Gourmet Cookie Bouquets Recipe Blog

Archive for October, 2009

Ingredients:
24 Halloween Themed Baking Cups
1 package (about 18 oz.) chocolate cake mix (or use your favorite flavor)
1 tub (16 oz.) vanilla ready-to-spread frosting (or use cream cheese flavor)
- green food color
- black string licorice
- green gumdrops
12 chocolate sandwich cookies (we use Oreos or Newman’s Own Organic)
24 chocolate sugar ice cream cones
1 cup semi-sweet melted chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Get out a few muffin pans and line 24 of the muffin cups with the paper Halloween themed baking cups. Preheat oven to the temperature indicated on the cake mix package for 24 cupcakes.

2. Mix the cake mix according to the instructions on the box and spoono the batter into the baking cups.  Bake according to the package directions for 24 cupcakes.  Once baked, remove the cupcakes from the tins and cool them completely on a baking rack.

3. In a mixing bowl, mix the tub of frosting together with some green food coloring until you get the desired green color.  Frost the 24 cupcakes.

4. To create the hat and brim, separate the 12 sandwich cookies and remove the cream filling. Set the cookie 24 cookie halves on wax paper. Then trim 24 chocolate ice cream cones so that they will sit well on top of the cookie halves. Melt the one cup of chocolate morsels in the microwave (be careful not to burn …. I suggest melting on 50% power). Drizzle the cookie halves with the melted chocolate and press the cones down into the melted chocolate (be sure to reserve a bit of melted chocolate for the witch’s hair and eyebrows). When the chocolate sets-up, it should hold the cones onto the brim to form a pointy witch hat.

5. Place a pointed hat on each cupcake. Then decorate with the black string licorice for the eyes and mouth, melted chocolate for the hair and eyebrows, and trimmed green gumdrops for the witch’s nose.

These scary good cupcakes are sure to be a hit at your kids school or a Halloween party. They are super easy to make and both the kids and adults will love them! Photo is courtesy of Cutco.  If you are throwing a party and don’t have time to create your own goodies, consider buying one of our Halloween Cookie Bouquets and using it for a creative and yummy centerpiece!

If Halloween is sneaking up on you and there aren’t any treats on your party menu yet, consider one of these simple and creative ideas:

Mummy Sticks:  Coat half of a large pretzel rod with melted chocolate and before the chocolate sets entirely, add two mini M&M’s for the mummy’s eyes.  Place vanilla frosting in a baggie and snip the corner approximately 1/4″ wide.  Twirl the pretzel while adding loose wraps of frosting and allow to dry.

Spider Cupcakes:  Bake cupcakes (any flavor) and coat with chocolate frosting.  Sprinkle with chocolate jimmies to create the spider’s hairy body.  Snip pieces of red licorice and place into the cupcakes for legs.  Cut a large marshmallow in half, stick to the cupcake using a bit of frosting.  Add M&M’s for eyes and a nose.

Carrot Finger Food:  For a fast and delicious vegetable dip, combine 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon dill weed, 1 tablespoon minced onion and 1 tablespoon seasoned salt.  Let chill overnight.  Fill a serving bowl with veggie dip then add 4 long, peeled carrots and 1 baby carrot.  Using dip as the “glue”, add slivered almonds to replicate fingernails.  Serve with fresh vegetables.

Photos courtesy of brightideas.com and familyfun.com

Well trifles were my dessert of choice when going to potlucks the past few months so this summer when the Colorado peaches were at their best, I made this delectable Peaches n’ Cream trifle to bring to a work party.  Everyone loved it …. especially my husband who LOVES peaches about as much as I love chocolate and Oreo cookies.  Now that is saying something!

We received a footed trifle bowl for a wedding gift, but I must admit that until this summer, I hadn’t really used it much.  I don’t know why because it seems that every trifle I made was well-received and it looks impressive when you walk in the door with it.

You can see the final product in the photo above.  I left off the slivered almonds which normally would be sprinkled on top the dessert because a child at the party was allergic to nuts and I didn’t want to take any chances.  That said, the extra crunch would have really added to the final product so you should use them if possible.

Peaches n’ Cream Trifle Recipe

4 cups fresh ripe peaches (about 5 large or 7 medium peaches)
3 Tbsp sugar
1 – 16 oz loaf of frozen pound cake, thawed and cut into 1 inch cubes**
1 – 12 oz container Cool Whip, thawed
2 (3.9 oz) packages of instant vanilla pudding
3 cups of milk
1/4 cup slivered almonds

**We use the Sara Lee rectangular pound cake cut up like this:

Peel the peaches and slice into segments or 1″ pieces – keep cutting until you have the 4 cups. Then place them in a glass bowl and toss them with the sugar. Let stand for 20 minutes or until they begin to juice. Meanwhile, use a hand-mixer on low speed for 2 minutes to mix the pudding in a glass bowl with the 3 cups of milk.