halloween treats

Count Down To Halloween

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Monster Cookies

Monster Cookies

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 3 tablespoons hot water
  • green and orange food coloring

For Decorating:

  • 5 licorice all sorts, thinly sliced
  • 20 jelly beans, halved
  • 5 gummy candies, cut into 4 pieces
  • mini chocolate chips
  • mixed candies for decorating

To make the cookies, beat the butter, sugar, and egg with an electric mixer until creamy.  Add the flour. Using your hands, press the mixture together to form a soft dough. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 2 minutes, or until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush a large baking sheet with melted butter or oil. Roll out the dough between sheets of waxed paper to ¼ inch thick. Cut into shapes, using any desired cutters. Put the cookies on the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.  Leave to cool. Divide and sift the confectioners’ sugar into bowls. Add the water and food coloring and stir well.  Dip the front of each cookie into the frosting. While the frosting is still soft, decorate the cookies with candies.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

Count Down To Halloween

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Halloween Cupcakes

Halloween Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups self-rising flour
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

  • ¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • Food coloring to decorate, if desired
  • Raspberry jam, to decorate, if desired

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 18 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Sift the flour and sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla, and beat until smooth. Fill the paper liners three-quarters full with the batter. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cupcakes are golden. Cool on a wire rack. To make the frosting, mix the confectioners’ sugar, cocoa, and butter with a little hot water until smooth. Divide and color with food coloring if desired. Spread over the cakes. Drizzle with raspberry jam if desired.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

Count Down To Halloween

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Thumbprints

Thumbprints

  • 1/3 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons whole milk
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup self-rising flour
  • 1/3 cup instant vanilla pudding mix
  • 2 tablespoons peach or apricot jam

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with waxed paper. Using electric beaters, beat the butter and sugar in a small bowl until the mixture is light and creamy. Add the milk and vanilla, and beat until combined. Sift the flour and pudding mix into the butter mixture and mix to form a soft dough. Roll 2 teaspoons of the dough at a time into balls and place on the baking sheets. Press a hollow in each ball with your thumb or the end of a wooden spoon and fill each hole with ¼ teaspoon of jam. Bake the cookies for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool. Makes about 32.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

Count Down To Halloween

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Coconut Ice

Coconut Ice

  • 2 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 egg white, lightly beaten
  • 3 tablespoons unsweetened condensed milk
  • 1 ¾ cups shredded dried coconut
  • orange food coloring

Brush 13 ¾ inch loaf pan with melted butter or oil. Line with waxed paper and grease the paper. Sift the confectioners’ sugar and cream of tartar into a bowl. Make a well in the center. Add the combined egg white and condensed milk. Stir in the coconut. Mix until well combined. Divide the mixture between two bowls. Tint the contents of one bowl with orange coloring. Knead the color through evenly. Press the orange mixture into the bottom of the loaf pan. Cover with the white mixture and press down gently. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or until set. When firm, remove from the pan and cut into squares. Makes 30 pieces.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

Count Down To Halloween

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Bleeding Fingers

Bleeding Fingers

  • 2 egg whites
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 cup shredded dried coconut
  • ½ cup raspberry or strawberry jam
  • 10 colored jelly beans

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Beat in the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue beating until the mixture becomes thick and glossy. Fold in the coconut. Fill a piping bag fitted with a plain ¾ inch nozzle with the meringue mixture. Pipe 3 ¼ inch lengths onto the baking sheet. Bake for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to 235 degrees F and bake for a further 45 to 50 minutes, or until the meringues are light and crisp. Turn off the oven and leave the meringues inside to cool. Heat the jam in a saucepan over low heat until thin and runny. Pour into a bowl. Cut one end from each jelly bean and discard the end. Cut the remaining jelly beans in half lengthwise. Press the jelly bean on the end of each meringue. Drizzle with warm jam to resemble the blood. Makes 20.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

Halloween Time

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Peanut Butter Alien Cookies

Peanut Butter Alien Cookies

 Ingredients:

  • 1 package (about 16 ounces) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
  • ½ cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup powdered sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • Green decorating icing
  • 1 cup strawberry jam

 Method:

Let dough stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Grease 2 cookie sheets.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine dough, peanut butter, flour, powdered sugar and vanilla in large bowl; beat with electric mixer at medium speed until well blended. Reserve half of dough; wrap and refrigerate.

Roll out remaining dough between parchment paper to ¼ inch thickness. Cut out 14 circles with 3 inch round cookie cutter; pinch 1 side of each circle to make teardrop shape. Place 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until set. Cool on cookie sheets 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.

Roll out reserved dough between parchment paper to ¼ inch thickness. Cut out 14 circles with 3 inch round cookie cutter; pinch 1 side to each circle to form teardrop shape. Place 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. Cut out 2 oblong holes for eyes. Make small slit for mouth. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until set. Cool on cookie sheets 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.

Spread icing on cookies with faces; let stand 10 minutes or until set. Spread jam on uncut cookies. Top each jam topped cookie with green face cookie.

 Makes 14 sandwich cookies

 Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

 THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

 

Halloween Time

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Mint Chocolate Brownies

Mint Chocolate Brownies

 Ingredients:

  • 1 package brownie mix
  • ½ cup butter, softened
  • 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp. milk
  • 1 tsp. peppermint extract
  • 6 drops green liquid food coloring
  • 2 drops yellow liquid food coloring
  • Shaved thin crème de menthe chocolate mints

 Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line bottom and sides of an 8 inch square pan with aluminum foil, allowing 2 to 3 inches to extend over sides; lightly grease foil. Prepare brownie batter according to package directions; pour into prepared pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F according to package directions. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack (about 1 hour).

Meanwhile, beat butter and powdered sugar at medium low speed with an electric mixer until combined; add milk, peppermint extract and food colorings, beating until blended. Increase speed to medium high and beat 1 minute or until fluffy.

Lift brownies from pan, using foil sides as handles. Gently remove foil. Spread frosting evenly over brownies, and cut into 16 squares. Sprinkle with thinly shaved mints.

 Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

 THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.

www.thasc.com

 

Fun Food For Halloween

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halloween-pumpkin-cake
The perfect cake for your Halloween Party. Everyone will enjoy this pumpkin.

Halloween Pumpkin Cake

Oil or melted butter, for greasing
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
Generous ¾ cup light brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups coarsely grated pumpkin flesh

Topping:
3 tablespoons apricot jelly, warmed
A few drops of orange and black food colorings
1 lb. 12 oz. / 800 g ready-to-roll fondant
Black, green and yellow writing icing

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and line a 9 inch round, deep cake pan.

Sift the flour, baking powder and pumpkin pie spice into a bowl and add the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Beat well until smooth, then stir in the pumpkin.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and spread the top level. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, or until well risen, firm and golden brown. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

Brush the cake with the warmed apricot jelly. Knead orange food coloring into about three quarters of the fondant and roll out to cover the top and side of the cake. Trim the edges neatly, reserving the trimmings.

Form the trimmings into small pumpkin shapes, then use the black writing icing to pipe faces and the green writing icing to pipe stalks onto them. Knead black food coloring into the remaining fondant, then roll it out and cut into bat shapes. Pipe eyes onto the bats using yellow writing icing, then place the pumpkins and bats onto the cake to decorate. Serves 10.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.
www.thasc.com

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Fun Food For Halloween

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witches-hats
Fun and easy to make.

Witches Hats

1 package of Keebler Elf Striped Cookies
1 package of Hershey’s Kisses
1 tube of orange decorators frosting

Flip over the Keebler Elf Cookie and apply a nickel sized portion of frosting. Press the Hershey’s Kiss down onto the frosting and cookie. Let harden, and enjoy.

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.
www.thasc.com

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Fun Food For Halloween

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mud-cups
Chocolate cookie crumbs can be purchased in the baking section of your local supermarket.

Mud Cups

Ingredients:
1 package (about 16 ounces) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 containers (about 4 ounces each) prepared chocolate pudding
1 ¼ cups chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (about 15 cookies)
Gummy worms

Method:
Let dough stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Grease 18 standard (2 ½ inch) muffin cups.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine dough and cocoa in large bowl; beat with electric mixer at medium speed until well blended. Shape dough into 18 balls; press onto bottoms and up sides of prepared muffin cups.
Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until set. Gently press down center of each cookie with back of spoon. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
Fill each cup evenly with pudding; sprinkle with cookie crumbs. Garnish with gummy worms.

Makes 1 ½ dozen cookies

Tested in the THASC kitchen. Photo by THASC.

THASC is a unique small American business producing cards and other promotional products.
www.thasc.com

Like us on Facebook. www.facebook.com/thasc1977