Candy Corn Cake

Is there a Halloween party in your future?  This super adorable cake would be the hit of your party. 

The complete recipe and a link to purchase the checkerboard cake pan can be found at Wilton.

 Checkerboard Cake Pan rings are used to bake the 3-color cake layers. When you slice cake into wedges, they’ll look like giant pieces of candy corn!

Ingredients:

• Orange Icing
• Lemon Yellow Icing
• Petite Ghosts Icing Decorations
• Buttercream icing
• Assorted Halloween Candy
• white cake mix

Makes:

Cake serves 6.

Tools:

• Checkerboard Cake Pan Set
• Tip: 16

Instructions:

Step 1

Place Divider Ring in one 9 x 2 in. pan from set. Tint 1 cup of white batter orange and 1 1/3 cup yellow; reserve 1/3 cup white.

Step 2

Fill inside small center ring with white batter, inside medium ring with orange batter and inside large outer ring with yellow batter.

Step 3

Carefully remove Divider Ring before baking. Bake and cool 1-layer cake.

Step 4

Divide cake top: mark 2 inner circles, one 1 in. and one 2 1/2 in. from edge of cake.

Step 5

Cover sides and top to 1 in. mark with yellow tip 16 stars, cover area to 2 1/2 in. mark with orange tip 16 stars, fill in center with white tip 16 stars.

Step 6

Attach icing decorations to cake sides. Position candies around cake.

Caramel Apples

Ingredients

• 6 apples
• 1 (14 ounce) package individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped
• 2 tablespoons milk

Directions

1. Remove the stem from each apple and press a craft stick into the top. Butter a baking sheet.
2. Place caramels and milk in a microwave safe bowl, and microwave 2 minutes, stirring once. Allow to cool briefly.
3. Roll each apple quickly in caramel sauce until well coated. Place on prepared sheet to set.

After dipping in caramel, you can then use your imagination to decorate them!  You can use the leaf sprinkles as shown in this pic (which are available in our Etsy shop), or M&M's, Reeses Pieces, chopped peanuts, milk chocolate, chocolate chips, coconut, the possibilities are endless!

Terrific Toffee

I found this delicious recipe for a easy to make toffee over at Better Homes and Gardens.  

Ingredients

• 1  cup  unblanched whole almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped
• 3/4  cup  semisweet chocolate pieces
• 3/4  cup  milk chocolate pieces
• 1/3  cup  white baking pieces
• 2  tablespoons  malted milk powder
• 1  cup  butter
• 1  cup  sugar
• 3  tablespoons  water

Directions

1. Line a 13x9x2-inch baking pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan. In a bowl combine chopped almonds, semisweet and milk chocolate pieces, and white baking pieces. Sprinkle half (about 1-1/2 cups) of the nut/chocolate piece mixture over the bottom of prepared baking pan. Sprinkle malted milk powder over mixture in pan.
2. In a 2-quart heavy saucepan combine butter, sugar, and water. Cook over medium heat to boiling, stirring to dissolve sugar. Clip a candy thermometer to the pan. Cook, stirring frequently, until thermometer registers 290 degree F (soft-crack stage), about 15 minutes. Mixture should boil at a steady rate over the entire surface. (Adjust heat as necessary so that mixture does not boil over.)
3. Remove from heat; remove thermometer. Pour mixture quickly over nuts and chocolate pieces in pan. Immediately sprinkle remaining nut/chocolate piece mixture over toffee. Cool about 1 hour before breaking into pieces. If necessary, chill 15 minutes or until chocolate is firm. Makes about 2 pounds (36 servings).

Peanut Butter Marshmallow Treats

I stumbled across this recipe at busycooks.com, and thought how nice it would be to have these treats waiting for the kids when they come home from their 1st day of school!  Everyone love peanut butter and everyone loves rice krispy treats, so what a great combination!  And it's so quick and easy to do.  Enjoy!


Prep Time: 15 minutes


Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutesIngredients:

•3 Tbsp. butter

•1/3 cup peanut butter

•10 oz. bag marshmallows

•6 cups crisp rice cereal

•24 1" peanut butter cups, unwrapped

Preparation:

Grease 13x9" pan. Combine butter, peanut butter and marshmallows in large microwave safe bowl. Microwave uncovered on high for 1-1/2 to 3 minutes, stirring after 1 minute, until mixture is melted and smooth. Stir in cereal.

Press mixture into prepared pan, using buttered hands (be careful, the mixture is pretty warm). Immediately make 24 indentations in rows in the cereal mixture using handle of wooden spoon. Press peanut butter cups into indentations. Let cool. Cut into squares with a candy in the center of each square. 24 bars