Harvest scarecrow cookies from McCormick.com
A Halloween party for kids can be much easier for parents who turn a chunk of the treat-making work over to the young party host and his or her guests.
Put a new spin on the candies that are such a big part of Halloween by turning them into edible art supplies in a party activity that has guests decorating their own Halloween-themed treats. Getting the kids involved will not only provide some excitement for them, but can relieve adults of some of the party preparation tasks.
Even those who aren't planning a party might enjoy Halloween recipes for sweets and side dishes like ghost-shaped mashed potatoes or mac & cheese eyeballs that can carry the Halloween spirit right through dinner.
This year, McCormick has offered a number of kid-friendly decorating ideas using tinted frosting, candy and other ingredients to make cute Halloween cookies and cupcakes that can easily be party projects. Nestle has lots of Halloween recipes that use its candies in eye-catching ways that are more fun than just handing them out at the door on Halloween. And if there's too much leftover candy after the trick-or-treating, chop up the chocolatey loot and make it a bit more wholesome by adding it to oatmeal cookies using the recipe below.
The main idea of the decorating party is to let kids produce their own creatively spooky goodies. Before the party starts, set up the Halloween-treat decorating station by covering a table with a large plastic cover that can be removed along with all the spills and leftovers. Next, place the edible decorating supplies on trays that will allow easier access for multiple decorators. Give each party guest a plain sugar cookie and an unfrosted cupcake as a blank slate. These can be purchased or home-baked using the recipes at mccormick.com. After the cookies and cupcakes are spread with frosting in the color of choice, they can be decorated with the child's selection of candies, purchased cookie pieces or shredded wheat cereal, which makes great hair for the adorably cute scarecrow cookies shown.
The goal is to give kids materials to create their own faces and designs, but it might be helpful to display a few finished cookies and cupcakes to give them some ideas. Adult helpers can offer assistance to younger decorators or those who seem unsure how begin.
The cookies and cakes can be the featured party treats, or send them home to cut down on the sugar load if other sugary foods will be offered. If the finished treats will be favors, it's a good idea to freeze them during the party. Freezing the treats solid can avoid the tears and disappointment that can result from a damaged creation. Make the treat decorating an early activity to allow sufficient freezing time.
Small plastic drinking cups make good protective holders that can be placed into treat bags, cinched with a decorative closure and tagged with the maker's name.
Halloween party ideas: Kids decorate the treats
McCormickHalloween party cookies and cupcakes that kids can decorate use frostings tinted with McCormick food coloring and assorted candies.
To make McCormick's scarecrows, a frosted sugar cookie is topped with a sugar wafer hat and shredded wheat hair. Candy pieces make his face. A similar face could be made on a frosted cupcake.
The black cat cookies are spread with food-colored frosting. Chocolate wafer cookies are the ears, its face is made with jelly beans, a cut gum drop and licorice.
Wicked witch cupcakes are made with food-coloring tinted frosting and have a sugar cone hat with candy pieces making the face.
Creepy crawly spider cupcakes are spread with black tinted frosting, covered with chocolate sprinkles. They have candy eyes and eight black licorice legs.
Some of the treats shown require extra steps that might make them impractical for party decorating. The pumpkin cupcakes, for instance, have height added by a mini doughnut hidden beneath the orange frosting. The bloodshot eyes require pools of food coloring to be added and dragged with a toothpick over the white frosting. For the featured treats and others, search "Halloween" at mccormick.com.
Halloween party recipes
SPOOKY SPICE
Halloween blends with fall flavors in the Pumpkin Spice Ghost Cake from Nestle's verybestbaking.com. Covered in cream cheese frosting, it's decorated with Raisinets, black licorice and optional candy corn. The recipe is simplified by the use of a spice or carrot cake mix to which a cup of canned pumpkin is added. Make the cake with kids as a Halloween dessert or a party cake. The Very Best Baking site also other creative Halloween baking ideas including "Dracula's Dentures" and a "Voodough Doll" complete with stabbing pins made of toothpicks and taffy.
Nestle USA
What mom hasn't confiscated the big bag of Halloween candy to prevent every piece from being eaten Halloween night? In that spirit, I've renamed Nestle's candy-studded oatmeal cookie recipe. The recipe calls for Nestle Crunch, but I'll bet a mix of other chopped candy bar miniatures would be pretty interesting and just as tasty.
Pirate Mom's healthfully recycled Halloween loot
Makes 24 cookies
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole-wheat or all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick of butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
8 fun size Nestle Crunch candy bars, coarsely chopped (about 3/4 cup total)
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in egg; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in oats and chopped candy bars. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
3. Bake for 9 to 12 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Note: Two full size Nestle Crunch candy bars (1.55 ounces each) may be used in place of fun size bars.
Halloween monster claws
Nestle USAMonster claw cookies are decorated with chocolate and slivered almonds.
1 package (16.5 ounces) Nestle Toll House refrigerated sugar cookie bar dough, prepared according to package directions
3/4 cup Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate morsels, melted according to package directions
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted if desired
3 fun size Nestle Butterfinger or Nestle Crunch candy bars, chopped
1. Combine melted morsels and peanut butter in small bowl; stir until smooth. Spread mixture evenly onto cookies in a foot shape.
2. Place four almond slivers halfway into the wide end (top of the foot) of the chocolate. The almonds should stick out from the cookie.
3. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon chopped candy bar over the chocolate.
Strawberry pink ghosts
Nestle USAHalloween ghosts in pink are low-calorie meringue cookies flavored and colored by Nestle's Strawberry Nesquick.
3 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup Nestle Nesquick strawberry flavor powder
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 lollipop sticks
24 Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate mini morsels
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Lightly grease and flour baking sheets.
2. Beat egg whites, salt and cream of tartar in small mixer bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually add Nesquik, sugar and vanilla extract; beat until stiff peaks form and mixture is glossy. Spoon meringue into gallon-size heavy plastic bag, then cut a 1/4-inch wide opening at the tip.
3. Place sticks about 6 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Pipe meringue onto baking sheets into ghostly shapes about 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick, 3- to 4-inches wide and 4- to 6-inches long. To make eyes, lightly press morsels into meringues.
4. Bake for 1 hour, 15 minutes or until meringues are firm to the touch. Turn oven off. Allow meringues to cool in oven for 1 hour. Remove from oven. Slide spatula under meringues to release. Store at room temperature in airtight container for up to 3 days.
Kimberly L. Jackson may be reached by e-mail.
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