HALLOWEEN SPIDER BREAD

This recipe comes from a faithful follower, who swears by it! She found it on on of her favorite cooking sites, so I though we'd share it!

Spiders are scary. I guess that’s why spiders seem to be featured everywhere on Halloween. And if you're having a Halloween buffet or just making a special dinner for family, you can make a delicious edible one which will elicit oohs and aahs from everyone. Black sesame seeds are available in the Asian aisle of larger grocery stores.

This giant spider is great at a buffet; the legs serve as breadsticks and the head and body can be sliced. You can also hollow out the body and fill it with your favorite dip. I have also included instructions to make the dough into four individual spider bread bowls for your favorite soup, stew, or chili.

Dough:
~1 1/2 cups warm water
~1 tablespoon olive oil
~3 1/2 cups flour
~2 teaspoons salt
~1 tablespoon yeast

Topping:
~1 egg white beaten with 1 tablespoon water
~2-3 tablespoons black sesame seeds
~2 raisins

Place the dough ingredients in the order given into the pan of the bread machine. Set the cycle on dough. After the machine has mixed for a minute or two, check to make sure there is enough flour to make a soft dough; if it is too stiff, add a few tablespoons more water; if it is too soft, add a little more flour. When the cycle has finished, transfer the dough to a lightly floured pastry cloth.

Form the dough into a ball. Cut 1/3 of the dough from the ball. Pat that 1/3 into a rectangle; with a pizza cutter, cut the rectangle into four strips, then cut each strip in half (legs). Take the remaining dough and cut 1/4 off; form into a ball for the head. Make a ball from the remaining dough to form the body. Brush the pieces with the egg white mixture, place them to form a spider on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and sprinkle liberally with black sesame seeds. Press 2 raisins into the head for eyes.

Let the spider rise until doubled in bulk. Spray with water and place in a preheated 425° oven. Bake until browned, 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool thoroughly.

MINI SPIDER BREAD BOWLS

Prepare the dough as above in Halloween Spider Bread. Divide the dough in four pieces and shape each into a miniature spider according to the directions for the large spider. Bake at 400° 20-25 minutes or until browned and crisp. Cool thoroughly.


When ready to serve, cut the top of the body off and hollow out each spider; fill with chili, soup, or stew!