Halloween Goodies

Every year I make a scary dinner for the kids and do a lot of spooky snacks to go along with it.  This year I came up with some really great dishes by searching online and using some recipes I had on hand.  It is definitely fun trying out new things.  The kids get a kick out of it and it actually tastes good.  Here are some of the goodies I made and where I found them.

Do a search and you will find lots of great ideas.  There is one with green fingers that looks awesome.  Of course I saw that AFTER I made these.  Witch fingers should probably be thinner, but I liked the fat monster fingers.  Green would have looked even better, I think.  Make your favorite sugar cookie recipe.  I used this one:

MONSTER FINGERS  

1 C butter, softened

1 C powdered sugar

1 tsp almond extract

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 2/3 C flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 C whole blanched almonds

raspberry jelly (I used strawberry jam)

In bowl, beat together butter, sugar, egg, almond and vanilla extract.  Stir dry ingredients together, then add to wet and stir thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.

Working with one quarter of the dough at a time and keeping the remainder refrigerated, roll 1 oz dough into a thin log shape about 4 inches.  I used a 1 oz cookie scoop.  Squeeze closest to center and close to one end to create knuckle shapes.  Press almond firmly into the end of the cookie for the nail.  Using a paring knife, make slashes in several places to form knuckle. 

Place on lightly greased baking sheet or parchment paper and bake for 20-25 minutes in a 325 degree oven.  Meanwhile, melt jelly/jam in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.

Lift almond off of each finger and spoon a little jam onto the nail bed.  Replace almond, allowing the jelly to ooze out.  You can also put the jelly on the knuckles and ends, but we had a lot of small children, so I didn't want to go to crazy.

I served mine on this bone platter and labeled them MONSTER FINGERS.  I love labels.

I love food blogs!  I love it when they search and find lots of great ideas like these ghosts on a cracker and I can just pick what I like off of it!  These are just round crackers, cream cheese and raisins cut in half.  That is it.  Super cute, right?  I got these and the candy corn pudding recipe to follow from tiffanybodily.blogspot.com.

Are these not the cutest?  She actually had them in martini glasses so they looked more triangular, but for the kids this was perfect...and I already had the glasses on hand.  Butterscotch pudding on the bottom, followed by vanilla (with a little yellow food coloring), then whipped topping and some candy corn.

So easy and I made them a day ahead!

To me it isn't Halloween unless I make popcorn balls.  When I was a kid and we would go to my grandma's house to show off our costumes and "trick-or-treat" at the door she always had popcorn balls ready for every grandchild.

These are easy to make.  I actually don't like hard as a rock popcorn balls, so I make them more like rice crispy treats.  Melt two tablespoons of butter in the microwave.  Coat 4 cups of marshmallows with the melted butter and heat for 1 1/2 minutes.  Add orange food coloring to the marshmallow...or color of your choice.  Add to 1 bag of popped popcorn.  Grease your hands and make your popcorn balls.

Candy Corn is great Rotten Teeth!

Roasted pumpkin seeds are great Dried Fingernails.

This Spider Web Dip is awesome!!!!  It came out of a Halloween book I purchased years ago.  Here are the ingredients:

SPIDER WEB DIP
Tortilla chips (you can make chips in cool shapes, but I just bought a bag)
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 jar (8 ounces) prepared salsa
1/2 cup prepared guacamole
sour cream (about 2 tablespoons)

Place cream cheese and salsa in blender or food processor container; blend until almost smooth. Spread cream cheese mixture on round serving dish or pie plate; smooth guacamole over top, leaving 1/2 inch border.  Place sour cream resealable plastic food storage bag.  Cut a tiny corner and pipe several circles and then run the tip of a knife through to make the web.

This mummy meatloaf was the main dish for dinner.   I saw it online and LOVED the idea.  You can always find snacks that are different each year, but the main course gets difficult (for me anyway).  I got this recipe from  www.gourmetmomonthego.com and wanted to make it immediately!  You can find the "Not Your Mummy's Meatloaf" on her site.  

I served it with roasted butternut squash and corn.  The kids gobbled it up, and so did the adults!  I used my favorite meatloaf recipe and added her finishing touches to it.  You can use her's or your favorite.  It is definitely a fun dish for Halloween!

 And what did I serve for breakfast?  Why pumpkin pancakes of course!  The recipe is on my blog.  I just shaped them like pumpkins this time around....or at least I tried to.  :)

My boys loved these!

Here is our group of kids ready for trick or treating after a scary dinner and some spooky treats!

Gourmet Caramel Apples

Who doesn't love caramel apples?  These are easy to make and look great!  Last year I learned how to make sure the kids don't waste them too.  (You know, when they take a bite and then want to pitch it?)  Use your apple wedger (the stick fits right through the corer!) to cut the apple into slices and share!  Everyone can have a bite and if they want more you can cut another apple!

I am all about the "homemade," but wanting to try this out I was in a hurry and got the caramel sheets you just heat onto the apples.  On the plus side it was easy, on the minus side there was not enough caramel.  Yes, it covered the apple, but I got giant apples and it would need a thicker layer.  Next time I will make my own or melt caramels and double dip the apples in them!

On to dipping.  I had semi-sweet chips in the pantry and used those...they were yummy, but I think next time I will use milk chocolate or dark chocolate. 

I learned about cinnamon chips this year.  Where have I been?  I melted them and put them in a ziplock, cut the end, and used the bag to drizzle the melted cinnamon on the apples.  Oh my that's good!  I found them at Stracks, they were Hersheys brand.  

I also added white chocolate to them using the ziplock as a piping bag.  That's easy and saves on clean up afterward.  You can add anything else you like.  I added pecans to mine, but I've seen m&m's, crushed oreos, holiday sprinkles, you can do whatever you want.

I think they turned out great.  This is great to do with kids too.  They can top with whatever they like!  Have fun with it!  Happy Halloween!

Gourmet Caramel Apples

Halloween Party Ideas

 

I love making Halloween food.  The grosser the better!  But I do have young kids, so I have to keep it pretty mild.   We always have guests to go trick or treating with us, so I always do a scary dinner before we go trick or treating.  Here are some ideas for snacks and dinner.  I've had lots of people asking for suggestions, so here you go.  Pick the things you like and run with it!

Smashed potatoes with peas for the eyes make great ghosts!  You can slice and cook up some hot dogs in a skillet and they will make curly worms.  Serve them on a bun or as is, the kids love it!

Worms in the mud are an easy dessert.  I think anything with a gummy worm in it make a kid happy.  I think this is just chocolate pudding and mashed up chocolate teddy grahams layered in a clear plastic cup.

In the background you can see the "GuacaMoldy."  I forget what we named the salsa, but I'm sure you can think of something gross.

Don't forget simplicity.  A bunch of orange crackers on a black platter (throw in a mouse or rat) just looks Halloween.  The labels say "dead goldfish."  The labels make a difference too, I think.  You can have something normal and just give it a spooky label.

We also had dried cranberries labeled "scabs" and raisins labeled "rat droppings."

I love easy stuff like this.  Crackers with Spicy Pineapple Rum Sauce over a block of cream cheese...yep, that's it.  Name it "Phlem Cheese" and it gets the  "eewwww" factor you are looking for.

I love caramel apples, but do NOT love it when a kid takes one bite and leaves the rest for the garbage.  My solution to this is to use an apple wedger to wedge the caramel apples.  The corer fits right over the stick, so no worries.

Like I said, sometimes the label does the work for you.  This is a pumpkin bundt cake labeled Petrified Pumpkin.

 I cannot have Halloween without popcorn balls!  I love them.  Make them orange and call them creepy cornballs and you are set!  I also do dipped pretzels and find holiday colored candy to go on the table. 

Don't throw out the pumpkin seeds when you are carving those jack-o-lanterns.  They make perfect "dried fingernails."  You can do them sweet or savory.  Salt and pepper on this one, but cinnamon and sugar on another.  Mmmmm...

I cannot pass up a cute jello mold.  Be sure to read the instructions for making molds.  It is different than regular jello.  You can spray the mold before filling if you are worried about the jello sticking.

Apple brie tartlets became witches teeth (due to the apple pieces being cut in shapes that looked like teeth).

Deviled eggs...which has a great name in itself were "blood shot eyeballs."

Sting cheese can easily be made into fingers.  Cut them in half, use a knife to make knuckle markings, and add a sliced almond as the nail (use cream cheese to attach them).

I have some new ideas for this year.  I try to do something new to surprise the kids.  The first year I made brains and eyeballs (spaghetti and meatballs).  Search the net and you will find tons of great ideas.  

Have a great party and don't eat to much candy!

Here is what the boys looked like last year.  Nicholas was Bakugan Dan and Marcus was Wolverine.