Frozen Candy Corn Mousse

Trying to figure out what to do with all that candy corn? Grab a can of evaporated milk and make this sweet, light candy corn mousse.

Makes 5-6 cups

Prep time: 10 minutes

Total time: 18-24 hours

1 cup candy corn
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk

In a small (2-cup) container with cover, combine the candy corn and evaporated milk. Cover and refrigerate overnight, stirring occasionally, until candy corn dissolves.

Next day: Freeze the candy corn mixture for 30 minutes to chill well. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl, and beat with an electric mixer on high speed about 5 minutes or until the mixture is double to triple its original volume. Pour the mixture into a large plastic container; cover and freeze at least 6 hours, or until desired firmness.

Green Bat-inis

(when I clicked on the link to the recipe it took me to a recipe for “Electric Lemonade”, so I’m sure you cam modify this.)

Ingredients

1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
1 cup sparkling mineral water
Dash ginger ale
2 - 3 cups ice
1 cup vodka
Frozen vodka or sparkling mineral water
Mint sprigs and lemon slices for garnish

Directions

1. Chill 4 serving glasses in the freezer. Combine lemon juice, sugar, mint, mineral water, ginger ale, and ice in a blender. Slowly blend until thick.

2. Remove the four glasses from the freezer and pour a jigger (1/4 cup) vodka into each. Top with frozen lemonade mixture.

3. Add a straw and garnish each glass with a fresh mint sprig and a slice of lemon. Makes 4 servings.

Pumpkin and cream cheese in wonton wrappers with caramel dip

12 KRAFT Caramels
1 tsp. water
1/2 cup BREAKSTONE’S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
1 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. flour
1/4 tsp. orange zest
20 won ton wrappers
1 egg white, lightly beaten
2 cups oil
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Make It
MICROWAVE caramels and water in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 30 sec.; stir until caramels are completely melted. Cool 2 min. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Refrigerate until ready to use.

WHISK cream cheese, pumpkin, brown sugar, flour, zest and remaining cinnamon until well blended. Spoon about 2 tsp. onto center of each won ton wrapper. Moisten edges with egg white; fold diagonally in half. Pinch edges together tightly to seal.

HEAT oil in large saucepan on medium-high heat to 350ºF. Add won tons, in batches; cook 2 to 3 min. or until evenly browned. Drain. Cool slightly or to room temperature. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with caramel sauce.

Tips: Since won ton wrappers quickly dry out, keep them covered with a damp clean kitchen towel until you are ready to use them.

Cook won tons as directed. Freeze up to 2 months. When ready to reheat, place frozen won tons on baking sheet. (No need to thaw first.) Bake at 350°F for 15 min. or until heated through.

Coffin Spinach Dip

1 10-oz package frozen chopped spinach(thaw & sqeeze out liquid)
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 package Lipton Veggie Soup Mix
1 can water chestnuts-chopped

Combine all ingredients and chill for a couple of hours to let flavors blend. Serve with crackers and bread cubes.

Spiderweb Nacho Spread Recipe

Recipe Ingredients
•Bean Layer
•2 cans (16 oz each) lowfat refried black or pinto beans
•1/4 cup chopped cilantro
•2 Tbsp lime juice
•1 Tbsp hot Mexican chili powder
•1 tsp minced garlic
•3 large plum tomatoes, sliced

•Middle Layer
•1 1/2 cups thick and chunky salsa
•1 cup (4 oz) shredded Mexican cheese blend

•Guacamole Layer
•4 ripe Hass avocados
•3 Tbsp lime juice
•2 Tbsp minced red onion
•2 large jalapeno chiles, seeded and minced
•1 tsp salt

•Web
•1 cup reduced fat sour cream
•Decoration: a clean plastic toy spider
•Serve with: blue, yellow, red corn tortilla chips

Recipe Preparation
1.Bean Layer: Scrape the mixture onto a 12- to 14-in. round serving plate and smooth into a 10-in. circle with a spatula. Arrange tomato slices around edge of bean layer to make a border.

2.Drain salsa in a strainer to get rid of excess juice. Spread over bean mixture, leaving some of the bean layer showing around the edge. Sprinkle cheese over salsa, leaving some of the salsa layer showing.

3.Guacamole: Halve avocados; remove seeds and spoon flesh into a medium bowl. Add lime juice, onion, jalapeños and salt, and mash until fairly smooth. Spoon over cheese layer and spread into an even layer.

4.Place sour cream in a ziptop bag; seal bag and snip a small tip off one corner. Pipe a spiderweb design over guacamole and onto the plate. Decorate with toy spider. Serve with tortilla chips.

5.You can make 4 hours ahead, cover and refrigerate.

Pumpkin Pie French Toast

(makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons brown sugar
8 slices of bread

Directions:
1. Mix the eggs, milk, pumpkin puree, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, mutmeg and brown sugar in low flat bowl for easy dipping.

2. Dip the bread into the egg mixture on both sides and grill in a pan until lightly golden brown, about 2-3 minute per side.

3. Serve with maple syrup.

Sweet Acorns

“Start with glazed donut holes…

and chocolate frosting, peanut butter or nutella. To me, the choice was obvious–but you do what you want.

You’ll also need crushed toffee bits and/or those little chocolate sprinkly things.

Now, then–to impress upon your mind exactly how easy these little do-dads were to whip up, this is exactly when we started the process. (click link above for pics)

I should have been cool and poured the Nutella in a bowl, but having been raised by wolves, as I was–I just dipped it right out of the container. Don’t tell my family.

Now dip those little suckers in whichever topping you prefer–toffee bits or the sprinkly things.

Oh, I forgot to tell you that you’ll also need a small bag of stick pretzels. Snap about a third off and eat it. Don’t bite it off because that’s just tacky. Stick the pretzel piece in the top of your acorn.”

Honeycrisp Apple Sangria

2 Honeycrisp apples
One 750-milliliter bottle unoaked Chardonnay
1/3 C. peach Schnapps
1/4 C. pisco (I could not find this so I used a bit more peach schnapps)
1/4 C. honey (I used orange blossom)
2 oranges- 1 quartered
1 lemon – quartered
1 lime – quartered
2 cinnamon sticks
2 quarter-size slices of fresh ginger
3 whole cloves
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
Ice
Club soda
Mint sprigs – for garnish (did not use)

Peel, core and chop one of the apples. In a bowl, combine the Chardonnay, Schnapps, pisco and honey. Add the quartered orange, the lemon, lime, cinnamon sticks, the chopped apple, ginger and cloves and refrigerate at least 4 hours. (I let mine sit overnight)

Strain the sangria into a pitcher. Peel, core and finely chop the remaining apple. Peel, section and chop the remaining orange. Mix the apple and orange in a bowl.

On a small plate, blend the sugar and cinnamon. Moisten the rims of wine glasses and dip in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Fill the glasses with ice. Pour in the sangria until three-quarters full. Top with a splash of club soda. Garnish with a spoonful of the chopped apple and orange and a mint sprig.

Apple Cider Caramels
2 cup high-quality apple cider
1 cup heavy cream or whipping cream, divided
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup real butter, cubed

- Pour cider into a medium saucepan and boil on high for about 20 minutes or until the cider is reduced to 1/3 c. Keep an eye on it…it might try to run away. Set aside to cool.

- Line an 8” square pan with parchment paper, making sure to leave about 1” hanging over the edges for easy removal. Coat with a bit of vegetable oil and set aside.

- In a small bowl, combine 2/3 c. cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and reduced apple cider. Set aside.

- In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, 1/3 c. whipping cream + enough water to reach the 1/2 c. line on the measuring cup, and corn syrup. Cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Insert the candy thermometer and simmer until the syrup reaches 234 degrees.

- Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the cream mixture. Add the cubed butter and stir until the cream and butter are fully incorporated. Return the pan to heat and re-insert the candy thermometer. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the temperature reaches 248 degrees.

- Remove from heat and pour the caramel into the prepared pan. Let the mixture cool completely at room temperature or in the refrigerator. I covered the top of the pan loosely with saran wrap and left it out overnight. You could cut the caramels into 1/2” squares and wrap each caramel in wax paper, but I’m lazy so I cut the caramel into 1/2” logs, which meant that I had exponentially fewer pieces to individually wrap. Store in an airtight container or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, but I can guarantee that they won’t last that long. These things are delicious!

Ghostly Pumpkin Pudding

Ingredients
Pudding:
1 package gelatin
2 cups whole milk
1 cup sugar
6 large egg yolks (reserve 2 whites for topping)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin puree

Topping:
2 large egg whites
1/3 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 pinch fine salt
Small candy, for eyes

For pudding:
Directions
Put 1 tablespoon of cold water in a large bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over the surface, do not stir, and set aside until gelatins softens and blooms.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a saucepan that can hold a stand mixer’s bowl above the water. Whisk milk, sugar, yolks, cinnamon and salt in a heat-proof bowl. Set the bowl above the boiling water and cook, stirring constantly with a heat-proof spatula, until mixture begins to thicken and coats the back of a spoon and almost boils, 10 to 12 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat and pour over the gelatin, whisking constantly until gelatin is completely dissolved and evenly distributed. Whisk in pumpkin until combined and completely smooth.

Evenly divide mixture into 12 small 3-ounce cups (paper works fine) and refrigerate until set, about 4 to 8 hours.

For topping:
Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a saucepan that can hold a stand mixer’s bowl above the water. Whisk the 2 egg whites, sugar, cream of tarter, and salt in the bowl by hand. Set the bowl above the boiling water and continue whisking until the mixture is hot to the touch and the sugar dissolves, about 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer bowl to mixer and beat with the whisk attachment at medium-high speed until eggs hold a stiff peak, about 5 minutes.

Spoon topping onto puddings in the shape of a ghost. Decorate with candy eyes and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Tootsie Roll Shooter

INGREDIENTS:

* 1/3 oz. Tia Maria

* 1/3 oz. Brown Creme de Cacao

* 1/3 oz. Frangelico DIRECTIONS: Pour the ingredients into a shot glass and serve. It doesn’t get any easier than that!

“The Morticia”

“Can’t you just see Morticia and Gomez toasting the ghouls and goblins with one of these devilish champagne cocktails in hand? A whisper of black sugar on the rim makes it extra wicked. Be afraid, be very afraid! “

2 cups ice
8 oz. St-Germain liqueur 4 oz. acai berry juice
4 oz. Absolut Citron vodka
Juice of 1 lime, freshly squeezed
1 bottle champagne, chilled

In a small pitcher filled with ice, mix together St-Germain, acai berry juice, vodka, and lime juice. Strain about 1-½ oz. to fill the bottom third of each champagne flutes. Rim the glass with black sugar (easy to make with black food coloring and sugar if you can find it in your local store). Top with champagne. Serves 4. Adapted from Show Stopper from The Stylish Girl’s Guide to Fabulous Cocktails by Colleen Mullaney.

Vampire Bites

Prep Time: 20 min.
Bake Time: 7-10 min.
Decoration Time: 15 min.
Difficulty: Easy
Yield: Makes 24 bites

. 1 ½ cups flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup butter, softened
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
Red food coloring
¼ cup red decorator’s sugar
24 pieces MILKY WAY® Minis
1 tube vanilla frosting
Plastic wrap
Electric mixer
Large bowl
Medium bowl
2 cookie sheet pans

1. Combine the flour, baking soda and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.

2. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the egg; beat well. Slowly add the flour mixture into the dough until blended. Add enough food coloring to tint the dough a bright red. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line the cookie sheet pans with the parchment paper.

4. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness. Use a cookie cutter to cut out 24 lip shapes. Otherwise, you can form the dough into 24 balls and flatten each slightly to create free-form shaped lips using your hands to pinch and shape the dough. Transfer these to the prepared cookie sheets. Re-roll the scraps if necessary.

5. Sprinkle the cookies with red sugar. Bake 7-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven, and immediately press a MILKY WAY® Minis into the center of each cookie. Cool completely. Use vanilla frosting to pipe fangs over the candy.

Tip: If short on time, consider using store-bought refrigerated sugar cookie dough. Begin by kneading 2/3 cup of flour into the dough, then roll and cut according to the above directions. One roll of cookie dough makes approximately 18 cookies.

Halloween Treats: Syrian Hummus and Homemade Crunchers (click here for recipe)

Midnight Moon Cake

Prep Time: 25 min.
Bake Time: 50-55 min.
Decoration Time: 10 min.
Difficulty: Easy
Yield: Makes 16 servings.

23 chocolate wafers (reserve 3 wafers for the bat wings)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup chopped TWIX® Cookie Bars
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2/3 cup chopped MILKY WAY® Bars
1/4 cup lowfat milk
3 packages (8 oz. each) fat free cream cheese, room temperature
4 large eggs
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Yellow food coloring
3 M&M’S® Brand Peanut Butter Chocolate Candies
1 8-inch round spring form pan(s)

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare the baking pan. Line the bottom of an 8-inch round spring form pan with heavy-duty foil. Grease the pan’s sides and bottom. Wrap foil around the outside of the pan; set aside.

2. Process 20 chocolate wafers, 2 tablespoons of sugar and TWIX® Cookie Bars in a food processor fitted with a metal blade until finely ground. Add the melted butter and pulse until combined. Press the mixture evenly around the bottom of the prepared pan. Place that pan into a larger pan, such as a shallow roasting pan. Set aside.

3. Prepare the batter by heating MILKY WAY® Bars and milk in a microwave until melted, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Set aside.

4. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and 3/4 cup sugar until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5. Divide the batter between two mixing bowls. In one bowl, add cocoa powder and the chocolate mixture; stir until blended. Pour chocolate batter into the bottom of the prepared cake pan. Tint the remaining bowl of batter yellow. Gently spoon this yellow batter on top of the chocolate layer, covering it completely.

6. Before baking, create a water bath to keep the top of the cheesecake from badly cracking. Carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan until it comes halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the cheesecake sets with a 2-inch jiggly circle in the center. Turn off the oven and let the cheesecake remain inside for 30 minutes with the door ajar. At this time, remove the roasting pan to a wire rack, and allow the cheesecake to cool in the water bath until it lowers to room temperature. Remove the cheesecake pan from the water bath and loosely cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before cutting into wedges.

7. To unmold the cake, gently run a small knife around the pan’s edges; loosen the hinge, and remove the cake. Place on a serving platter.

8. To make the bats, cut the 3 reserved cookie wafers in half. Either leave the edges jagged or, using a small cookie cutter, press out a scalloped edge. Arrange pairs of the cookie halves close together to resemble bat wings, pressing the inside tips slightly into the top of the cake. Place black M&M’S® Brand Peanut Butter Chocolate Candies in between for the bats’ bodies.