 1 cup sugar, 1 egg, ¼ cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Fold mixture into dry ingredients to form a soft dough. Knead, then wrap in greaseproof paper and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Roll out the dough, use cutters to form cookie shapes, and bake for 8-10 minutes until pale golden brown. Bake ready-made cookie dough as per packet instructions.
You’ll need…
Confectioners’ sugar, black and orange food coloring, black icing pen, cupcake sprinkles, bat, ghost and pumpkin-shaped cookie cutters.
What to do…
Beastly bats
- Mix confectioners’ sugar into icing as per packet instructions and add a drop of black food coloring.
- Lightly cover bat-shaped cookies and position two red sprinkles for the bat’s eyes and two white sprinkles for teeth (again, it’s easier to position the sprinkles using tweezers).
Ghastly ghosts
- Lightly cover ghost-shaped cookies with plain white icing.
- Use food coloring pen to draw on its eyes and mouth – these don’t have to be perfect: in fact, blotchy looks creepier!
Jack o’ lanterns
- Add a few drops of orange food coloring to icing and lightly cover pumpkin-shaped cookies.
- Use colored sprinkles for the eyes and mouths (you could also use M&Ms or differently shaped cake decorations).
Evil eyes
These bloodshot zombie ‘eyeballs’ come in savory and sweet versions.
You’ll need…
Individual semisoft cheese circles, such as Mini Babybels, mashed avocado, chopped or sliced olives, marshmallows, confectioners’ sugar, food coloring, M&Ms, red and black food coloring or icing pens.
What to do…
Savory evil eyes
- Use the red food coloring pen to trace red ‘bloodshot’ veins on the cheese.
- Add a blob of avocado to form the iris and the chopped or sliced olive to make the pupils.
Sweet evil eyes
- Again, trace on the bloodshot veins, then add a blob of colored icing with an M&M on top.
- Dab on a crazed pupil with the black food coloring pen!
Phantom fingers
Very effective looking with their green ‘fingernails’!
You’ll need…
String cheese, soft cream cheese, sliced green peppers.
What to do…- Cut each string cheese in half to form two ‘fingers’.
- Use a knife to carefully cut out three creases for the knuckle and scoop out a ‘nail’ shaped piece at the top of the finger.
- Blob some cream cheese into the nail shape and stick on a piece of green pepper.
Marshmallow monsters
Just about the easiest Halloween party snack you can make and kids love them!
You’ll need…
Plain white marshmallows, black food coloring or icing pen, flat toothpicks or popsicle sticks.
What to do…- Insert a flat toothpick or popsicle stick into each marshmallow.
- Use the black food coloring pen to draw on the monster’s eyes and mouth – we made ghosties but you could use a range of different color icing pens to add teeth, scars and scary eyes!
Fiendish fangs
At least you’ll know there is some fruit in the mix with these…
You’ll need…
Apples, red food coloring pen, strawberry jelly or jam.
What to do…- Slice the apple and cut the slices into pointed triangle shapes.
- Use the red food coloring pen to decorate the fangs with bloody streaks!
- Serve with jam or jelly ‘bloody’ dip.