HALLOWEEN PARTY PUNCH

This Halloween punch is a perfect Halloween party food because it's tasty, kid-friendly and easy to make. We call this Halloween party punch 'Vampire Blood' so serve up a glass and watch your guests delight in it's ghoulishly good taste!


Ingredients:
~2 quarts cranberry raspberry juice, plus 1/2 cup extra for garnish
~2 cups orange juice
~1 quart seltzer water
~1/2 cup to 1 cup sugar, to taste
~1 orange, for garnish
~1-2 bottles red sugar, for garnish

Preparation:
In a large punch bowl, combine 2 quarts cranberry raspberry juice, orange juice and seltzer water. Add 1/2 cup of sugar and mix until dissolved. Taste, and add more sugar if desired.

Cut orange into 5 slices, then cut each slice in half. Float orange slices on top of the punch.

To serve in sugar-crusted glasses, pour the remaining 1/2 cup of the cranberry raspberry juice in a shallow bowl. Spread red colored sugar on a plate. Dip the rim of each glass into the cranberry raspberry juice, the into the red sugar. Ladle punch into glasses.

Makes 16-20 servings of Halloween punch.

BRING ME MORE CAKES!

What more could you want on your birthday than to have the coolest birthday cake in town?! I think these would fit the bill....

DEVILISH DESSERT

This is one of those ideas that's so simple, you won't believe that you've never thought of it before! I found this template a few years ago in Country Living magazine, and I've used it so often, I've copied it for my  decorating file.

Here's what happened..... It's the day of your best friend's Halloween party and you said you'd bring a fabulous dessert! Well, you got hung up at work, were late picking up the kids...and forgot to bake the cake! OK. Don't panic. Here's what you do. Go to your favorite grocery store. Pick out a pretty cake (with white icing) and swing down the baking aisle and get some black, orange or red colored sugar.

Once you get home, put the cake on a pretty cake plate and get out your handy-dandy template. Lay it carefully (and flat) on top of the cake. Sprinkle colored sugar over the template. Lift the template off carefully. Abracadabra! It's a masterpiece!

We're so lucky the people at Country Living have this template on their website for you to copy! Click here to view the template!

RISE AND SHINE

Don’t forget about breakfast when it comes to finding Halloween recipes. Nothing tastes better than warm pancakes in the fall, and there are plenty of creative twists for turning pancakes into real Halloween treats. The pancakes above were made using these Halloween pancake molds by Williams-Sonoma.

Here are some ideas for a fun Halloween breakfast:

Add some color: Some natural orange food coloring would turn any pancake into a jolly Halloween pumpkin. If you don’t have pancake molds, you could add some eyes, a nose and a mouth using apple or orange slices.

Add more shapes: Open-top Halloween cookie cutters (metal only) would work for making pancake bats, ghosts, or any other shape. Spray them with non-stick spray before placing on your griddle or skillet, and remove just before flipping.

Here’s a recipe for apple pecan pancake batter to give your pancakes real autumn flavor:
~1 cup flour
~2 tablespoons brown sugar packed
~2 tsp. baking powder
~1/2 tsp. salt
~1/2 tsp. cinnamon
~3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
~2 eggs separated (egg whites beaten until stiff)
~1 teaspoon vanilla extract
~1/2 cup apples peeled and chopped fine
~1/2 cup pecans chopped

Stir together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in mixing bowl. Beat egg yolks in separate bowl then stir in milk, vanilla and apple. Add liquid mixture to dry ingredients, stirring just until blended, and then fold in beaten egg whites. Heat greased griddle or skillet over medium. For each pancake, use about 1/4 cup of batter. Cook pancakes until bubbly on top, and then flip.

KILLER ANT COOKIES

Need to bring something to a Halloween party? Why not whip up a batch of these yummy Halloween Cookies? Buttery, soft and not overly sweet, these ant-covered cookies are easy to make and decorate. Just roll sugar cookie dough in orange and black sprinkles. They're the perfect Halloween party food!

BRAIN DIP AND MONSTER BONES



I found this recipe on this cool site called "Halloween Alliance". I think I have a new favorite website! Check it out!

Brain Dip Ingredients:
1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons tahini (sesame seed) paste
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 cup roasted red peppers (in a jar)
red and blue food coloring
1 round loaf of sourdough bread

Directions:
1.Place all ingredients (except bread) into a food processor. Process the ingredients for 4-6 minutes, until everything is well-blended. While processing, pause periodically to scrape the sides of the food processor to make sure the spices are included in the mix.
2.If the hummus appears too orange for brains, add a few drops of blue food coloring and process again, until you have a nice peachy-pink, brain-like hue.
3.Chill hummus in the refrigerator for several hours. This will allow the flavors to mingle and the dip to thicken.
4.While the hummus is chilling, cut the top of off the bread and use a spoon to hollow out the inside of the loaf. Make sure to save the bread pieces – they are great for dipping.
5.When chilled, spoon the hummus into the bread bowl, smoothing the top to create a rounded mound.
6.Now, it's time for a fun anatomy lesson. Using a toothpick, divide the brain into 2 hemispheres – the right and the left.
7.They say that each time you learn something, a new wrinkle forms in your brain. Use the toothpick to draw squiggly lines in the hummus to create these wrinkles. Pour out a few drops of red food coloring. Dip the toothpick in the food coloring and use it to define the wrinkles.
8. Take a scrap piece of the bread left over from making the bread bowl and shape it into a nose, then place the nose on the bread bowl. Use a little bit of water to make it stick, if necessary.
9. Serve on a platter with chips, bone breadsticks, or pita crisps for dipping.

This recipe makes approximately 8 servings. At the party, unleash your inner zombie!


Bone Breadsticks

These bone-shaped breadsticks are great for dipping! This recipe uses refrigerated pizza dough for convenience. To get the bone shape without having a bone-shaped cookie or biscuit cutter, cut a stencil out of sturdy, thick cardboard and use a sharp knife to cut the dough out around it. This recipe makes about 10 breadsticks, but the number of servings will vary depending on how big the breadsticks are.

Ingredients:
1 18 oz roll of refrigerated pizza dough
olive oil
1 tablespoon Herbes de Provence or Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic salt, or to taste
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
bone-shaped cookie cutter or stencil

Directions:
1.Roll out pizza dough on a cutting board. If you are using a cardboard stencil, brush the dough with olive oil so that it will not stick to the cardboard.
2.Use either the cookie cutter or a stencil and a knife to cut bone shapes out of the dough.
3.Place bones on greased cookie sheet.
4.Sprinkles with herbs, garlic salt and parmesan cheese.
5.Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 5-8 minutes, until breadsticks are golden brown.

Now, with your bones dipped with brain matter, gnaw away!

HOW EGG-CITING!

Wouldn't this be fun to serve up for breakfast? I love it when people get creative.

Make a few hard boiled eggs, let cool. Grab a pencil to draw on the faces, then a few sharpies or some acrylic paints and go to town! You know this would put smiles and giggles on the kiddies faces!

Bon appetit!

EYEBALL CHEESECAKE

By Recipe courtesy of Wilton from Halloween Celebrations

Active Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

Recipe Ingredients

Filling:
~3 pkg (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
~4 large eggs
~2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
~1/4 cup chopped green chiles, well drained
~2 tsp garlic powder
~1 tsp chili powder

Decoration:
~About 6 scallions
~1/4 cup guacamole
~1 black olive, cut in half
~1/4 cup ketchup
~2 tsp chili powder

You will need: Wilton Sports Ball Pan Set

Recipe Preparation:
1. Heat oven to 325°F. Cover both halves of pan set with foil and coat with nonstick cooking spray or use nonstick foil.
2. To make Filling: Beat cream cheese in large bowl with electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time; beat well. Stir in cheese, chiles, garlic powder and chili powder; blend well. Divide mixture between the two pans. Place pans on baking sheets and bake 40 to 45 minutes or until centers slightly shake when pans are jiggled.
3. Remove pans to wire rack to cool 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or until firm.
4. To Decorate: For eyelashes, cut roots from scallions and cut 3-in. length from bottom. Cut in half lengthwise and peel off layers. Cut each layer into fringe, leaving the bottom 1/4 in. uncut. Place in ice water to curl, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, invert pans with cheesecakes onto serving platter; peel off foil. Attach eyelashes with some of the guacamole.
5. Spread remaining guacamole in center of eyeballs and insert an olive half in center of guacamole. Mix ketchup and chili powder in a small bowl. Transfer to ziptop bag and snip off a small piece from one corner. Pipe veins on eyeballs, reserving some for Ghost Toasts.

GHOST TOAST RECIPE
Active Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Recipe Ingredients:
~1 pkg (12 oz) pita bread
~Salt (optional)
~Favorite herbs and spices, fresh or dried (optional)

Recipe Preparation:
1. Heat oven to 375°F.
2. Split pita breads in half through pocket. Cut into ghost shapes with 3-in. ghost-shaped cookie cutter, three cutouts per half. Arrange on baking sheet(s). Coat with nonstick spray. Sprinkle with salt, herbs and spices, if desired.
3. Bake 5 to 8 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp. Let cool slightly on wire rack.
4. If desired, pipe eyes and mouths with some of ketchup mixture left over from veins on eyeball cheesecakes.

For more great ideas and things to buy, click here to see the Wilton website!