(A)
Halloween Cookie Recipe: Eyeball Donuts
Ingredients:
2 dozen plain donut holes
12 oz. white chocolate chips, melted
Blue and green food coloring
24 semi-sweet chocolate chips
Red gel decorator's frosting
Wooden skewers
Instructions: 1. Melt white chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave.
2. Place one donut hole on a skewer and dip into melted white chocolate, rolling to coat. Let excess chocolate drip away.
3. Place on waxed paper to set.
4. Repeat with remaining donut holes.
5. Divide remaining white chocolate into two batches. To one batch, add green food coloring. To the other, add blue.
6. Make a small, round iris on one chocolate-covered donut hole. Immediately add the chocolate chip "pupil" (you can also use mini chips).
7. Repeat with the rest of your "eyeballs," making half green eyes and half blue. Or simply make them all one color.
8. Paint on irritated red "veins" using red gel decorator's frosting.
(B)
Happy Halloween Mini Popcorn Balls
10 cups popped corn
1 (1-lb.) bag miniature marshmallows
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine
1 cup diced dried fruit (papaya, mango or peaches)
1 cup butterscotch chips
Orange food coloring
Place popcorn, fruit and butterscotch chips in large bowl; set aside.
Heat marshmallows and butter in a large saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Stir in several drops of food coloring. Pour over popcorn and candy, tossing to coat evenly. Cool 5 minutes.
Grease hands and form into 3-inch balls. Yield: About 16 balls
Nutritional Information: (Based on 1 serving)
Total Calories 250; Total Fat 8g; Cholesterol 10mg; Sodium 60mg; Carbohydrate 43g; Fiber 1g; Sugars 31g; Protein 2g
Haunted Popcorn Hands:
Clear Polyethylene food service gloves
Candy corn
Popcorn
Ribbon or yarn
Place 1-3 pieces of candy corn at the end of each finger (depending on size of glove), pointy side first, to make fingernails. Fill the glove with popcorn and tie it off with ribbon or yarn.
Popcorn Witch's Hat and Broomsticks
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup light molasses
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2 1/2 quarts warm popped popcorn*
Licorice strings
Candy corn
Wooded skewers
Combine sugar, molasses, water and salt in a heavy saucepan. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring until sugar dissolves. Wash sugar from sides of pan with a wet brush. Cook to 270 degrees Fahrenheit (soft-crack stage on a candy thermometer). Remove from heat; stir in butter. Pour glaze over popcorn and mix well. Shape as directed below.
Witch's Hat:
Pack 1 recipe of mixture into a large buttered funnel or similarly slanted bowl. Immediately turn out the mold and finish shaping into a pointed cone with hands. Cool. To assemble hat, place popcorn cone on a 12-inch black cardboard circle or a 12-inch plate. Decorate brim of hat with candy corn and licorice string tie.
Broomsticks:
Make 1 recipe. Measure 1 cup of mixture to shape into each broom head. Insert wooden skewer for handle. Wrap with licorice string. Licorice strings also may be cut in 2 1/2-inch lengths and used for broom straws. Yield: approximately 9 brooms.
Halloween Kitty
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
6 cups popped popcorn, unsalted
2 8 1/2-by-11 inch oval paper plates
1 6-inch dessert paper plates
Aluminum foil
Licorice strings or colored toothpicks (6 2-inch strips)
Licorice rope (1 15-inch strip)
Light corn syrup for assembly
Combine sugar, water, salt, 1/2 C. corn syrup and vinegar; cook to hard ball stage (250 degrees Fahrenheit); add vanilla. Pour over popped corn and mix well. Line paper plates with foil and press popcorn mixture firmly into them; allow to cool. Unmold.
With a sharp knife cut a wedge from one end of each large oval to form legs of cat. Trim each small round (head) popcorn shape to fit other end of oval (body). Cut licorice strings into six 2-inch strips and rope licorice into a 15-inch strip.
To assemble, heat corn syrup to a boil and brush over body and head shapes where they fit together; press together to form cat. Brush flat side of one cat with hot syrup; arrange 2-inch strips of licorice to make whiskers. Press second cat over first to give a three-dimensional effect. Cut ears from popcorn wedge scraps and attach to head with hot syrup. Shape licorice rope into a tail and attach to body.
Halloween Popcorn Logs
3 quarts popped popcorn*
12 candy sticks (about 4 1/2 inches long)
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
Cellophane and ribbon
Keep popcorn warm in a 300-degree Fahrenheit oven while preparing syrup. In large saucepan, combine sugar, water, corn syrup, vinegar and salt. Cook to hard ball stage (250 degrees on a candy thermometer).
Stir in vanilla. Pour over popped popcorn, stirring to coat. Butter hands; shape about 1 cup popped corn around each candy stick to form logs. Let stand until cool. Wrap each log in clear or colored cellophane or any bright paper. Secure each end with ribbon.
Yield: 12 logs.
*1 ounce of unpopped popcorn kernels (2 tablespoons household measure) makes approximately 1 quart of popped popcorn.
