Adam's Ribs. Ingredients:

Transcription

1 Adam's Ribs Rub: 1/3 c. dark brown sugar 2 Tbs. ground ginger 1 Tbs. dried thyme, crushed 1 Tbs. garlic salt 1/2 tsp. ground allspice 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper 2 racks pork spareribs (4-1/2 to 5 pounds each) Glaze: 1 1/2 c. chopped onion 1/2 c. cider vinegar 1/3 c. packed dark brown sugar Juice and zest of 1 orange 4 cloves garlic, chopped 1 Tbs. ground ginger 2 tsp. dried thyme, crushed 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper 1/8 tsp. ground allspice In small bowl stir together all ingredients for dry rub. Divide mixture in half. Pat half onto top side of one rack of ribs; repeat with other half for remaining rack. Preheat broiler. Broil ribs 4 to 5 inches from heat for 2 to 4 minutes per side or until browned. Reduce oven temperature to 275 degrees. Place ribs on two racks set over two roasting pans. Fill pans half way up sides with water. Bake, switching pans from top to bottom midway and refilling with water as needed, approximately 3-1/2 hours or until very, very tender. For Glaze: Combine all ingredients in medium saucepan. Bring to a boiling; reduce heat to low. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until slightly thickened. During last 20 minutes of roasting time for ribs, brush glaze liberally over ribs. To serve, cut between bones to almost separate -- then arrange both racks on very large cutting board with ribs slightly pulled apart. Place heart-shaped sweet pepper in between the two racks of ribs and drive a carving knife through for dramatic effect and your guests' dining convenience. Makes roughly 32 ribs, some quite large, some quite small (6 to 8 servings). Page 1 of 106

2 Almond Sugar Cookie Cut-Outs 1 c. butter (softened) 1 tsp. vanilla extract 1 1/2 c. powdered sugar 2 1/2 c. flour 1 egg 1 tsp. cream of tartar 1/2 tsp. almond extract 1 tsp. baking soda Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then add the egg, vanilla extract and almond extract flavorings. Combine the dry ingredients in separate bowl. Next, add the dry to the butter/sugar mixture. Mix with a mixer on medium speed. Chill the dough for 2-3 hours or overnight, or "quick chill" in the freezer until very firm, for about minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Separate the dough into fourths and roll each section until it is about 1/8-1/4 inch thickness and using a 2 1/2 inch ghost-shaped cookie cutter, cut into desired shape. Bake at 375 degrees for 7-9 minutes or until the edges just begin to brown. Ornamental Frosting 16 oz. powdered sugar 3 Tbs. meringue powder 1/3 c. of warm water Combine all the ingredients and mix at medium speed until smooth. Spread the frosting on each cutout. For spreading consistency, thin icing by adding Tbs. of warm water. Please note - it doesn t take more than one or two Tbs. to thin the icing. Ghost Eyes Use a tube of chocolate cake decorator frosting, or small dabs of chocolate frosting on a knife point, to make the ghost eyes. Page 2 of 106

3 Apple Pumpkin Dessert 1 (21 oz.) can apple pie filling 1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin 1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand milk 2 eggs 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg 1/2 tsp. salt 1 c. gingersnap crumbs (about 18 cookies) 2 Tbs. butter or margarine, melted Preheat oven to 400. Spoon equal portions of apple filling into 8 to 10 lightly greased custard cups. In large bowl, combine pumpkin, Eagle Brand, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; mix well. Spoon equal portions over apple filling. Combine crumbs and butter. Sprinkle over pumpkin filling. Place cups on 15x10 baking pan. Bake 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 ; bake 15 minutes longer or until set. Cool. Serve warm. Store leftovers covered in refrigerator. Page 3 of 106

4 Bag Of Tricks. Prepare your favorite cookie dough or purchase ready-made cookie dough and prepare your favorite Buttercream Icing. Using assorted Halloween Cookie Cutters or make your own cookie cutter template, cut, bake and cool bag cookies. Frost the bag area smooth in orange icing. Using a Tip 5, outline the bag handle in black icing. (Variation: Use black licorice for the handle). Using Tip 1, print a message in black frosting and outline spider web. Attach miniature candies and icing decoration (ghost or any other candy shape) with icing to act as edible glue. Page 4 of 106

5 Bloody Eyeballs Boil cherry tomatoes 30 seconds. Allow to cool; then peel skin. Page 5 of 106

6 Bloody Popcorn Add red food color to melted butter and pour over popcorn. Page 6 of 106

7 Blue Slime Sipper 1 6-oz. pkg. blueberry-flavored gelatin 3 c. lemonade, chilled 3 c. lemon-lime carbonated beverage, chilled 2 c. boiling water 4 c. cold water Page 7 of 106

8 Boilin' Cauldron Cupcakes Cake batter Frosting Candy confetti sprinkles Ghost candy Mini pretzels Gel colors Prepare your favorite cake batter and pour two-thirds into each area of a muffin pan. Frost with your favorite Buttercream Icing. You'll need colored candy confetti sprinkles in orange, black and yellow, a ghost candy (Wilton) (can make it from Fondant) and mini pretzel sticks. Ice cupcake smooth in green and using a Tip 10, pipe around the edge in black frosting. Tint frosting or use colored gels in Leaf Green/Lemon Yellow combination. Stir into the frosting mini marshmallows until they are well coated. Spoon marshmallows on cupcake tops. Sprinkle with colored candy confetti and insert a mini pretzel stick and position ghost candy. Page 8 of 106

9 Boo-dacious Treats 1 bag Twix 1 bag M&M'S 3/4 c. peanut butter 1/3 c. confectioner's sugar 1 16-oz. container vanilla frosting 1 pkg. graham crackers (10 cracker) Ground chocolate cookies In a food processor or blender, pulse 10 graham crackers and 1 bag Twix until fine. Remove the mixture and put it in a bowl. Add the peanut butter and confectioner's sugar to the bowl and blend together. Divide the mixture into 16 pieces. Shape each piece into a ghost. If too sticky, add extra confectioner s sugar as necessary. Place the ghosts onto the wax paper and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Heat the frosting in the microwave for approximately seconds, until thinned and looking slightly like whipped cream. Place the ghosts on a wire rack over a sheet pan lined with waxed paper. Spoon the heated frosting over the ghosts until completely coated. If the unused frosting begins firming up, simply reheat it for 5 to 10 seconds. Place 2 M&M'S Minis on each ghost for the eyes. Sprinkle the ground chocolate cookies on a plate like it is "dirt". Nestle the ghosts in the "dirt". Page 9 of 106

10 Boogers on a Stick 8 oz. jar Cheez whiz 3 or 4 drops green food coloring 3 dz. pretzel sticks Melt Cheez Whiz in the microwave according to jar directions. Allow the cheese to cool slightly in the jar. Carefully stir in food coloring using just enough to turn the cheese a pale, snot green. To form boogers: Dip and twist the tip of each pretzel stick into the cheese, lift out, wait twenty seconds, then dip again. When cheese lumps reach a boogerish size, set boogered pretzels on wax paper to cool. Page 10 of 106

11 Boo-Nilla Shake 1 c. whole milk 2 pints vanilla ice cream 1 c. heavy cream 1 Tbs. confectioners sugar. For 12 faces, place 1/3 c. (2 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl; microwave on high until melted, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes; stir. Using a small brush, paint chocolate inside glasses (if it hardens too soon, microwave 20 seconds more). Let set a few minutes before adding shake. Prepare glasses up to a day ahead, but don t fill until ready to serve. Blend milk and 1 pint ice cream in a blender until smooth. With machine running, add remaining pint ice cream, 1 scoop at a time; blend until smooth. Pour milkshake into six 8-oz. glasses decorated with chocolate faces, filling them 3/4 full. Put cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Add confectioners sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Transfer whipped cream to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain round tip. Pipe spiral mounds of whipped cream on top of milkshakes. Serve immediately. Page 11 of 106

12 Bride Says "I Boo!". Prepare your favorite cookie. Tint dough in combination Leaf Green and Lemon Yellow. Cut, bake and cool cookies using tombstone cutter from Halloween set (Wilton). Cut, bake and cool cookies using ghost cutter from set. Place cookies on cooling rack over a drip pan. Thin your favorite Royal Icing recipe and pour over cookie; let cookies dry overnight on waxed paper. The next day, decorate cookies on waxed paper with Royal Icing. Using a Tip5, decorate face area using a combination of leaf green and lemon yellow; pat smooth with finger dipped in cornstarch. Using Tip 2, pipe mouth in black and dot eyes in white; add Tip1 and add "pull-out" lashes and dot pupils in black. Tint a portion of Royal Icing gray by using black color. Pipe Tip 2 zigzag hair, alternating rows of gray and white. Pipe Tip 4 dot hands and fingers in leaf green/lemon yellow combination. Let dry overnight on waxed paper. Page 12 of 106

13 Candy Corn 1 c. sugar 2/3 c. white corn syrup 1/3 c. butter 1 tsp. vanilla 2 1/2 c. powdered sugar 1/4 tsp. salt 1/3 c. powdered milk Food coloring (optional) Combine sugar, butter, and corn syrup in pan and bring to a boil stirring constantly. Turn heat low and boil 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Remove from heat and add vanilla. In a separate dish, combine powdered sugar, salt, and powdered milk. Add all at once to the mixture in the pan. Add food coloring if desired. Stir until cool enough to handle. Shape. Page 13 of 106

14 Caramel Apples 6 medium red apples 14 oz. caramels 2 Tbs. milk Wooden skewers Add the caramels and milk to a metal bowl placed over simmering water on the stove. Stir frequently until melted. Remove the stems from the apples and press a skewer into the top. Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper. Dip each apple into the caramel and coat evenly. Place on the waxed paper and allow to set until cooled. Makes 6 Page 14 of 106

15 Caramel Lady Apples 12 lady apples, washed and stemmed 2 c. hazelnuts, toasted, peeled, and chopped 1 c. sugar 1/4 c. dark corn syrup 1 c. heavy cream 2 Tbs. unsalted butter Insert a 5-inch dowel or ice pop stick into the top of each apple. Place hazelnuts in a small bowl. Place sugar, corn syrup, cream, and butter in a small saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Continue cooking until the temperature registers 245 on a candy thermometer, 10 to 12 minutes. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Remove saucepan from heat, and briefly plunge it into ice water to stop the cooking. Dip one apple into the caramel, coat the top and sides using a spoon, and roll the bottom in the nuts. Transfer to a serving platter. Repeat with the remaining apples. Page 15 of 106

16 Caramel Popcorn Balls 1/3 c. butter or margarine 1/2 c. corn syrup 1 c. brown sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 10 c. popped popcorn Melt the butter in a soup pot. Add corn syrup, brown sugar, and vanilla. Stir & bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Add popcorn & mix in. Put waxed paper on your countertop. Form popcorn balls and lay on wax paper to harden. Makes about a dozen balls. Page 16 of 106

17 Cheesy Goblin Head 2 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese 1 8-oz. pkg. shredded taco-flavored cheese 1/4 c. margarine or butter 2 Tbs. milk 2 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened Tortilla chips Pickled pepper Pimiento-stuffed olives Red pepper-stuffed olives Shredded beets Carrot sticks Assorted crackers Green sweet pepper Place 2 pkg. of cream cheese, taco-flavored cheese, and margarine in a mixing bowl. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Add milk to the cheese mixture in the mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula. Cover bowl and chill 4 to 24 hours. Form cheese mixture into a head shape and place on a serving plate. In a bowl, stir the remaining cream cheese until smooth. Spread head with softened cream cheese. Press in tortilla chips for ears. Using wooden toothpicks, attach a pickled whole pepper for nose, pimiento-stuffed olives for eyes, and pepper-stuffed olives for toes. Cut zigzag pieces of sweet pepper for eyebrows. Use shredded beets for hair and press in carrot sticks for teeth. Serve with assorted crackers. Page 17 of 106

18 Chicken "Fingers" with Romanian Romesco Dipping Sauce 4 c. flour 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper 1-1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2" x 3" strips 1 Tbs. olive oil 1 Tbs. unsalted butter Smoked Spanish or regular paprika Romesco Dipping Sauce: 2 large red sweet peppers, halved lengthwise, seeds and membranes removed, flattened 1 c. day old crusty bread, cubed 3/4 c. chopped fresh tomato 1/3 c. sliced natural almonds, toasted 3 Tbs. sherry vinegar 3 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 tsp. smoked Spanish or regular paprika 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper 1/4 c. olive oil Prepare sauce; cover and chill. For Chicken Fingers: In large bowl combine flour, 1 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Coat chicken strips in flour. Heat 1 Tbs. oil and butter in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add chicken strips, one-third at a time, browning well on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes per batch. Dip the end of each chicken strip in ground paprika. Serve with Romesco Dipping Sauce. Romesco Dipping Sauce: For sauce, preheat broiler Place peppers on a broiler pan. Broil peppers, 4 to 5 inches from the heat, until skins are blacked, turning once. Remove, stack pieces together, cover with aluminum foil and let stand 15 minutes. Peel off skins; discard skins. In blender combine peppers, bread, tomato, almonds, vinegar, garlic, paprika, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Cover and blend. Add 1/4 c. olive oil in steady stream through the top of blender until mixture is almost smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl or storage container. Cover and chill until serving time. Tip: You can prepare the sauce ahead of time. Cover and chill up to 3 days. Page 18 of 106

19 Chocolate Spiders Chocolate. Print out (or make your own) pattern for the spider. Place the patterns under waxed paper. With a toothpick, poke a hole in one bottom corner of a plastic bag. Melt dipping chocolate in the plastic bag. Pipe out lines on waxed paper over patterns. Make legs first, then fill in the body. Allow to cool and harden. Page 19 of 106

20 Cobweb Cookies 3/4 c. flour 1/2 c. sugar 1/4 c. vegetable oil 1/4 c. milk 1/2 tsp. vanilla 2 eggs Powdered sugar Beat all ingredients except powdered sugar with mixer until smooth. Pour batter into plastic squeeze bottle with narrow opening. Heat skillet over medium heat until hot; grease lightly. Squeeze batter to form 4 straight, thin lines that intersect at a common center point to form a star shape. To form cobweb, squeeze thin streams of batter to connect lines. Cook 30 to 60 seconds or until bottom is golden brown; turn. Cook until golden brown; remove from skillet. Cool on wire rack. Heat oven to 325º. Bake cookies on ungreased cookie sheet 5 to 7 minutes or until almost crisp (cookies will become crisp as they cool). Remove from cookie sheet; cool. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Page 20 of 106

21 Colored Popcorn Balls 12 c. popped popcorn 1.5 oz. flavored Jell-O 1/2 c. sugar 1/2 c. light corn syrup Put gelatin, sugar & syrup into a pot. Heat & stir to dissolve. Bring to a rolling boil. Pour over popcorn in a large bowl (you can lightly salt popcorn first if you like). Stir until all popcorn is coated. Form into balls with lightly buttered hands (I spray with Pam!). Makes about a dozen popcorn balls. Use whatever color suits the occasion. For Halloween use orange Jell-O. You can put `faces' on your popcorn balls with candy. For Christmas make a bowl full of red & green balls. For Easter use pastel colors. Page 21 of 106

22 Creature From the Black Bean Lagoon Dip 1 15 oz. can of black beans, undrained 1 tsp. ground cumin 1 tsp. chili powder 1/4 tsp. oregano 1/4 tsp. garlic powder 1 c. tomato, chopped 1 c. red bell pepper, finely chopped Reserving 2 Tbs. of the liquid from the can, rinse and drain beans. Place in blender, and add 2 Tbs. reserved liquid, cumin, chili powder, oregano and garlic powder. Blend until beans are coarsely chopped. Spoon into saucepan and cook over low to medium heat for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add tomato and red pepper and cook an additional five minutes. Scoop this one up with tortilla chips. Page 22 of 106

23 Creepcakes. To decorate, use marshmallows and candy-coated chocolates for whites of eyes; jelly beans or gumdrops for peepers with an eerie glow. For pupils, paint on melted chocolate (microwave 1/2 c. chocolate chips for 1 minute). Or use candies whole: candy-coated chocolates will stick to marshmallows sliced to expose their stickiness; for our aliens' eyes, we pushed chocolate chips, tip down, into marshmallows, then made a hole in the other side with a toothpick and inserted a licorice lace. Cut gummy tape for an eyelid. Sandwiched between halved gumdrops, marshmallows form a toothy grin; snip irregular pieces for fangs. Bend licorice or gummy rings into grimaces, or cut taffy tape for a tongue or tentacles. Try these toppings: Marshmallows Licorice and jelly bean Gummy ring Taffy tape Gumdrops and marshmallows Marshmallows with licorice and mini Chocolate chips Jelly beans with melted chocolate Marshmallows and candy-coated chocolates or melted chocolate Marshmallows with candy-coated chocolate or gummy Tape and licorice drop Licorice with gumdrops or marshmallows Page 23 of 106

24 Day Old Bath Water 12 oz. can frozen lemonade 2 liters 7-Up 1/2 gallon rainbow sherbet Thaw sherbet for approximately 15 minutes and place in a plastic tub. Add lemonade (prepared according to directions) and 7-up. Sherbet will melt and turn mixture day old bathwater grayish-brown. Float a handful of green, yellow and white tiny after dinner mints (tiny bars of soap) on top of the scummy punch. Page 24 of 106

25 Deviled Eyeballs Make deviled eggs. Add a green olive with pimento in the center for an "eyeball". Page 25 of 106

26 Dog Food Dip 2 lbs. lean ground beef 1 onion, chopped 1 (10.75 oz.) can condensed cream of mushroom soup 1 lb. processed cheese food, cubed 1 (12 oz.) jar sliced jalapeno peppers, drained Clean, new dog food dish Place lean ground beef and onion in a large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Cook until beef is evenly brown and onion is soft. Drain and turn heat to medium low. Pour in condensed cream of mushroom soup. Mix in processed cheese food and desired amount of jalapeno peppers. Cook and stir until all ingredients are well blended, about 10 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Cover and chill in the refrigerator 8 hours, or overnight. Reheat the mixture in a slow cooker, mixing in about 1 Tbs. of water to thin if necessary, before serving. Mound mixture into clean dog food dish. Page 26 of 106

27 Dracula Cupcakes. Prepare, bake and cool your favorite cupcakes. Using your favorite Chocolate Buttercream Icing, ice cupcake smooth in green with spatula. Pipe Tip 16 pull-out star hair in black, working from outer edge to center of cupcake. Add Tip3 dot eyes and string mouth in black. Pipe Tip3 pull-out dot fangs in white. Page 27 of 106

28 Ear Wax Wieners on Q-Tips 8 Tbs. margarine, melted 24 cocktail franks 1/2 c. mustard 1/2 c. mayonnaise 24 sturdy toothpicks 24 small cotton balls Melt the margarine in a small pan over low heat. Place the franks on a broiling pan and brush them with the melted butter. Broil the franks until they are evenly browned (turn 2 or 3 times). Combine the mustard and mayo in a small bowl and set aside-- this will be the ear wax. Stick each frank on a tooth pick. Wet the cotton balls slightly in order to compact them and stick one on the other end of the tooth pick-- this is your Q-tip. Place the small bowl of ear wax in the middle of a platter and arrange the franks on Q-tips around the bowl. Dip franks in ear wax to eat. Page 28 of 106

29 Eat-'em-up Ghosts 1 10-oz. bag of marshmallows 1/4 c. margarine or butter 6 c. crisp rice cereal 12 oz. vanilla-flavored candy coating, melted Black licorice candy Chocolate sprinkles Miniature semisweet chocolate pieces In a large pot, combine marshmallows and margarine. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until mixture is melted. Gradually stir in cereal until well combined. Use 1/2 to 1 cup of the cereal mixture per ghost to form into ghost shapes. Set aside to cool completely. Dip each ghost shape into melted candy coating. Use pieces of licorice, chocolate sprinkles, and/or chocolate pieces for the eyes, nose, eyebrows, and mouth. Page 29 of 106

30 Edible Slime Pour lime gelatin into a glass bowl. After it is partially set, add gummy worms. Chill until lightly set. Then serve slopped all over the plate. Page 30 of 106

31 Eye-Popping Soup A bowl of hot tomato soup will leave you cold if it stares back. To make "eyeballs," scoop the centers from mini mozzarella balls, and fill them with sliced pimiento-stuffed olives. For the bug crawling along the edge of the bowl, use a toothpick to prick holes in a pitted Kalamata olive; then stick in rosemary sprigs for legs and snipped chives for antennae. Page 31 of 106

32 Fake Blood 5 Tbs. corn starch 2/3 c. corn syrup 1/3 c. water 4 tsp. red food coloring A couple of drops green food coloring Mix the corn starch with the water, make sure it is totally mixed, then add the corn syrup, again make sure it is mixed well. Add red food coloring into the mixture, then add a couple drops of green food coloring to take the "pink" edge off the red coloring. Page 32 of 106

33 Fall Leaf Cookies Chocolate Tuile Batter 1 c. flour 3 Tbs. Dutch-process cocoa powder 1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature 2/3 c. confectioners sugar 4 large egg whites, at room temperature White Tuile Batter 1 c. flour 1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature 2/3 c. confectioners sugar 4 large egg whites, at room temperature Chocolate Tuile Batter: Sift flour with cocoa, and set aside. Beat butter and sugar on medium until well-combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg whites, one at a time, beating for 4 minutes after each addition. Add the flour-and-cocoa mixture, and mix until just combined. Reserve 1/2 c. batter; place in a pastry bag fitted with a #2 tip, and set aside for piping white tuile cookies. White Tuile Batter: Sift flour into a mixing bowl, and set aside. Beat butter and sugar on medium speed, until well-combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg whites, one at a time, beating for 4 minutes after each addition. Add the reserved flour, and mix until just combined. Reserve 1/2 c. batter; place in a pastry bag fitted with a #2 tip, and set aside for piping chocolate tuile cookies. Make chocolate and white tuile batters according to recipes. Preheat oven to 400. Trace a leaf onto a large, flexible plastic lid, such as one from a coffee can. Using scissors, cut lip from lid. With a utility knife, cut out the leaf shape to make a stencil. Place nonstick baking mat on top of a baking sheet, and place stencil on mat. Using a small offset spatula, spread a thin layer of chocolate batter over stencil; carefully lift up stencil. Repeat, making more leaves, spacing evenly on baking mat. Transfer 1/2 c. white batter into a pastry bag fitted with a #2 tip. Pipe white veins onto chocolate leaves. Bake 4 minutes. Using spatula, drape leaves over rolling pin to cool. Repeat process to make 50 cookies, reserving 1/2 c. chocolate batter. Repeat step 2 with white batter, using reserved chocolate batter for piping. Page 33 of 106

34 Festive Frank. Make your favorite cookie dough or purchase from deli section at your grocery store. Turn tombstone cookie cutter (Wilton) upside down to decorate. Pipe in mouth with Tip 2 in black. Add Tip 4 ball eyes in white. Pipe Tip 3 ball nose and nostrils in Leaf Green/Lemon Yellow combination. Add Tip 3 hair in black. Pipe Tip 1 dot pupils in black. Add Tip 2 outline eyelids in green/yellow. Pipe Tip 1 zigzag scar in black. Tint a portion of icing gray using black color; build up neck bolts with tip 4. Add tip 1 teeth in white. Page 34 of 106

35 Frosty Pumpkin Pie 1 9 inch pie shell, baked 1 c. pumpkin puree 1/2 c. packed brown sugar 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp. ground ginger 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg 1 quart vanilla ice cream, softened Combine pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, and spices with a rotary beater. Blend in ice cream. Pour into pie shell; freeze until firm.serve frozen, garnished with whipped cream if desired. Page 35 of 106

36 Gelatin Eyeballs 1 (3 oz.) pkg. flavored gelatin, red in color 1 c. boiling water 1/2lb. red seedless grapes or green seedless grapes Prepare gelatin mix with only 1 c. boiling water (or fruit juice can be substituted). Omit additional water called for on pkg. Pour gelatin into ice cube trays. Allow to set until the consistency of egg whites. Insert 1/2 grape into each cube" to make a pupil. Allow to set completely and remove from ice cube trays. Page 36 of 106

37 Ghosts and Bones Meringue Cookies (Egg whites) 3 egg whites 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar 3/4 c. sugar 1 tsp. vanilla Print out (or make your own) pattern for the ghosts. Place the patterns under waxed paper on a cookie sheet. Heat oven to 225. In small mixer bowl, beat egg whites, vanilla and cream of tartar until foamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Spoon into decorating bag fitted with a large tip (Wilton's #7 tip works well). Pipe onto sheet as desired. Bake for minutes, until dry but not brown. Remove paper from cookie sheet and allow cookies to cool on the paper. Loosen from paper gently. Page 37 of 106

38 Ghoulish Goulash 4c. uncooked rotini pasta (12 oz.) 2lbs. lean ground beef 4 c. frozen whole kernel corn 2c. water 2small zucchini, sliced (2 c.) 2jars (15 1/2 oz. each) extra-thick-and-chunky sloppy joe sauce Cook and drain pasta as directed on package. While pasta is cooking, cook beef in Dutch oven over medium-high heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain. Stir in pasta and remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is crisp-tender. Page 38 of 106

39 Ghoulish Petits Fours White Sheet Cake: 1 c. plus 2 Tbs. unsalted butter, room temperature 4 1/2 c. sifted cake flour (not self-rising) 2 Tbs. baking powder 3/4 tsp. salt 1 1/2 c. milk 1 1/2 Tbs. pure vanilla extract 2 1/4 c. sugar 7 large egg whites Confectioners Sugar Icing: 1 1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature 3 lbs. confectioners sugar 3/4 tsp. salt 3 Tbs. pure vanilla extract 3/4 c. milk, plus more if needed Butter Glaze: 2 1/2 c. sifted confectioners sugar 1/2 c. unsalted butter 5 Tbs. milk Chocolate Glaze: 6 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate 1 c. heavy cream White Sheet Cake Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 12-by-17-by-1-inch rimmed baking sheet. Line bottom with parchment paper. Butter parchment, and dust with flour, tapping off any excess. Set sheet aside. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a measuring cup, combine milk and vanilla; set aside. Cream butter until very smooth. With mixer on medium speed, add sugar in a slow, steady stream; beat until mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add reserved flour mixture in three batches, alternating with reserved milk mixture, and starting and ending with flour. Mix until just combined; do not over mix. Set aside. In a clean bowl, beat egg whites until stiff but do not let dry peaks form. Fold one-third of the egg whites into batter to lighten, then gently fold in remaining whites in two batches. Scrape batter into prepared sheet; smooth top with an offset spatula. Bake in oven until cake is springy to the touch and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool 15 minutes. Loosen sides of cake with a small metal spatula or paring knife; invert onto a buttered wire rack. Peel off parchment. To prevent splitting, reinvert cake so top is facing up. Let cake cool completely. Page 39 of 106

40 Ghoulish Petits Fours Confectioners Sugar Icing: Beat together the butter and sugar until well combined. Add salt, vanilla, and milk; beat until icing is smooth and creamy. The icing should be thick enough to pipe and hold its shape. If icing seems too thick, add 1 Tbs. milk at a time until proper consistency is reached. Use immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container up to 2 days. If refrigerating, bring icing to room temperature before using, and lightly beat until creamy if necessary. Butter Glaze: Place sugar in a medium bowl, and set aside. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Immediately pour the melted butter into the bowl with the sugar. Add the milk, and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cover bowl, and store at room temperature until ready to use. Chocolate Glaze: 6 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate 1 c. heavy cream Chop the chocolate into small pieces, and place in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, heat cream over medium-high heat until just simmering, and pour it over the chocolate. Let mixture stand 5 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let stand at room temperature about 10 minutes before using. For witch hats, make petits fours through step two. Then create a brim using a dab of icing: Affix each petit four to a 2-to-2 1/2-inch chocolate wafer cookie. Proceed to step three, coating with chocolate glaze (recipe below) instead of butter glaze. In lieu of step four, wrap one or two pieces of licorice lace around the base of the hat immediately after glazing. White Sheet Cake (recipe below) Confectioners Sugar Icing (recipe below) Butter Glaze (recipe below) 8 oz. semisweet chocolate, for eyes and mouth Using a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter, cut out circles from cake. Brush off any crumbs with a pastry brush. Fit a pastry bag with a plastic coupler, and top cake rounds with icing in a ghost or hat shape, about 1 inch high. Place a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet; set aside. Set an iced cake round on a fork; hold over bowl of glaze. Using a large spoon, drizzle glaze evenly over cake and icing until completely covered. Transfer to wire rack. Repeat with remaining rounds. Let set, about 5 minutes. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water; stir chocolate until melted. Transfer to a disposable pastry bag or resealable plastic bag; snip off tip with scissors. Pipe eyes and a mouth onto ghosts. Page 40 of 106

41 Goblin Hand Freeze green Kool-Aid in a rubber or latex glove, float in punch. Page 41 of 106

42 Great Pumpkin Cake 1 Tbs. unsalted butter, plus 1 c. melted 3/4 c. cocoa powder, sifted, plus more for pans 2 c. granulated sugar 2 c. flour 2 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 2 large eggs 2 tsp. vanilla 1/2 c. canola oil 3/4 c. nonfat buttermilk 1 c. plus 1 Tbs. milk 3 oz. milk chocolate 3 oz. bittersweet chocolate 7 oz. heavy cream A few drops of orange liquid-paste food coloring 4 c. sifted confectioners' sugar Heat oven to 350. Generously butter the inside of two 8-inch Bundt pans; dust lightly with cocoa powder. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine granulated sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, and set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, vanilla, canola oil, buttermilk, and 3/4 c. milk. Slowly add egg mixture to sugar mixture. Using the paddle attachment, mix batter on low speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake cakes until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack, and cool for 20 minutes before removing from the pans. Place both chocolates, heavy cream, and 1 Tbs. butter in a medium heat-proof bowl over a pot of gently simmering water. Heat, stirring often, until chocolate is completely melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and let cool to room temperature. Whisk chocolate until lightened; set aside. Using a serrated knife, trim the bottoms of both cakes so they are both flat. Spread chocolate evenly on the flat side of one of the cakes. Invert the remaining cake onto chocolate so that a pumpkin shape is formed. Place cake onto a wire rack. To make orange butter glaze, combine remaining 1/4 c. plus 1 Tbs. of milk and the food coloring until the mixture is a pumpkin color; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar and 1 c. melted butter. Add reserved milk mixture, and continue whisking until smooth. Working quickly, carefully pour orange butter glaze over the cake, tilting the cake as necessary to coat all sides of the cake. Let glaze set completely before garnishing with chocolate leaves. Serve. Page 42 of 106

43 Green Swamp Punch with Frightful Frozen Hand Green Swamp Punch: 2 qts. lime sherbet 1 (2 oz.) can frozen lemonade concentrate 2 liters carbonated lemon-lime beverage, chilled 1 1/4 c. cold water Frightful Hand: Sugar-free lemonade-flavored drink mix, prepared Gummy worms (optional) Page 43 of 106

44 Gumdrop Pumpkins Orange slice-shaped jelly candies Small green gumdrops. To make pumpkins, trim the edges of two orange jelly candies to create straight sides. Push the two sticky sides together, forming a pumpkin shape. Cut a small piece from the bottom of a small green gumdrop. Press into the top of candy pumpkin. Page 44 of 106

45 Hairball Salad with Saliva Dressing 1 lg. ripe avocado 2 c. alfalfa sprouts 6 grated carrots Italian dressing Cut avocado in half and scoop out the pit. Scoop avocado out of the shell and put in the bowl. Add sprouts to the avocado meat. Mash with a fork. It is ok to leave some lumps. Set the mixture aside. Divide the grated carrots among the four salad bowls. Make walnut size hairballs from the avocado mixture and arrange them on top of the grated carrots. Pour Italian "saliva" dressing over hairballs and serve. Page 45 of 106

46 Halloween Crackers Paper-towel roll, cut in half Crepe paper in assorted colors Double-sided tape Scissors Plastic spider rings Assorted candies, such as jellybeans, sour balls, and candy corn Center a paper-towel roll at the top of an 11-by-9 1/2-inch piece of crepe paper, and attach with double-sided tape. Roll the paper around the paper-towel roll, and tape the edge of the paper. Gather the crepe paper on one end. Cut a piece of a plastic spider ring off, and loop it around the gathered paper to hold. Fill the roll with assorted candies, and gather the paper on the other end. Secure with spider ring. Page 46 of 106

47 Halloween Cupcakes. To make a cupcake cemetery, spread devil's-food cupcakes with chocolate-ganache icing. Dip the top of each frosted cupcake in crushed chocolate wafers to create the look of dirt, then insert shortbread-cookie tombstones, piping them with scary messages like Boo! or R.I.P. in royal icing. Top more devil's-food cupcakes with chocolate ganache and chocolate-wafer dirt, make a hole in the center of each cupcake with your finger, and position half a Gummi worm to look like it's slithering out of the hole. Enlist your kids to draw scary Halloween figures, or copy Halloween images out of books. Cut the pictures out, tape them to cocktail straws (you can cut the straws shorter, if necessary), and insert them into cupcakes you've decorated with orange-tinted cream-cheese frosting. Decorate more devil's-food cupcakes with orange cream-cheese frosting, then spell out words or phrases like Happy Halloween by forming one to three letters out of thin black licorice on top of each cupcake. Serve your cupcakes on a tray covered with candy corn. Page 47 of 106

48 Halloween Goodies 1 box Betty Crocker Supreme brownie mix (with chocolate syrup pouch) Water, vegetable oil and eggs called for in brownie mix directions 1 container white frosting Neon green, pink and blue food colors 24 large marshmallows Miniature candy-coated chocolate baking bits Black decorating gel 1 roll Betty Crocker Fruit Roll-Ups chewy fruit snack (any red variety) Gummy worms candies Heat oven to 350. Bake and cool brownies as directed. Cut into 24 brownies, 6 rows by 4 rows. Microwave frosting uncovered on High about 20 seconds or until frosting can be stirred smooth. Divide warm frosting among 3 small bowls, 1 for each color. Decorate as directed below, using 8 brownies for each. Franken-Brownies Add 5 drops green food color to frosting in 1 bowl; mix well. Top each of 8 brownies with 1 large marshmallow. Spoon 1 Tbs. green frosting over each marshmallow to coat. Decorate with green baking bits for eyes and ears. Use black gel for mouths and centers of eyes. Cut fruit snack to use for hair. Boo-Brownies Top each of 8 brownies with 1 large marshmallow. Spoon 1 Tbs. white frosting over each marshmallow to coat. Use black gel for eyes and mouths. Spider Brownies Add 5 drops pink food color and 3 drops blue food color to frosting in 1 bowl; mix well. Top each of 8 brownies with 1 large marshmallow. Tuck gummy worms candies under each marshmallow for legs. Spoon 1 Tbs. purple frosting over each marshmallow to coat. Use orange baking bits for eyes. Use black gel for mouths, centers of eyes and eyebrows. Page 48 of 106

49 Halloween Lollipops 2 c. sugar 2/3 c. light corn syrup 1/4 c. water 10 drops orange food coloring 8 drops pure orange oil 10 lollipop sticks Assorted candies, for decorating Line three baking sheets with Silpats (nonstick baking mats), or grease them generously with vegetable oil. Prepare an ice-water bath. Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan, and place over medium-high heat. Stir continuously to dissolve sugar. When the syrup comes to a boil, stop stirring and clip on a candy thermometer. Continue to cook, without stirring, until the mixture turns golden and reaches 300 to 310 (hard-crack stage) on the thermometer, 5 to 7 minutes. Occasionally wash the sides of the pan using a clean brush dipped in cold water to prevent crystals from forming. Remove the pot from the heat. Transfer the syrup to a 2-cup heatproof measuring cup. Using a heatproof rubber spatula, stir in the food coloring and orange oil until completely combined. Working quickly, pour ten 3-inch circles of syrup onto prepared baking sheets. Press in lollipop sticks. With your fingertips or a toothpick, lightly press candies into the syrup. Set aside until completely cooled and hardened. Page 49 of 106

50 Halloween Makeup 1 Tbs. Vaseline Tissue Cocoa powder 2-3 drops red food coloring Face Paint - Mix 1 tsp. corn starch, 1/2 tsp. water, 1/2 tsp. cold cream, food coloring all ingredients together in an old muffin pan and you are ready to paint. This amount makes one color. Fake Wound - Vaseline in a bowl. Add food coloring. Blend with a toothpick. Stir in a pinch of cocoa to make a darker blood color. Separate tissue. Using 1 layer, tear a 2x3 inch piece and place at wound site. Cover with petroleum jelly and mold into the shape of a wound. The center should be lower than the sides. Fill the center with the red petroleum jelly mixture. Sprinkle center with some cocoa. Sprinkle a little around the edges of the wound to make darker. Fake Blood - Mix 2/3 c. white corn syrup, 1 tsp. red food coloring, 2-3 drops blue food coloring to darken and 1 squirt dish soap (helps blood to run well). Abrasions - Dab brown, red and black eye shadow on area. Apply blood over area with cotton balls. Use comb to gently scratch area in one direction. Apply cocoa or dirt over wound with cotton balls. Black Eye - Apply red and blue eye shadow to depressions around eyes. Bruises - Rub red and blue shadow over bony area to simulate recent bruises. Blue and yellow eye shadow to create older bruises. Look Old - Cover face with baby powder. Draw dark lines on your skin for wrinkles. Smooth edges to blend. Cover again with baby powder. Add baby powder to your hair to create gray hair. Page 50 of 106

51 Halloween Parfait 3 boxes instant vanilla pudding 1 tsp. red food coloring 3/4 tsp. yellow food coloring One 9-oz. pkg. plain chocolate wafers 6 c. milk Chocolate syrup to taste One 8-oz. can mandarin oranges, drained Combine pudding mix and milk in large bowl as directed on the package. Refrigerate until firm. Crush chocolate wafers into crumbs, using a food processor, or put the wafers into a zip-lock bag and crush with a rolling pin. Combine red and yellow food coloring in a small bowl. Stir into pudding thoroughly, until pudding is orange. Layer pudding with two layers of chocolate crumbs in a parfait cup or glass. Top each layer of crumbs with chocolate syrup, to taste before adding the next pudding layer. Top each parfait with mandarin oranges and additional chocolate wafer crumbs. Page 51 of 106

52 Halloween Pumpkin Spice Cookies 4 3/4 c. flour 2 Tbs. baking soda 3/4 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. baking powder 2 tsp. ground cinnamon 1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger 3/4 lb. unsalted butter, room temperature 1 3/4 c. sugar 2 large eggs 1 tsp. vanilla 1/2 c. molasses Royal Icing Paste or gel food coloring Combine flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and ginger in a large bowl; sift, and set aside. Combine butter and sugar. Beat, starting on low speed and increasing to high, until mixture is fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and vanilla; beat on medium speed until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add molasses, and mix on medium speed until just combined. Scrape sides of the bowl, and add dry ingredients. Mix, starting on low speed and increasing to medium high, until ingredients are just combined, about 30 seconds. Transfer dough to a clean work surface. Roll the dough into four 1 1/2-inch-diameter logs. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, 1 to 2 hours. Heat oven to 350. Unwrap, and slice each log into 3/8-inch-thick rounds. Place rounds on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies crack slightly on the surface, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. When completely cool, decorate with royal icing mixed with desired food coloring. Royal Icing 2 large eggs 4 c. confectioners sugar, sifted Juice of 1 lemon Glycerin (optional) Food coloring Beat egg whites until stiff, but not dry. Add confectioners sugar and lemon juice. Beat for 1 minute or more. If icing is too thick, add more egg whites; if it is too thin, add more sugar. For a glossy icing, mix in a few drops of glycerin. To tint icing, add food coloring sparingly, one drop at a time, using the end of a toothpick. Blend well. Page 52 of 106

53 Halloween Worms - Icky! 1 pkg. (6 oz.) raspberry or grape flavor Jell-o 3 envelopes unflavored gelatin 3 c. boiling water 100 flexible plastic straws 1 tall (same height as extended straws), slender 4 c. container 3/4 c. whipping cream 12 to 15 drops green food coloring Notes: Use a cleaned 1-quart milk or orange juice carton to hold straws In a bowl, combine gelatins. Add boiling water; stir until gelatins completely dissolve. Chill until lukewarm, about 20 min. Meanwhile, gently pull straws to extend to full length; place in tall container. Blend cream and food coloring with the lukewarm gelatin mixture. Pour into container, filling straws. Chill until gelatin is firm, at least 8 hours, or cover and chill up to 2 days. Pull straws from container (if using a carton, tear carton away from straws). Pull straws apart; run hot tap water for about 2 seconds over 3 to 4 straws at a time. Starting at the empty ends, push worms from straws with rolling pin, or use your fingers; lay worms on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Cover and chill until ready to use, at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. Worms will hold at room temp. up to 2 hours. Makes about 100, including a few casualties. Page 53 of 106

54 Harry Potter's Cockroach Clusters 12 oz. chocolate chips 1 c. raisins 2 c. thin pretzel sticks, broken into 1 inch pieces 1/4 c. chocolate sprinkles In a microwave safe bowl heat chocolate until just melted. Remove and stir in the raisins and pretzel pieces. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto waxed paper and sprinkle with chocolate jimmies. Let stand until firm. Page 54 of 106

55 Harry Potter's Dragon Snot 8 oz. Sprite or 7-Up 1 scoop lime sherbet Place sherbet in a glass and pour on sprite or 7-Up. Serve with a spoon. Page 55 of 106

56 Harry Potter's Jelly Slugs 8 Tbs. white sugar 2/3 c. cranberry juice cocktail 4 Tbs. light corn syrup 4 envelopes unflavored gelatin Red food coloring 3 Tbs. confectioners' sugar, about 3 Tbs. honey In a medium saucepan combine the sugar, juice and corn syrup. Stir over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves. Sprinkle in gelatin and cook, stirring until gelatin is completely dissolved.stir in 2-3 drops food coloring. Pour mixture into a bread pan coated with cooking oil or spray. Let stand at room temperature until very firm, around 2 hours. Place pan in a larger pan with 1 inch hot water to help loosen if needed. Place on a clean work surface sprinkled with confectioner's sugar. With a sharp knife cut the jelly into slug shapes. Place "slugs" on a platter lined with wax paper. Store in a cool dry place-not the fridge. Just before serving brush with honey to get that sticky sluggag-texture! Page 56 of 106

57 Haunted Forest Platter 3 stalks of broccoli 3 medium beets Wood toothpicks 3 hard-boiled eggs Assorted vegetables such as cherry tomatoes, pea pods, kohlrabies, radishes, sweet red peppers, sweet yellow peppers, and shredded carrot Ripe olives, pimiento-stuffed olives, and/or tiny sweet pickles 1 oz. spaghetti, cooked and drained Liquid green food coloring To make a haunted forest, first create trees. Cut bottoms from stalks of broccoli to make 6-inch broccoli trees. Slice beets about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick to make a base for broccoli trees. Break wood toothpicks in half. Insert three to four toothpick pieces into bottom of each broccoli stalk and then insert into a beet slice. Stand broccoli upright. Cover to keep moist. To make egg ghosts, use a small knife or 1/2-inch aspic cutters to hollow out eyes and mouths to form a face. Cut small pieces of ripe olive to press into hollowed-out areas for eyes or mouth, if desired. Cover to keep moist. Using your imagination, create creepy creatures with tomatoes, sweet peppers, pickles, olives, and radishes. Place broccoli trees on serving platter. Cover surface of platter with shredded carrot. Hide egg ghosts in forest along with creepy creatures. Scatter piles of vegetables such as pea pods, beet slices, kohlrabi slices, olives, pickles, and/or any other desired vegetables. Add strips of red pepper to the broccoli branches. To make moss, add a few drops of green food coloring to a small amount of water in a medium bowl. Add cooked spaghetti and let stand about 5 minutes. Drain and place over broccoli trees. Keep platter covered until serving time. If necessary, spritz platter with water to keep it moist. Page 57 of 106

58 Highball Eyeball Radishes Olives. With medium-size radishes and olives, you can create creepy ice cubes that appear to contain eyeballs ideal for a macabre martini on the rocks or in a ghastly glass of flavored seltzer for your young ghouls-in-training. Trim the stem and root ends of a radish (make sure it s small enough to fit the individual section of an ice-cube tray), and use a paring knife to scrape off most of the red skin. Leave just enough red to give the radish a veined appearance. Rinse the radish off, and use a small melon baller to cut 1/2-inch-diameter hole into the radish. Fit an olive, cut side out, into the hole, and place the radish in the ice-cube tray. Repeat this process until the tray is full, then pour water over the eyeballs, and freeze. Page 58 of 106

59 Jack O Lantern Fruit Cup 1 orange Choice of assorted fresh or frozen fruits. Wash and chop assorted fruits and mix together in a bowl. Set aside. Slice off the top of an orange (as you would for a Jack-O-Lantern). Scoop out the inside of orange using a knife and spoon. Add the juice from the orange to your fruit salad. Carve a face into the orange. Fill the orange with the fruit salad, allowing the fruit to pop out of eyes and mouth. Page 59 of 106

60 Jack-o'-Lantern Cake 2 pkgs. devil's food or white cake mix Water Vegetable oil Eggs or egg whites 2 tubs vanilla frosting Yellow and red food color 1 green flat-bottom ice-cream cone Fruit Roll-Ups chewy fruit snack rolls (any flavor) Heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour 2 1/2-quart ovenproof bowl. Make 1 cake mix as directed on pkg., using water, oil and eggs or egg whites. Pour batter into casserole. Bake devil's food cake 1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 25 minutes, white cake about 1 hour 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes. Remove cake from casserole; place rounded side up on wire rack. Cool completely. Repeat with remaining cake mix. Empty frosting into medium bowl; tint with 9 drops yellow and 6 drops red food color to make orange frosting. Place 1 cake, rounded side down, on plate. Spread with 2/3 c. of the orange frosting almost to edge. Place second cake, rounded side up, on frosted cake to make round shape. Frost with remaining orange frosting. Trim ice cream cone to desired height for stem; place upside down on cake. Cut out eyes, nose, mouth, vines and leaves from fruit snack rolls. Place on frosted cake to form face. Page 60 of 106

61 Kitty Litter Cake 1 spice or German chocolate cake mix 1 white cake mix 1 large pkg. vanilla instant pudding mix 1 pkg. vanilla sandwich cookies Green food coloring 12 small Tootsie Rolls 1 new (and definitely unused) kitty litter pan 1 new plastic kitty litter pan liner 1 new Pooper Scooper Prepare cake mixes and bake according to directions (any size pans). Prepare pudding mix and chill until ready to assemble. Crumble white sandwich cookies in small batches in food processor, scraping often. Set aside all but about 1/4 cup. To the 1/4 cup cookie crumbs, add a few drops green food coloring and mix using 5. When cakes are cooled to room temperature, crumble into a large bowl. Toss with half the remaining white cookie crumbs and the chilled pudding. (Mix in just enough of the pudding to moisten it. You don't want it soggy. Combine gently). Line new, clean kitty litter box. Put mixture into litter box. Put three unwrapped Tootsie rolls in a microwave safe dish and heat until soft and pliable. Shape ends so they are no longer blunt, curving slightly. Repeat with 3 more Tootsie rolls and bury in mixture. Sprinkle the other half of cookie crumbs over top. Scatter the green cookie crumbs lightly over the top. (This is supposed to look like the chlorophyll in kitty litter.) Heat 3 Tootsie Rolls in the microwave until almost melted. Scrape them on top of the cake; sprinkle with cookie crumbs. Spread remaining Tootsie Rolls over the top; take one and heat until pliable, hang it over the side of the kitty litter box, sprinkling it lightly with cookie crumbs. Place the box on a newspaper and sprinkle a few of the cookie crumbs around. Page 61 of 106

62 Kitty Litter Casserole Dumps: 1 c. shredded cheddar cheese 1 c. Bisquick baking mix 1 lb ground beef 1 tsp. salt Litter: 2 c. uncooked long grain rice 3 3/4 c. water 1 tsp. salt 2 Tbs. margarine 1 Tbs. soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl, mix the dump ingredients together. Mold this mixture into various sizes of dumps. Place on ungreased backing pan, do not let dumps touch. Bake for 20 minutes (some may have to cook less time if smaller and some a few minutes longer if they are larger). While dumps are cooking, mix the litter ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Stir, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for minutes. Fluff rice with a fork and set pan aside. When dumps are done, transfer them onto paper towels to drain. Serve by putting dumps into a litter box shaped pan and spooning rice mixture over the dumps, leaving some of the dumps exposed. Serve these with a NEW pooper scooper. Page 62 of 106

63 Ladies Fingers 24 blanched almonds, halved lengthwise Red food coloring, optional 1 Tbs. sugar 1 scant Tbs. active dry yeast (one 1/4-oz. package) 5 1/2 to 6 c. flour, plus more for work surface 1 Tbs. salt 2 Tbs. baking soda 1 large egg Sea salt Dried rosemary (optional) Place a small amount of food coloring in a shallow bowl, and, using a paintbrush, color the rounded side of each split almond; set aside to dry. Pour 2 c. warm water (110 ) into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough-hook attachment. Add sugar; stir to dissolve. Sprinkle with yeast, and let stand until yeast begins to bubble, about 5 minutes. Beat 1 c. flour into yeast on low speed until combined. Beat in salt; add 3 1/2 c. flour until combined. Beat until dough pulls away from bowl, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low; add 1/2 c. flour. Knead 1 minute more. If dough is sticky, add up to 1 c. more flour. Transfer to a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth, 1 minute. Coat a large bowl with cooking spray. Transfer dough to bowl, turning dough to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap; let rest in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Heat oven to 450. Heat 3 quarts water to boil in a 6-quart straight sided saucepan over high heat; reduce to a simmer. Add baking soda. Lightly coat two baking sheets with cooking spray. Divide dough into quarters. Work with one quarter at a time, and cover remaining dough with plastic wrap. Divide the first quarter into twelve pieces. On a lightly floured work surface, roll each piece back and forth with your palm into a long finger shape, about 3 to 4 inches. Pinch dough in two places to form knuckles. When all twelve fingers are formed, transfer to simmering water. Poach for 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer fingers to baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, blanching each set of 12 fingers before making more. Beat egg with 1 Tbs. water. Brush pretzel fingers with egg wash. Using a sharp knife, lightly score each knuckle about three times. Sprinkle with salt and rosemary, if using. Position almond nails; push into dough to attach. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on wire rack. Fingers are best eaten the same day; or store, covered, up to 2 days at room temperature. Page 63 of 106

64 Magic Brew Yogurt Refreshers 1 8-oz. carton vanilla yogurt 1 c. orange juice 4 c. orange soda. Put the vanilla yogurt, orange juice, and 2 c. of the orange soda in the blender container. Cover blender with lid. Blend on high speed until combined. Turn off blender. Pour the mixture into 2 ice cube trays. Cover the ice cube trays with plastic wrap. Put the ice cube trays in the freezer. Freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Just before serving, remove the frozen cubes from 1 of the ice cube trays. Put the cubes in the blender container. Add 1 c. of the orange soda. Cover and blend on high speed until slushy. Turn off the blender. Pour into 6 glasses. Repeat with remaining frozen cubes and orange soda. Page 64 of 106

65 Marsh-Mummy Yummies /2 oz. bag of marshmallows 3 Tbs. of butter or margarine 5-6 large handfuls of potato chips, coarsely crushed Melt together marshmallows and butter or margarine over low heat, stirring occasionally. Pour mixture over crushed potato chips and stir until chips are thoroughly coated. Spread mixture into well-greased 8x8 pan. Refrigerate for at least one hour then cut into bars to serve. Or, shape into ghosts or pumpkins before refrigerating for fun individual treats. Page 65 of 106

66 Midnight Delight 1-1/2 c. low-fat cream cheese 1/2 c. reduced-fat cheddar cheese, grated 1/2 c. salsa 4 jalapeños, seeded and chopped Mix ingredients and serve with potato chips. Page 66 of 106

67 MisFortune Cookies Fortune cookies can be made from scratch. But there is an easier alternative. There are a number of Internet fortune cookie companies that will make them to order -- with a message of your choosing inside -- for extremely reasonable rates. Here are some suggestions for do-it-yourself MisFortune Cookies: You have turned into your mother. They're not laughing with you. The voices are real. Your neighbors did notice that ring around the bathtub. Perhaps you should consider a lawn service. Maybe that haircut wasn't such a good idea. Next time get a second opinion before you accessorize. On the road of life, you are but a dip. That's not a good color for you. Your number will soon come up at the IRS. Wrinkles and incontinence are just around the corner! You will meet a short, stinky, unattractive stranger. Everyone saw you double-dip. You've got something in your teeth. Page 67 of 106

68 Monster Cupcakes. Make and bake your favorite cupcakes. Use Chocolate Buttercream Icing (recommended with Black Icing Color) and Ice cupcake smooth in black with spatula. Pipe in Tip 5 green head using a heavy zigzag motion; overpipe for dimension. Pipe Tip 10 pull-out dot top teeth and Tip 5 pull-out dot bottom teeth in white. Add tip 10 ball eyes in yellow, tip 5 dot pupils in black. Page 68 of 106

69 Monster Q-Tips Lollipop sticks Small marshmallows Caramels Take a lollipop stick and push a marshmallow onto each end. Melt the caramels in the microwave. Dip each end of your "Q-tip" in the melted caramel. Page 69 of 106

70 Nightcrawler's Delight 1 oz. apple pucker liqueur, chilled 1 oz. midori melon, chilled 2 oz. 7-Up, chilled 1 oz. lemonade, from concentrate chilled 1 lb gummy worms, regular variety Place Gummi worms in bottom of punchbowl. Add liqueurs and lemonade. Add 7-up to mixture. Stir. For optional ice ring, place in donut-shaped jell-o mold: Gummi worms, just enough to cover bottom of mold, 2 parts lemonade, 1 part Apple Pucker or Midori, whichever you prefer (the alcohol content is low enough that it will still freeze) Place in freezer 8 or more hours before punch is to be serve. Page 70 of 106

71 Owl Cookies 1 c. shortening 1 c. sugar 1 1/3 Tbs. vanilla 1 egg 2 Tbs. milk 1 tsp. baking powder 3/4 tsp. salt 3 c. flour 1 oz. melted unsweetened chocolate Cream sugar, shortening, vanilla, egg and milk. Add dry ingredients. Divide dough in half, and add chocolate to one half. Roll white dough between two sheets of waxed paper into a rectangle about 5 x 15 inches. Roll chocolate dough into a log shape (like rolling "snakes" with clay, about 15 inches long. Place chocolate on top of white dough and roll white dough around it. Slice 1/4-inch thick. Place two slices side by side on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Press them together. Place whole cashew for the beak and orange or yellow M&M's for the eyes. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes, until lightly browned on the edges. Let cool slightly on cookie sheet before removing them to a rack to cool. Page 71 of 106

72 Piña Ghoulada 20 oz. pineapple juice, plus more if needed 1 15-oz. can cream of coconut 1/2 c. heavy cream 1 c. orange juice 10 oz. rum (optional) Whisk together all ingredients. Place 2 1/2 cups ice in a blender, and add 1 c. drink mixture. Blend until smooth; add more pineapple juice if mixture is too thick. Repeat with remaining ice and mixture. Carefully pour into prepared glasses; serve. Page 72 of 106

73 Pop O'Lanterns 1 bag caramel candies 4-5 c. popped popcorn Assorted nuts for garnish Melt caramels over low heat, stirring occasionally. Mix a little bit at a time with popcorn, until popcorn just sticks together. With well greased hands, shape into balls. Add assorted nuts for stem, eyes, nose, mouth, etc. to make your Pop O'Lantern! Page 73 of 106

74 Popcorn Balls 10 c. popped popcorn 1 1/2 c. granulated sugar 1/2 c. water 2/3 c. molasses 1 tsp. vinegar 1/4 tsp. salt 3 tbs. butter or margarine Put sugar, water, molasses, vinegar and salt into a pot. Heat & stir until it starts to boil. Boil gently, without stirring, until it reaches the hard ball stage. Remove from heat. Add butter/margarine. Pour over popcorn in a large bowl. Mix until popcorn is coated with syrup. Form into balls. Makes popcorn balls. Hard ball stage is 270F or when you drop a bit in cold water and it forms a hard ball. Page 74 of 106

75 Potty Jell-O Recipe Lemon Jell-O Baby Ruth bars Purchase replaceable potty pot for child's potties. Make lemon flavored Jell-O in potty and chill, mix in bite size baby Ruth bars before Jell-O sets. Page 75 of 106

76 Pumpkin Shake 3 c. vanilla ice cream 1 1/2 c. milk 1 (15 oz.) can solid-pack pumpkin 1/4 c. light corn syrup 1 tsp. vanilla extract 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp. ground cloves In a blender, combine all the ingredients. Blend on high speed until thoroughly mixed. Serve immediately. If desired, you can top each serving with a dollop of whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Page 76 of 106

77 Radioactive Juice Mountain Dew Blue Kool-Aid Mix equal parts Mountain Dew and blue Kool-Aid. Page 77 of 106

78 Scary Cake Cake: 1 cake made according to box Decorations: cinnamon red hots, Cherry Heads (or other round red candies), miniature marshmallows, licorice vines; cut into two inch lengths, miniature chocolate chips, gum drops, orange jellied candies, large marshmallows, raisins Frosting: 6 Tbs. butter or margarine 3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder 2 2/3 c. confectioner's sugar, sifted 1 tsp vanilla 1/3 c. milk Prepare cake as package directs. While cake is baking, prepare frosting and decorations. Frosting: Cream butter and vanilla in a small bowl with mixer and medium-low speed. Mix until completely creamed together. Alternating, add cocoa and confectioner's sugar, beating at medium speed until creamy. Add some of the milk with the remaining sugar and cocoa until you reach desired consistency. You will use all the cocoa and sugar, but may not use all the milk, depending on your desired consistency. Set aside. Decorating the Cake: When cake is completely cooled, pour the frosting on top and spread evenly. Carefully place your critter decorations (below) on top of the frosting and press down gently to set. Get ready for some happy faces! INCH WORMS - Using 5 gumdrops and two cinnamon hots per worm, line up the gumdrops, one in front of the other. Use a toothpick to create indentations in the leading gumdrop. Insert cinnamon hots for eyes. ANGRY EYES - Place two large marshmallows next to each other, on end. Place a cinnamon hot in the center of each marshmallow for eyeball. Using two 2-inch long licorice vines, create angry eyebrows over the cinnamon hots. SPYING EYES - Use miniature marshmallows for the eyes and miniature chocolate chips for the eyeballs. Use a toothpick to create a little hole in each marshmallow top, then insert the pointed side of the chocolate chip into the marshmallow. CREEPY CRAWLIES - Using a toothpick, poke three holes completely through the sides of an orange jellied candy. Insert licorice vines for legs, poking through the other side and pulling them through. Use toothpick to create small holes in "head" and insert two miniature chocolate chips as eyes. GOOFY EYES - Stand two large marshmallows on end, top with cinnamon hots or raisins for eyeballs, in cross-eyed fashion. MARSHMALLOW SPIDER - Place large marshmallow on it's side. Use a toothpicks to poke three holes on each side of marshmallow to insert legs. Use licorice vines for legs, gently press into the holes. Use two miniature chocolate Page 78 of 106

79 Scary Cake chips for eyes. BUG EYES - Stand two large marshmallows on end, top with Cherry Heads for eyeballs. SKULL - Using a pair of kitchen shears, cut a large marshmallow in half lengthwise. Cut triangular slits out of sides to create jawbone effect. Use toothpick to insert holes for eyes, use miniature chocolate chips. Cut a small piece off of a licorice vine for straight mouth, and a tiny piece for nose. Use a miniature marshmallow for the neck. MUMMY IN A COFFIN - Using a pair of kitchen shears, cut a large marshmallow in half lengthwise, but not completely. Unfold the marshmallow and lay it down, open side up to create the coffin. Use a miniature marshmallow for the head, and body. Cut up a miniature marshmallow for the arms and legs. Use small pieces of licorice vine for the mouth and eyes. Page 79 of 106

80 Scary Pear Heads 8 firm ripe seckel pears 1/2 lb. white chocolate, coarsely chopped 1 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped. Remove the stem from the pears. Using a wooden skewer, make a hole in the stem end of each pear. Insert a lollipop stick in each hole. In a double boiler or a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt white chocolate. Let stand until cool. Dip the pears in the chocolate, turning to coat. Stand the pears up in a piece of foam or oasis. Let stand until set, about 40 minutes. In a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt the semisweet chocolate. Let cool for 5 minutes. Fit a small pastry bag with a #4 tip, and fill with melted semisweet chocolate. Pipe chocolate onto pears to create facial features. Let stand until set, about 10 minutes. Page 80 of 106

81 Scary Tarts (White Chocolate Mousse Tarts) 1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand milk 1 c. cold water 1 (4-serving size) pkg. instant white chocolate pudding mix 2 c. Cool Whip, thawed 2 (4 oz.) pkg. single-serve graham cracker pie crusts Assorted candies, colored sprinkles or Halloween candy cutouts In large bowl, blend Eagle Brand and water with mixer or wire whisk. Beat in pudding mix until blended. Chill at least 10 minutes. Fold in whipped topping. Spoon into pie crusts; chill and decorate. Refrigerate leftovers. Notes: Tips: To make "Scary Tarts" in a great Halloween Theme try our decorating tips. Sprinkle top of tart with orange/black colored sprinkles. Place Halloween shaped sugared candies on top of center of tart. Make your own designs: Example - Cut out a wax paper ghost shape. Place wax paper ghost on tart; drop sprinkles around the wax paper and then carefully lift away wax paper. Create a spider web design on top of the tart by cutting small pieces of licorice and then placing small pieces onto tart as a web design. Variations: Make this dessert again at other holidays. Decorate in holiday theme. Examples: At Christmas, use red/green decorations or fruits as toppings. At Easter, use jelly beans and pastel colored icings. Page 81 of 106

82 Severed Fingers With Cari 2 Tbs. red food coloring 30 blanched almonds 2 large eggs 1/4 tsp. vanilla 8 Tbs. unsalted butter, room temperature 1/2 c. confectioners' sugar 5 Tbs. granulated sugar Pinch of salt 1 2/3 c. flour Heat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with Silpats (French nonstick baking mats) or parchment paper, and set aside. Place food coloring in a shallow bowl. Using a small paintbrush, color one rounded half of each almond. Set aside to dry. Separate 1 egg. Set aside the white. In a small bowl, whisk together yolk, remaining egg, and vanilla. Set aside. Combine butter, confectioners' sugar, granulated sugar, and salt. Beat on medium speed until well combined. Add egg mixture, and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the flour, and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Wrap the dough in plastic, and chill until firm, 20 to 30 minutes. Divide the dough in half. Work with one piece at a time, keeping remaining dough covered with plastic wrap and chilled. Divide the first half into fifteen pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece back and forth with palms into finger shapes, 3 to 4 inches long. Pinch dough in two places to form knuckles. Score each knuckle lightly with the back of a small knife. Transfer fingers to prepared baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough. When all fingers are formed, brush lightly with egg white. Position almond nails; push into dough to attach. Bake until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Cool completely. Page 82 of 106

83 Sight for Soar Eyes. Make your favorite cake mix and pour to two-thirds full into each area of a Muffin Pan (to make bigger cupcakes). Ice cupcake smooth in white frosting with spatula. Using a Tip12, pipe a ball shape (iris) in purple frosting, about 1 1/2 in. diameter. Use a 2 tip and pipe string veins in using red-red/christmas red combination frosting. Using a 4 tip, dot black frosting onto the purple pupil and flatten/smooth with finger dipped in cornstarch. Page 83 of 106

84 Simple Pimples 1-2 dozen cherry tomatoes Flavored soft cream cheese spread Core tomatoes with a carrot peeler or knife. Drain excess tomato juice. Using a butter knife, fill holes in tomatoes with cream cheese. Give each pimple a gentle squeeze and arrange on a platter. Page 84 of 106

85 Spellbinders with Devil Eyeballs 1/4 c. blue curacao 3/4 c. Galliano 1 1/2 c. coconut rum 2 qts. pineapple juice 2 qts. seltzer water Devil Eyeballs 20 maraschino cherries 20 chocolate chips (white or dark chocolate) 20 lychee, nut fruits (canned and pitted) Page 85 of 106

86 Spider Cakes Unsalted butter, room temperature for molds 1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for molds 1/2 c. sugar 1/4 tsp. baking soda 1/4 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. salt 1 large egg yolk 1/4 c. warm water (110 F) 1/4 c. buttermilk 2 Tbs. vegetable oil 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract Black Swiss meringue 1/4 c. black sprinkles Black Italian meringue buttercream Preheat oven to 350. Butter six 1 1/2-by-3-inch dome flexible baking molds, and dust with cocoa, tapping out any excess. Set aside on a baking sheet. In the bowl of an electric mixer, sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add egg yolk, the warm water, the buttermilk, oil, and vanilla to the flour mixture. Using the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Pour batter to within 1/4 inch from the top of each mold. Bake, rotating once, until a wooden skewer inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Invert and unmold cakes onto a wire rack; set aside until completely cool, about 30 minutes. Trim cakes flush with the top of the molds, using a serrated knife. To create the heads and legs: Fill a medium pastry bag fitted with a coupler with black meringue. Using a #7 pastry tip for the heads and a #4 pastry tip for the legs, pipe directly onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, keeping the pastry bag at a 45-degree angle to the baking sheet. After piping the heads, carefully affix sprinkles for eyes and mouths. Transfer to oven, bake at 350 for 5 minutes; set aside. Using an offset spatula, spread black buttercream over each cake to evenly coat. Cover with black sprinkles; set aside. Transfer the remaining buttercream to a small disposable pastry bag; snip off the end to make a small hole for piping. Carefully pipe a small amount of icing onto the end of one of the spider legs, and attach to one of the spider-body cakes; apply a small amount of pressure to insert the leg into the frosted body. Repeat with remaining legs and cakes. Pipe a small amount of buttercream onto the front of one of the bodies, and carefully attach the head. Allow to set; carefully transfer to serving plate by sliding a large spatula under the body from the back of the cake. Repeat with remaining cakes and heads. Page 86 of 106

87 Spider Web Cookies Version 1 Flour, for dusting Chocolate Cookie dough Royal Icing Black icing or melted chocolate Heat oven to 350. On a well-floured board, roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Using either cookie cutters or a pattern cut out of cardboard, cut cookies into shapes of bats and cobwebs. Place on ungreased baking sheet, and chill until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake until edges are crisp, but not darkened, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on wire racks before icing. To make the cobweb design, begin by icing cookie with royal icing. Pipe out a spiral of black icing starting from the center to the edges of the cookie. Draw a skewer or tip of a sharp knife from the center to each point on the cookie, and then from the inner curves back to the center. Repeat with remaining cookies and icing. Page 87 of 106

88 Spider Web Cookies Version 2 3/4 c. shortening 1 c. sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp. vanilla 2 1/2 c. flour 1 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. salt Cream shortening, sugar, eggs and vanilla well. Add dry ingredients. Stir well. Chill. Roll dough into walnut sized pieces then flatten with a glass dipped into sugar. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 400 for 6-8 minutes. Completely cool on a rack. When cool, frost with white frosting. With Decorating Gel, pipe a spiral on top of the frosted cookie. With a toothpick, starting at the center of the spiral, draw a line outward in the frosting. Repeat, until web design is created. Page 88 of 106

89 Spidery Cookie Wreaths 3/4 c. butter, softened 3/4 c. sugar 1/4 tsp. baking powder 1 egg 1 tsp. vanilla 1 3/4 c. flour 1/4 c. finely chopped pecans or almonds 1 tsp. grated orange peel 1/4 tsp. orange paste food coloring 1 c. sifted powdered sugar Milk Miniature candy-coated semisweet chocolate pieces (optional) In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed about 30 seconds or until softened. Add the sugar and baking powder. Beat until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in remaining flour. Place half of the dough in a small mixing bowl. Stir in the pecans or almonds; set aside. To the remaining dough, knead in the orange peel and food coloring. Cover and chill both portions of dough about 30 minutes or until easy to handle. On a lightly floured surface, shape each dough portion into a 12-inch-long log. Cut each log into twenty-four 1/2- inch-thick pieces. Roll each piece into a 6-inch-long rope. If necessary, cover and chill ropes for 10 to 15 minutes if soft and difficult to work with. Place a white and an orange rope side by side and twist together 5 or 6 times. Shape into a circle, gently pinching together the ends. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, leaving 2 inches between cookies. Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are light brown. Cool on cookie sheet about 1 minute, then remove and cool thoroughly on a wire rack. In a small mixing bowl, stir together sifted powdered sugar and enough milk to make an icing of piping consistency. Tint with desired colors of paste or liquid food coloring. Using a decorating bag and writing tip #2, pipe icing into various-size spiders randomly on cookies. If desired, use red cinnamon candies, or candy-coated chocolate pieces for the body of the spider. Use a dab of icing to hold body on cookies. Let cookies stand until icing is set. Page 89 of 106

90 Spun Sugar Caramel Apples 6 medium McIntosh apples, washed and stemmed 2 c. heavy cream 2 c. sugar 1/4 c. unsalted butter 1/2 c. dark corn syrup Spun Sugar (recipe follows) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Prepare an ice-water bath. Insert one 6-inch-long 1/4-inch dowel into the top of each apple. Place cream, sugar, butter, and corn syrup in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Continue cooking until the temperature registers 245 on a candy thermometer, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat, and briefly plunge the saucepan into ice water to stop the caramel from cooking. Dip one apple into the caramel, and coat the top and sides with caramel using a spoon. Transfer to prepared baking sheet to cool. Repeat with the remaining apples. Dip a whisk or fork into the sugar syrup, and wave back and forth over an apple to draw out long, fine, threadlike strands. Gather the ends of the strands to form a web-like shape around each apple. Repeat with remaining apples, and serve. Spun Sugar: 2 c. sugar 1/2 c. water 1/2 tsp. corn syrup Cover the work space with parchment paper and the floor with newspaper. Prepare an ice-water bath. Place the sugar, 1/2 c. water, and the corn syrup in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat. Stir occasionally until sugar is dissolved. Raise heat to high, and bring mixture to a boil. Continue cooking until the temperature registers 310 (hard-crack stage) on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat, and briefly plunge the saucepan into ice water to stop the cooking. Let stand to thicken slightly, about 1 minute. Use immediately. NOTE: Humidity causes spun sugar to soften and disintegrate, so be sure to work in a cool, dry environment. Keep in mind that decorations made from spun sugar should be used within a few hours of preparation, or they will melt. Page 90 of 106

91 Squashed Frogs 1/2 c. margarine 40 Large marshmallows (10 oz. bag) 5 c. corn flakes cereal 1/2 tsp. vanilla (optional) 2 tsp. green food coloring M&M's. Melt margarine in large saucepan. Add marshmallows and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until melted and mixture is syrupy. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and food color. Mix. Add corn flakes and M&Ms and mix until well coated and bright green. Drop from a Tbs. on a piece of wax paper and cool the globs. Page 91 of 106

92 Strained Eyeballs 6 hard boiled eggs 6 oz. whipped cream cheese 7 oz green olives -- with pimientos Red food coloring Peel eggs cut in half lengthwise. Remove the discard yolks. Fill the holes with cream cheese. Press an olive into each cream cheese eyeball, pimiento facing up, for an eerie green iris and startling red pupil! For a final touch, dip the tip of a toothpick in red food coloring and draw broken blood vessels in the cream cheese. Page 92 of 106

93 Sugar Free Gummy Worms 3 envelopes unflavored gelatin 2 pkg. sugar-free Jell-O, any flavors 1 c. boiling water 1 pkg. Kool-Aid, any flavor (optional) Combine all ingredients until dissolved. Pour into an 8x8 pan, lightly sprayed. Refrigerate until firm. Cut into "worm-like" strips. Page 93 of 106

94 Sweet And Spicy Pumpkin Seeds 1 medium pumpkin 5 Tbs. sugar 1/4 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. ground cumin 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp. ground ginger Pinch cayenne pepper to taste 1 1/2 Tbs. peanut oil Preheat oven to 250. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut pumpkin open from the bottom, removing seeds with a long-handled spoon. Separate flesh from seeds, and reserve the flesh for another use. Pumpkin should yield 1 cup seeds. Spread seeds on parchment in an even layer. Bake until dry, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. Let cool. In a medium bowl combine 3 Tbs. sugar, salt, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and cayenne. Heat peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add pumpkin seeds and remaining 2 Tbs. sugar. Cook until sugar melts and pumpkin seeds begin to caramelize, about 45 to 60 seconds. Transfer to bowl with spices, and stir well to coat. Let cool. These may be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Page 94 of 106

95 Toxic Juice Lemonade Food coloring Add some green food coloring to lemonade for a spooky color! Pour some of the juice in ice cube trays. Add gummy worms and freeze. Page 95 of 106

96 Transylvania Punch 2 c. water 1 3-oz. pkg. cherry-flavored gelatin 4 12-oz. cans lemon-lime soda In a medium saucepan bring 2 c. water to boiling. Transfer to a bowl. Add gelatin and stir until gelatin is dissolved. Cover and chill 4 hours or overnight. To serve, pour about 1 c. of ginger ale into a glass. Add a spoonful of the chilled gelatin. (Gelatin should float atop beverage.) If desired, stir together just before drinking. Page 96 of 106

97 Vampire Cocktails. Usually, glasses are rimmed with salt to help flavor margaritas, but at Halloween, rims coated with vampire's blood seem much more appropriate. If you experience any difficulty finding the blood of the undead, you can substitute 1/4 tsp. corn syrup and 3 Tbs. red food coloring a mixture that's sure to give your lips a vampirish gleam. Pour the mixture onto a small plate, slowly spin the glass into it to coat the entire rim, and turn the glass upright. Let the blood drip slightly for an eerie effect, then fill the glass with piña ghoulada. Page 97 of 106

98 Vampire-Away Garlic Dip 1/2 c. skim milk 1 c. low-fat cottage cheese 2 small garlic cloves, minced 2 Tbs. chopped parsley 2 Tbs. chopped chives 1/8 tsp. paprika 1/8 tsp. curry powder 1 tsp. onion salt Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth. Page 98 of 106

99 Vampire's Blood Shake 2 c. plain yogurt 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 1 pkg. frozen strawberries or raspberries, thawed Ice cubes 1 pint strawberry ice cream Mix yogurt, vanilla, and berries in the blender. Pour into tall glasses over ice cubes and top with a large spoonful of strawberry ice cream. Page 99 of 106

100 Wacky Web Cups 1 bag Twix Fun Size Bars 1 bag Dove Promises Milk or Dark Chocolates 1 bag brown Peanut M&M's Orange food coloring 4 c. prepared vanilla pudding Resealable plastic bag Scissors 6 10-oz. clear plastic goblets Brightly tint the pudding with the orange food coloring. Set aside. Unwrap and chop the Twix Bars. Beginning with the Twix, alternate layers of pudding and candy in the plastic goblets. Unwrap 12 Dove Promises and put them in a resealable plastic bag. Microwave for about a minute, until soft. Snip a small hole in one corner of the bag to create the shape of a spider web on top. Then, squeeze the chocolate onto the top of each parfait to make a spider web on top of the pudding. To make the spiders: Draw a line of chocolate on each goblet and then attach brown M&M'S Peanut Butter Chocolate Candies to the chocolate. Draw legs onto the M&M'S with the chocolate. Page 100 of 106

101 White Chocolate Ghosts 12 oz. white chocolate chips 1 1/2 Tbs. vegetable oil Lollipop sticks Mini chocolate chips. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper; set aside. Melt white chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over simmering water; stir occasionally. Remove bowl; mix in oil. Drop 1 Tbs. of mixture onto prepared baking sheet. Use the back of a tsp. to quickly spread into a ghost. Place a lollipop stick at the base, spinning to coat. Add chocolate chip eyes. Refrigerate ghosts 5 minutes, then peel off. Page 101 of 106

102 Witch Cake 1 cake, prepared 1 small instant vanilla pudding 1 1/2 c. milk Decorations. Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Cut cake using the diagram as a guide. Arrange pieces on cutting board or platter to form the witch's head, nose, hair and hat. Ice and decorate. Evil embellishments for icing, prepare instant pudding reducing milk by 1/2 cup, stir into Cool Whip. For extra color and flavor, sprinkle Jell-O gelatin powder on top. Decorate with mini Oreos on hat for a sweet topping. Try using chocolate chips or candies for witch's face - black jelly beans make an instant wart. Page 102 of 106

103 Witches Brew. Serve root-beer floats from a steaming cauldron made magical with the smoke of dry ice. You ll need a large cauldron and a chilled bowl that fits inside it (dry ice can cause glass to crack, so use bowls made of metal); dry ice (available in supermarkets); frozen root-beer mugs; root beer; and ice cream. Wearing gloves, use an ice pick to break up the dry ice (never touch it with your bare hands); place a few pieces in the cauldron. Cover the ice with water, pushing the ice under with a long wooden spoon if necessary, and place the chilled bowl in the cauldron. Fill the bowl with root beer. Put a scoop of ice cream in each mug, and ladle root beer over the top. Page 103 of 106

104 Witches' Brooms 1/2 c. packed brown sugar 1/2 c. butter or margarine, softened 2 Tbs. water 1 tsp. vanilla 1 1/2 c. flour 1/8 tsp. salt 10 pretzel rods, about 8 long, cut crosswise in half 2 tsp. shortening 2/3 c. semisweet chocolate chips Butterscotch-flavored chips, melted Heat oven to 350º. Mix brown sugar, butter, water and vanilla in medium bowl. Stir in flour and salt. Shape dough into twenty 1 1/4-inch balls. Place pretzel rod halves on ungreased cookie sheet. Press ball of dough onto cut end of each pretzel rod. Press dough with fork to resemble "bristles" of broom. Bake about 12 minutes or until set but not brown. Remove from cookie sheet. Cool completely on wire rack, about 30 minutes. Cover cookie sheet with waxed paper. Place brooms on waxed paper. Heat shortening and chocolate chips over low heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth; remove from heat. Spoon melted chocolate over brooms, leaving about 1 inch at top of pretzel handle and bottom halves of cookie bristles uncovered. Drizzle with melted butterscotch chips. Let stand until chocolate is set. Page 104 of 106

105 Witches' Hats 32 foil wrapped milk chocolate kisses, unwrapped 1 pkg. (11-1/2 oz) fudge-striped shortbread cookies 1/2 c. orange molding chocolate (Candy Melts). Melt chocolate in plastic bag. Cut a tiny hole in one corner of the bag. Attach a kiss to chocolate bottom of each cookie with melted chocolate. Put enough on so it pushes out on the sides of the kiss to form a border. Pipe a bow. Page 105 of 106

106 Witch's Brew 1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand milk 1 (2-liter) bottle orange soda, chilled 1 (46 oz.) can pineapple juice Orange sherbet (optional). In punch bowl, stir together Eagle Brand and pineapple juice; add orange soda. Top with sherbet and serve over ice (optional). Refrigerate leftovers. Notes: Tip: Orange Pineapple Punch is a great flavor for any time of year. Top punch bowl with mint leaves or fresh cut orange slices for refreshing taste. Other Cool Treats: Pour leftover punch into ice-cube trays and freeze. Flavored ice-cubes can be chopped in blender. Spoon mixture into ice-cream bowls. Serve immediately. Enjoy eating this new twist on orange creamsicle crush cool new frozen treat! Page 106 of 106