Halloween Fun

Ella had fun dressing up our dog, Sasha, in the tutu and fairy wings. I think the dog had less fun than she.

Pumpkin seeds for roasting. Check various internet sites for how-to. Basically toss with a little melted butter, add some seasoning (we did cinnamon and sugar) and roast at 300F for about 45 min. 

Frankenmallows! 

 Here's Sunday evening's craft project: Thank you, Pinterest!

Prep and proper supplies is everything here. That, and a few hours standing in the kitchen - these are not a good last minute project.

Gather these supplies:

Bag of fresh regular-size marshmallows
Bag of 6" lollipop sticks
2 bags of Wilton green candy melts
1 bag of Wilton black candy melts
 Large styrofoam - use as surface for holding pops upright

 Optional: clear or decorated cellophane bags with ties (or ribbon) for packaging

This project made 61 Frankenmallows.

Assembly:

1. Poke holes in your styrofoam with a bamboo or metal skewer. (Makes it easier than pushing the lollipop sticks in.) Ensure the holes are far enough apart that the finished Frankenmallows don't "kiss!"
2. Put a lollipop stick in each marshmallow. (Good job for your kid-helpers!)
3. Melt the green candy melts in a double boiler or microwave. (I use my 4-cup Pyrex and the microwave, stopping to stir every 45 seconds or so.) Dip each pop in the green candy, letting excess drip off, then place in styrofoam holder to set up. This depends on ambient temperature, maybe 30-60 minutes.
4. Melt half of the black candy melts as above and dip just the heads. Let candy set up in the foam. (Don't wash your Pyrex just yet.)
5. Melt the other half of the black candy melts, then spoon into a Ziplock bag. Snip a very small corner and carefully pipe the eyes, mouth and "bolts" onto each pop. (After about the first 10 or 15, you may be wondering why you undertook this little project and why you still have 40+ faces left to pipe.) If your candy starts getting hard in the Ziplock, just microwave it maybe 10 seconds or less. Let the finished pops set up.
6. Package in cute cellophane bags, as desired. Watch the kids go crazy about them!

Finished product - fun but a lot of time.

 Here's what you can do if you have left-over black candy melts. Set out wax paper and pipe spider webs and/or spiders. Spiders are just a "blob" of candy in the middle and pipe 8 legs outward.

Pumpkin Rice Krispy Treats

This is the easy 15 minute project and it made 28 pumpkins.

Supplies: rice cereal, mini marshmallows, butter, food coloring (red/yellow), green candy for stems (I used Jelly Bellies) and cupcake papers, if desired.

 Make a batch of Rice Krispy treats. My basic recipe: microwave 1/4 c. (1/2 stick) of butter until melted. Add 4 c. mini marshmallows, stir and microwave until those are melted (stir intermittently). Add food coloring to make a bright orange - remember it will be "diluted" with the cereal so go bright. Add 5 c. of rice cereal and stir well.

To make the pumpkins: set out wax paper and get your handy-dandy scoop (I used the Pampered Chef large). Spray some Pam on the scoop and scoop out individual balls onto wax paper. Try to pack the mixture into the scoop so it stays together, but don't worry if they fall apart a bit. When all mixture is scooped, spray your (clean) hands with Pam and mold the pumpkins into tight rounds and place into cupcake papers. Make a small divot in the center. Add a jelly bean for stem to finish. Viola! Easy peasy and cute to boot.