One year ago...

Remember last Halloween?  This was Bella's Jack-o-lantern.  I think he looks a bit grumpy!

Witch Hats

These are a great treat to make with kids.  Make the cookies ahead of time and let them assemble the hats.  Fill the hats with whatever candy you like - I think M&M's work well, and I like to mix a few different varieties.  The cookie recipe below is a kind of gingerbread-y chocolate cookie.  If you prefer, make your favorite sugar cookie recipe, replacing 1/2 c of the flour with 1/2 c cocoa.

Chocolate Witches’ Hats

• 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
• 1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 6 T unsalted butter, softened
• 1/3 c packed dark-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 c molasses
• 12 sugar ice cream cones
• M&M's or other small candy
• 12-15 oz melted chocolate (used chocolate dipping wafers, Hershey bars, or chocolate chips)
• Twizzler Pull –n- peels, or other long, thin candy

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, cloves, salt, and baking soda.

Place butter and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add egg and molasses; mix until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Halve dough; shape into disks. Wrap each disk in plastic; refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thick. (If dough becomes too soft at any time, freeze until firm.) Cut dough into 12 circles using a 3 1/2-inch round cutter; space 1 inch apart on baking sheets lined with a nonstick baking mat or parchment paper. Refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.

Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until firm, 11 to 13 minutes. Cool on sheets on wire racks.

Line a baking sheet with parchment.  Using a pastry brush, paint a thick layer of melted chocolate on the top of one cookie.  Fill one cone with M&M's and press the cookie gently on the cone.  Invert carefully and repeat the process with remaining cookies and cones. Chill for 10 minutes to set. Remove from refrigerator and paint entire surface of hats (cones and cookies) with chocolate. Chill until set, about 20 minutes, then tie candy belts around the base of each hat.

Spooky Snacks

Snack-o-Lantern

Cut the top off a navel orange.  Cut a very thin slice off the bottom so the orange sits flat.  Using a paring knife, cut around the peel, then use a spoon to hollow out the shell.  Cut a small slice of the lid off to accommodate the spoon.  Cut out the jack-o-lantern face.  Insert a green spoon and fruit salad, then top with the lid.  A very small paring knife works best for the face.

Instead of fruit salad, fill the snack-o-lanterns with uncut grapes and berries - they'll stay fresh longer.  Wrap in treat bags and tie with a ribbon.  Snack-o-lanterns make great snacks for school Halloween parties - something healthy to counteract all the candy!

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Candy Corn Sugar Cookies

• 1 batch sugar cookie dough
• Yellow and orange food coloring (gel is best)
• Colored sugar, sprinkles, melted white chocolate

Divide prepared sugar cookie dough into three equal portions. Leave one as is and color one other portion yellow and another portion orange.

Line a standard loaf pan with plastic wrap. Gently press layer of uncolored dough into bottom of pan and smooth flat, keeping it at least 1/2-3/4 inches high (you don’t have to use the whole pan if you have a small batch of dough) or larger if desired. Layer orange dough on top of previous layer and smooth. Finally layer yellow dough and smooth on top. Wrap plastic over dough and chill until firm, 30-60 minutes in freezer or 1-2 hours in fridge. Or you can store the dough in fridge for 2-3 days before baking.

Remove plastic and slice loaf into 1/4 inch slices. Trim top of slice to make straight line. Cut each slice into alternating triangle shapes and dip top side in sugar if desired. Bake according to sugar cookie directions. Cool completely and then, if desired, dip ends in white chocolate and decorate with sprinkles.

Happy Halloween!