The desire to decorate around each holiday is growing by the year for me and that desire is not limited to decor around the house. I wanted some thing tasty to eat that brings out the fun of Halloween and dressing up. I ended up taking to stand bys and creating a fun holiday plate that is sure put anyone in the holiday spirit.
I will admit, I borrowed these ideas from others. The peanut butter eye’s came from my mother and the cupcake decorating came from Taste of Home. The peanut butter balls (formerly known around Christmas time as Barb’s Buck Eye Balls) are normally dipped in melted chocolate, but the white chocolate gave the perfect back drop for the eye. The cupcakes (totally cheated and used box cake mix) were intended to have white chocolate spider webs, but there was a disagreement with the white chocolate, so dark chocolate spider webs were born.
Peanut Butter Eye Balls
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 16 oz powdered sugar
- 6-10 oz white chocolate
- 1 Tbls shortening
- Red & Black decorators frosting
Preparation:
- Using a mixer, combine the butter, peanut butter and vanilla until fully mixed.
- Add in the powdered sugar, a spoonful at a time until fully incorporated.
- Roll into small, bite size balls and put in freezer for around one hour to make it easier to dip in chocolate.
- Using a double boiler (or in my case one large pan with boiling water and a small sauce pan resting inside), add shortening and melt fully. Add chocolate and continue stirring until fully melted.
- Using a toothpick, pick up the frozen peanut balls and dip thru the melted chocolate.
- Let chocolate harden and decorate your eye.
- As you can see, I also decorated some by drizzling dark chocolate over the white chocolate for those who are squeamish around the eye ball.
Spider Web Cupcakes
Ingredients:
- One box cake mix and ingredients listed on box
- Colored cake frosting
- 6 oz chocolate chips (up to you whether milk chocolate or dark chocolate)
- 1 tsp shortening
Preparation:
- Make cake mix according to box instructions. Usually makes about 24 cupcakes when using a 1/4 cup measuring out each cupcake.
- Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
- Using a double boiler (or in my case one large pan with boiling water and a small sauce pan resting inside), add shortening and melt fully. Add chocolate and continue stirring until fully melted.
- Pour chocolate into a freezer safe zip lock bag and make the tiniest little snip on the end.
- Put a spider web stencil under parchment paper on a baking sheet and carefully create your spider webs.
- Place in freezer until solid.
- Frost your chilled cupcakes. Take the spider webs out of the freezer and place them gently on top of your frosted cupcakes.
- Enjoy!!!
Happy Trick or Treating!!!
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