Halloween Foods

It's almost Halloween. It's hard to not get a little excited about Trick-or-Treating – either as a kid, as a parent, taking your kids around the neighborhood, or seeing all the kids in their costumes while you're passing out treats.

It's also the unofficial start of the holiday season. As soon as Halloween is over, it's time to start looking forward to Thanksgiving, then the winter holidays – Christmas, Hanukkah, the winter Solstice – then New Year's. Are you ready? I'm not sure I am!

Anyway, today's recipes include six snacky-type Halloween foods, including Spooky Ghost Cupcakes and Pumpkin Cake Roll with Cream Cheese Filling. Enjoy!

BLACK MAGIC CAKE

This comes from the Food Network Kitchen, and begins, “This deep, dark chocolate cake is the perfect canvas for a spooky holiday dessert. Top it with a spider web or a mummy made from melted and stretched marshmallows.” Total Time: 3 hours 35 minutes; Prep Time: 30 minutes; Inactive: 2 hours 15 minutes; Cook Time: 50 minutes; Yield: 8 to 10 servings; Level: Easy.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/black-magic-cake.html?oc=linkback.

Ingredients

Cake:

2/3 cup vegetable oil, plus more for greasing the baking pans

1 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder

1 cup boiling water

2 cups granulated sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon fine salt

1 cup whole milk

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Filling and Frosting:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 teaspoon espresso powder

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch fine salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted

Spider Web or Mummy Decoration:

2 cups mini marshmallows (about 4 ounces)

Cooking spray

Candy spider or candy eyes, for decorating

Directions

Special equipment: two 9-inch round cake pans

For the cake: Position an oven rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment, and grease the parchment and the sides of the pans with oil.

Stir together the cocoa powder and boiling water, and let sit to bloom for 5 minutes (this step intensifies the chocolate flavor in the cake).

Whisk together the granulated sugar, flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together the bloomed cocoa, oil, milk, eggs and vanilla in a medium bowl. Pour the cocoa mixture into the sugar mixture, and stir until smooth (the batter will be thin). Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. Bake until the cakes bounce back when pressed in the middle and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool completely in the pans on a rack.

For the filling and frosting: Heat the cream in a double boiler over low heat, whisking occasionally, until it begins to steam. Whisk in the cocoa powder, chocolate, espresso powder, vanilla and salt until the mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the butter until melted. Whisk in the confectioners' sugar until incorporated. Let the frosting cool completely.

To assemble: Put 1 cake, bottom-side up, on a serving plate or cake stand. Spread about 1 cup of the frosting over the top but not all the way down the side. Top with the other cake, bottom-side up, and frost the top and sides with the remaining frosting.

For the spider web or mummy decoration: Microwave the marshmallows in a microwave-safe medium bowl until they start to grow in size and are soft enough to stir, about 1 minute. Let sit a few minutes until cool enough to touch. Spray your hands with cooking spray. For a spider web, pick up a tablespoon-sized blob of the melted marshmallow and stretch it over and around the cake; repeat so that the strings of marshmallow crisscross one another in many directions, and continue until you have what looks like a spider web. For a mummy, stretch the marshmallow so that all the strings on the top of the cake run in the same direction, leaving a small gap between strings for the mummy's eyes to peek out. Garnish with a candy spider or candy eyes.

Cook's Note: When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off the excess. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.)

PUMPKIN CAKE ROLL WITH CREAM CHEESE FILLING

This comes from Diana Rattray, About.com's Southern Food expert. She writes, “This pumpkin cake roll recipe is filled with a cream cheese filling. Keep one of these pumpkin rolls frozen, in slices, and bring some out when guests drop in. This is the perfect fall or winter holiday cake!” Prep Time: 20 minutes; Cook Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 35 minutes; Yield: 10 servings

To view this online, go to http://southernfood.about.com/od/pumpkins/r/blbb465.htm.

Ingredients

3 large eggs

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup pumpkin

1 teaspoon lemon juice

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

Filling:

8 ounces Cream cheese, softened

4 tablespoons Butter, softened

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

In large bowl, combine eggs and sugar, beating with an electric mixer until thick and light yellow in color. Add pumpkin and lemon juice, mixing until blended.

In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Add to egg mixture, mixing well. Spread batter into greased and waxed-paper lined 10-by-15-inch jelly-roll pan.

Bake at 350 ° for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Cool for 15 minutes.

Place cake on clean tea towel sprinkled liberally with powdered sugar. Cool 10 minutes longer. From 10- inch side, roll cake up in towel. Set aside.

While cake is cooling in towel, prepare filling. Beat together cream cheese and butter; stir in powdered sugar and vanilla and blend until smooth.

Unroll cake. Evenly spread filling over cake. Roll up cake (without the towel). Wrap in plastic wrap. Cover and chill at least 1 hour. Slice before serving. Keep leftover slices refrigerated. This pumpkin roll freezes well, and makes about 10 servings.

SPOOKY GHOST CUPCAKES

This is from The Baker Chick. It makes 20 cupcakes, anc can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoons salt

3/4 cups buttermilk, room temperature

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 large eggs

3/4 cup warm water

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Seven Minute Frosting:

3/4 cups sugar

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

2 tablespoons water

3 large egg whites

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

mini & regular chocolate chips for the face!

Instructions

For the Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350F. Line cupcake tins with liners, set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Make a small well in the middle of the bowl and add the buttermilk, oil, eggs, water and vanilla. Whisk the wet ingredients together and then incorporate the dry until smooth and lump-free.

Fill cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full and bake for 20-23 minutes. Allow cupcakes to cool while you make the frosting.

Place egg whites in the clean bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. In a small saucepan with a candy thermometer attached, combine the sugar, corn syrup and water.

On medium-high heat cook the sugar mixture until boiling. At that point- turn the mixer on medium high speed to get the egg whites to soft peaks. When the sugar mixture has reached 230 degrees F, slowly pour it down the side of the bowl in a steady stream while the mixture continues to run.

Beat on medium-high for about 7 minutes or until the bottom of the bowl is cool to the touch and stiff glossy peaks have formed. Add the vanilla right before you finish beating the frosting.

Pipe frosting onto the cupcakes right away (it gets a bit firm otherwise.) and decorate with the chocolate chips!

Notes:

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

PUMPKIN MUFFINS

This comes from G.E. Appliances. Yields 12 muffins.

Ingredients

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

1/4 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Grease or spray a standard sized muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Cream butter and sugars with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in egg. Add pumpkin and nuts.

Mix dry ingredients together well and add to pumpkin mixture in thirds, alternating with milk. Blend just enough to mix ingredients.

Spoon into prepared muffin pan and bake for 20 minutes.

GINGERBREAD

This recipe is from a no-longer-remembered emailing list. I have a sneaking suspicion that whoever sent it to the list got it from ARM & HAMMER, since it mentions A&H baking soda. The recipe begins, "Sweeten the season with our gingerbread. This simple recipe is the perfect holiday dessert, especially when topped with yogurt or fresh fruit. Just grab a fresh box of ARM & HAMMER® Baking Soda- an important ingredient for great baking and prepare a treat for the whole family." The person who sent it to the emailing list ends this with, "I LIKE MINE TOPPED WITH A DOLLOP OF COOL WHIP!"

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ARM & HAMMER® Baking Soda

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup vegetable shortening

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup light molasses

3/4 cup boiling water

Directions

Sift together flour, Baking Soda, ginger and salt. Using an electric mixer, cream shortening in large bowl until fluffy. Add sugar gradually, beating after each addition. Beat in egg thoroughly; blend in molasses. Gradually stir dry ingredients into creamed mixture. Beat thoroughly. Stir in water. Turn into greased and floured 8-inch square baking pan. Bake in a 350-degree oven 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes; remove from pan and cool on rack. Makes one 8-inch square cake. Cut into 16 servings.

GINGERBREAD CUPCAKES WITH CARDAMOM CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

This comes from Brett Moore, About.com's Gourmet Food expert. He wrote, "I love the taste of warm gingerbread, especially around the holidays. Cardamom is a wonderfully fragrant spice that goes well with gingerbread. If you don't care for cardamom, you can substitute allspice or cinnamon. Reprinted with permission from The Spice Kitchen: Everyday Cooking with Organic Spices by Katie Luber and Sara Engram (McMeel 2009)." Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup boiling water

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon dried lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cardamom Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons dried lemon zest

1 teaspoon ground green cardamom

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease 12 standard-size muffin cups or line them with paper cups. Cream the butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the molasses, egg, and vanilla. In a small bowl, stir together the boiling water and the baking soda until dissolved. Stir the baking soda water into the molasses mixture.

Sift together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, lemon zest, and salt into a small bowl. Whisk the flour mixture into the molasses mixture until the batter is combined.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center of one or two of the cupcakes comes out clean, about 20 minutes.

While the cupcakes are baking, make the frosting. Cream together the cream cheese and the sugar in a medium mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and cardamom and beat until fluffy and smooth. Chill the frosting in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Remove the cupcakes from the oven and allow them to cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the pan. Place the cupcakes on a rack to cool for 30 minutes. Spread the cream cheese frosting generously over the cooled cupcakes.