Send your little goblins and ghouls to class with these Halloween sweets that are spooky on the outside but yummy on the inside.
Tarantula cookies
Yield: 3 dozen cookies
Ingredients
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
3 cups flour
1 5-ounce box of malted chocolate balls
1 ounce brown or black jimmies
1 tube black decorating icing (with pointed tip)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In an electric mixer, cream together butter, brown sugar and white sugar until smooth. Mix in baking soda, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Add in one egg at a time on low speed, then mix in flour. Drop a tablespoon of dough onto a lined cookie sheet, placing the dough 2 inches apart. Bake for 7-10 minutes until golden brown.
3. Remove cookies from oven and allow to cool for 2 minutes before placing 2 malt balls into the center of each cookie. Push gently to create an indent, but be careful not to break through the cookie. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool completely. The heat from the cookie may melt the chocolate a bit, creating the look of texture on the spider bodies.
4. Using a tube of black icing, draw four legs on each side of the malt balls. Carefully sprinkle jimmies onto the legs to add a hairy texture. Store flat in a covered container.
Mummy cake pops
Yield: 40 cake pops
Ingredients
1 box red velvet cake mix, prepared per instructions on box
12-ounces cream cheese icing, homemade or store-bought
40 lollipop sticks
12 ounce bag of white candy melts
1 tube red decorating gel with pointed tip
Cake pop stand or foam block (to dry and display cake pops)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake cake according to directions on the box in a 13-by-9-inch pan. Cool completely.
2. Crumble cake by hand into a large bowl, or put entire cake into the bowl of a stand mixer. Use a paddle attachment on the lowest setting to break the cake into crumbs.
3. Mix cake crumbs with cream cheese icing until well incorporated. Shape into 1 1/2-inch round balls, then place onto a plate or tray; refrigerate for 15 minutes or until firm.
4. In a microwave-safe cup, microwave 3/4 of the candy melts on a medium setting for 90 seconds or until fully melted, stopping to stir every 30 seconds. Insert a lollipop stick into each cake ball, then dip the cake end completely into the candy melts. Tap the stick gently on the rim of the cup to allow excess candy melt coating to drip off. Stand the cake pops upright into the cake pop stand or foam block to harden, about 15 minutes. Don’t worry if the coating is not entirely smooth; we will disguise any imperfections with the next step.
5. Melt the remaining candy melts in the same cup. Dip a spoon or knife into the cup and lift up quickly to create a ribbon of chocolate, then quickly drizzle onto the cake pop in different directions to resemble a gauze-wrapped mummy, remembering to leave space for the eyes. Add two dots of the red decorating gel for the eyes. Allow cake pops to dry for at least one hour.
Cook’s notes: If the consistency of your candy melts is too thick, add paramount crystals (available at your local cake supply store or online) or 1 tablespoon of shortening to thin it out.
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