HALLOWEEN TRICKS & TREATS
 

CARAMEL COVERED APPLES

Caramel Covered Apples make a wonderful Halloween treat and are very easy to make!

 
Recipe to make 5 Caramel Covered Apples:
Ingredients

40 - Caramel cubes
5 - Apples
1 - Tablespoon of water
5 - Wooden sticks
1 - Wax paper

 Ingredients
Preparation

Wash and dry the apples thoroughly. Remove stems and Insert the wooden sticks into the stem hole until about half the stick is in the apple.

In a small saucepan, over low heat, melt the caramels with the water, stirring constantly until smooth.

Now dip the apples into the hot caramel sauce, coating the apple completely. Place on oiled, wax paper.

 Preparation
Storage & Serving

Store your caramel covered apples in the refrigerator.

Before serving, remove them from the refrigerator and allow them to stand for about fifteen minutes.

 
Jack-O-Lantern Cookies
Yield: about 2 dozen

2/3 c Margarine
3/4 c Granulated sugar
1 t. Vanilla
1 Egg
4 t. Milk
2 c All-purpose flour
1 1/2 t. Baking powder
1/4 t. Salt

Thoroughly cream margarine. Add sugar and blend until light. Add vanilla. Add egg; beat until fluffy. Stir in milk. In another bowl put flour, baking powder and salt; blend with a whisk or a spoon until thoroughly mixed. Gradually add flour mixture to creamed mixture; blend well. Scoop dough out onto plastic wrap, cover with wrap and press down to make a thick, flat round. Chill in refrigerator over-night.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Cut batch of dough in half; keep one half in refrigerator while working with the other half. On a well floured surface, using a floured rolling pin, roll dough to between 1/8-inch and 1/4-inch. Use a 2-inch biscuit cutter or round cookie cutter to make cookies. Place on cookie sheet greased with butter-flavored shortening, if possible (otherwise, regular flavor shortening). Bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Cool on wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough. Store in airtight container until you are ready to spread them with frosting and decorate. Spread frosting on cookies; then make Jack-o-lantern faces using colorful small candies or icing gel in a tube. Makes about two dozen cookies.

 

Black and Orange Spooky Cups
Makes 10 to 12 servings

4 cups cold milk
1 package (4 serving size) chocolate fudge instant pudding mix
10 to 12 7 oz. plastic cups
1 package (4 serving size) vanilla instant pudding mix
12 chocolate sandwich cookies
Red and Yellow food coloring
Halloween sprinkles

Pour 2 cups of the milk into a large bowl. Add chocolate fudge flavor pudding, beat with wire whisk for 2 minutes. Fill glasses about 1/2 full with pudding mixture.

Pour remaining 2 cups of milk into another large bowl. Add vanilla pudding mix, beat with wire whisk for 2 minutes. Stir in a   few drops of red and yellow food color to make orange. Spoon mixture evenly over chocolate mixture. Top with crushed cookies.

Refrigerate until ready to serve. garnish with Halloween sprinkles.

 

Ghosts In The Graveyard
Makes 12 to 16 servings

1 package (16 ounces) chocolate sandwich cookies
3 1/2 cups cold milk
2 packages (4 serving size each) Chocolate and Vanilla pudding
1 tub (12 ounces) of frozen whipped topping

Crush cookies in a zip top bag with a rolling pin or use a food processor.

Pour cold milk into a large bowl. Add pudding mixes. Beat with a wire whisk for 2 minutes. Gently stir in 3 cups of the whipped topping and 1/2 of the crushed cookies. Spoon into a 13x9 inch dish. Sprinkle with remaining crushed cookies. Refrigerate for an hour or until ready to serve. Store leftover dessert, covered in the fridge.

To Decorate Graveyard: Decorate assorted cookies with decorating icings or gels to create "tombstones" , Millano cookies work best for these. Stand "tombstones" on top of dessert with candy corn, candy pumpkins and tiny jelly beans. Drop remaining whipped topping by spoonfuls onto the dessert to create ghosts. Decorate with small candies to make eyes.

Graveyard In A Cup
Makes 12 to 16 servings

1 package (16 ounces) chocolate sandwich cookies
3 1/2 cups cold milk
2 packages (4 serving size each) Chocolate and Vanilla pudding
1 tub (12 ounces) of frozen whipped topping

Crush cookies in a zip top bag with a rolling pin or use a food processor.

Pour cold milk into a large bowl. Add pudding mixes. Beat with a wire whisk for 2 minutes. Gently stir in 3 cups of the whipped topping and 1/2 of the crushed cookies. Spoon into  separate clear plastic cups, layering the pudding mixture, remaining crushed cookies and candy corn. Top with crushed cookies, add dabbed of whipped topping to make ghosts, add little candy pumpkins and candy corn or a cookie "tombstone" .

 

CARAMEL CORN

Caramel Corn makes a wonderful Halloween treat and is easier to make than you might think. We make a couple of batches and serve in large black and orange bowls.
  • Main Ingredients:
  • 14 cups popped popcorn
  • 2 cups brown sugar (packed)
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup light corn syrup
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

 Caramel Corn Preparation:

Once you have popped the pop-corn, remove any unpopped kernels. Now place the popcorn in a buttered metal bowl and place in a 200 degree oven to keep warm.

Combine the brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once it begins to boil, stop stirring for 5 minutes, or until mixture reaches 255 degrees on candy thermometer.

Remove from heat and add baking soda. The mixture will start to foam, so stir well until blended. Pour the hot mixture over the pop-corn and toss gently with well buttered forks to distribute evenly.

Spread onto 2 ungreased baking sheets and bake at 200 degrees for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

Remove the carmel corm from the oven and allow to cool completely. Once cool, break it into clusters, and store in a tightly covered container.

Popcorn Balls
Yield: 6 servings

1/2 c Molasses
1/2 c Corn syrup
1 1/2 Cubes butter (3/4 cup)
Salt
8 c Popped popcorn (measure after popping)

Cook 1/2 cup molasses with corn syrup until thermometer reaches hard crack stage, about 270 degrees. Stir in butter and salt. Have the popcorn in a bowl. Slowly stir in the mixture with a wooden spoon. Coat all the popcorn. IMPORTANT! Butter your hands lightly and shape the popcorn into balls. Make them the size you want. Set them on wax paper and let them harden. Wrap the ones you don't eat with wax paper. (To make these Bloody Popcorn Balls, add a bit of red food color paste to the corn syrup mixture, it will give it a reddish tint. Tint to desired color)

halloween_cake.jpg (31845 bytes)

Halloween Cake

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 roll (18 oz) refrigerated sugar-cookie dough
1 can (16 oz) plus 1 cup vanilla frosting
Yellow, green and orange paste or gel food color
1 can (16 oz) plus 1 cup chocolate frosting
Two 8 x 2-in. cooled, baked cake layers
Orange and clear coarse sugar (optional)
Chocolate sprinkles (jimmies, optional)
1 Tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 cup finely ground (in blender or food processor) chocolate wafers or chocolate sandwich cookies

1. Have ready baking sheet(s), 1 1/2- to 3-in. pumpkin and ghost cookie cutters, a 2 1/2- to 3-in. cat cookie cutter, wooden toothpicks and five 1-qt-size ziptop freezer bags.

2. Knead flour into cookie dough until completely blended. Roll out with a rolling pin to a scant 1/4 in. thick. Cut out about twenty 2 1/2- to 3-in. fence pickets, tapered from about 3/4 in. wide at top to 1/2 in. at bottom. Cut an inverted v at top of each. Cut out cookies with cutters; reroll and cut scraps. Place about 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheet(s). Cut out pumpkin features with the tip of a pointed, small knife. Insert toothpicks into bottoms of cookies that will be set into top of the cake.

3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

4. Tint 1/4 cup vanilla frosting yellow and 1/4 cup green. Spoon each into a ziptop bag; seal bags. Put half the remaining vanilla frosting in a microwave-safe bowl; tint orange. Spoon 1/4 cup into a bag; seal bag. Spoon 1/4 cup of the remaining untinted vanilla frosting into a bag and 1/4 cup chocolate frosting into another bag. Seal bags; set aside.

5. Place pumpkin cookies on a wire rack set over a wax-paper-lined baking sheet. Heat orange frosting in bowl in microwave on high 5 seconds or just until thin enough to pour (don’t overheat). Pour over cookies, covering them completely (reheat frosting if needed). Transfer cookies to a flat surface; let stand at least 1 hour until dry. Repeat with untinted vanilla frosting for the ghosts; 1/4 cup chocolate frosting for the cat. Dust fence pickets lightly with cocoa powder.

6. Meanwhile, on a serving plate, using remaining chocolate frosting, spread about 1/2 cup between cake layers. Remove, cover and reserve 1 Tbsp frosting. Use remaining frosting to coat sides and top of cake.

7. Working with 1 color frosting at a time, snip a tiny tip off corner of bag. Pipe outlines, leaves, features, spider webs and spiders as shown in photo. While wet, sprinkle cat’s tail with sprinkles, outlines on pumpkins and ghosts with coarse sugar. Let dry completely.

8. Insert cookies with picks into top of cake; arrange fence pickets and other cookies around sides, gluing in place with reserved 1 Tbsp frosting. Sprinkle cookie crumbs at base of cookies on cake and around bottom of cake.