5 Spooky Halloween Desserts

Add some ghostly goodies to your holiday celebration by making one of more of these 5 spooky Halloween desserts.  Serving eerie treats like spider cupcakes, green monster treats, chocolate-covered bugs, eyeball cookies and bloody fingers will make your Halloween party a spooky affair to remember.   

Green Monster Treats

• 1 10-ounce package marshmallows
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 6 cups crisp rice cereal
• 1 can white frosting
• Green food coloring
• Black decorating frosting or gel
• Candy pieces or dried fruit

1. Melt marshmallows and butter or margarine in a large saucepan over low heat.  Stir until smooth and bubbly.  Remove from heat.
2. Combine the marshmallow mixture and crispy rice cereal in a large mixing bowl.  Mix with a stiff spoon or buttered hands until well incorporated.
3. Press the mixture into a greased large deep baking dish.  Use wax paper to press the mixture evenly into the pan.  Allow to cool.
4. Cut into rectangles using a sharp knife.  Separate the pieces and place on wax paper.
5. Combine the white frosting with enough green food coloring to make a deep green color.  Spread the green frosting over the tops of each treat.
6. Use the black decorating frosting or gel to create eyes, a mouth and hair on each treat.  Use the candy or dried fruit to add a nose and ears to each treat.

Eyeball Cookies

• 1 package vanilla wafer cookies
• 1 can white frosting
• Black decorating gel
• Red decorating gel
• Blue decorating gel

1. Lay vanilla wafer cookies flat on a single layer on a piece of wax paper.
   
2. Spread white frosting evenly over the tops of each cookie.
   
3. Place a small amount of the black decorating gel in the center of each cookie to create a small circle.
   
4. Squeeze blue decorating gel around the black circle to create a larger circle.
   
5. Use red decorating gel to create squiggly lines in the remaining white space on the cookie to resemble bloodshot eyes.
   
6. Place on a serving tray on a single layer.  Serve.

Bloody Fingers

• 1 package lady fingers cookies
• 1 jar raspberry or strawberry jam
• Sliced almonds
• Powdered sugar

1. Line a baking sheet with wax paper.  Lay the lady fingers cookies over the wax paper in a single layer.  
2. Spread a generous amount of jam over each cookie, allowing it to drip down the sides to resemble blood.
   
3. Place one almond slice at the end of each cookie atop the jam to resemble a fingernail.
   
4. Dust each cookie with powdered sugar.
   
5. Transfer to a serving dish, placing the cookies in a single layer.  Serve.

Chocolate-Covered Bugs

• 1 package red licorice
• 24 pieces chewy caramel candies
• 6 ounces chocolate chips
• Colored sprinkles
• Cinnamon candies

1. Cover a large baking sheet with wax paper.  Cut the licorice into small pieces and set aside.
2. Flatten each caramel into an oval shape.  Place twelve caramels flat on the wax paper. 
3. Use licorice pieces to create legs on each caramel bug by pressing the licorice into the edges of the twelve caramels on the wax paper.  Top each caramel bug with a second flattened caramel.  
4. Melt chocolate in a microwave safe bowl in the microwave by heating for about one minute.  Stir and heat again in 30-second increments until the chocolate is completely melted.
5. Drizzle about one tablespoon melted chocolate over each caramel bug to cover each completely.
   
6. Decorate with colored sprinkles.  Use the cinnamon candies to create eyes.  Refrigerate the candies until the chocolate hardens.  Serve.

Spider Cupcakes

• 1 box chocolate cake mix
• 1 can chocolate frosting
• 1 large package black shoestring licorice
• Candy corn
• Cinnamon candies

1. Prepare the chocolate cake mix per instructions on the box using the cupcake method.  Bake cupcakes and allow to cool.
2. Frost each cooled cupcake with the chocolate frosting.
   
3. Cut the licorice into three-inch sections.  Insert eight pieces of licorice candy into the edges of each cupcake to resemble spider legs.
4. Place two candy corn pieces into the front of each cupcake, pointy sides out, to resemble fangs.
   
5. Place two pieces of cinnamon candy on the top of each cupcake to resemble eyes.