Halloween is just around the corner, so we've rounded up the most devilishly delicious recipes we could find to make you scream with delight.
Halloween has become one of the UK's most eagerly anticipated days and, even if you're not a huge fan of trick-or-treating or horror films, there's still plenty to enjoy. Namely the wide range of hideously good, Halloween-themed recipes that are easy to make and great fun to share!
Here's how to make some of our favourites.
Toffee apples.
The perfect Halloween treat, toffee apples are a guaranteed hit with kids and adults alike. Although they're easy to make, the use of hot toffee means this is a recipe for adults only!
Ingredients.
To make 8 toffee apples, you will need:
8 red apples
400g caster sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
4 tbsp golden syrup
red or black food colouring
8 lolly sticks
Begin by inserting the lolly sticks into the stalk-end of each apple until they're firmly in place, then put a large piece of parchment paper onto a chopping board.
Tip the sugar, lemon juice and 100ml of water into a large saucepan, bring to a simmer and cook until the sugar dissolves, being careful not to stir the mixture - instead, gently swirl the pan to move the sugar around. Next, add the golden syrup and bubble the mixture, without allowing it to boil over, until it reaches 'hard crack' stage (when there is almost no water left in the pan) or reaches 150℃ on a sugar thermometer (if you're using one). To test if the mixture is ready, drop a small amount of the toffee into cold water. If it hardens instantly and is brittle when removed, it's ready; if it's soft, continue to boil.
When the toffee is ready, add some drops of food colouring, swirl to combine and turn off the heat.
Finally, quickly dip each apple into the toffee, tipping the pan to cover each one. Lift out, allow any excess to drip off, place on the parchment paper until cool and you're done! Ideally, these fiendish fruits should be eaten the same day.
Eyeball pops.
Decorate these mini chocolate cake balls to look like eyes and you'll have a spooky Halloween treat nobody will say 'Boo' to!
Ingredients.
To make 10 pops, you will need:
100g/4oz madeira cake
100g Oreo cookies
100g bar milk chocolate, melted
200g bar white chocolate, melted
Smarties and icing pens to decorate
10 wooden skewers
A small pumpkin - or similar - to stand the pops in
Start by breaking the Madeira cake and cookies into the bowl of a food processor, then pour in the melted milk chocolate and blend until combined. Tip the mixture into a bowl then divide into 10 balls and put them in the fridge for 2 hours until solid.
Next, push a skewer into each ball and spoon the white chocolate over the balls until covered. Stand the pops in the pumpkin, place a Smartie on each one while still wet and return to the fridge until the chocolate sets. Before serving, use the icing pens to draw a pupil on each Smartie and wiggly red veins on each eyeball.
Halloween cupcakes.
Your little terrors will love these sweet, spooky snacks which can be decorated to look like black cats, monsters or skeletons. Just try not to eat them all yourself!
Ingredients.
To makes 22 cupcakes, you will need:
200g butter, softened
300g golden caster sugar
200g dark chocolate, melted
2 eggs
250g self raising flour
¼ tsp baking powder mixed with 100ml boiling water
50g cocoa powder
200ml milk
1-2 tsp black food colouring (optional)
For the buttercream, you will need:
300g unsalted butter , softened
500g icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
black food colouring
For the decorations, you will need:
a pack of Smarties
black icing pen
1 pack mixed coloured fondant icing (you'll need pink, green, blue and white)
liquorice and strawberry laces and other sweets such as jelly fangs and liquorice allsorts
icing eyes
First, heat your oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4, then line two 12-hole cupcake tins with cases. Beat the butter and sugar until creamy, then beat in the chocolate and eggs until combined. Stir in the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, milk and food colouring. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases and level the tops. Bake for 20 mins or until the cakes have risen. Leave to cool for 5 mins in the tin, then lift out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Next, make the buttercream. Beat the butter until soft, then stir in the icing sugar a little bit at a time. Beat in the vanilla and black food colouring, then transfer to a piping bag with a plain nozzle.
To make icing eyes, mix up a batch of fondant icing and pipe rounded blobs (for the eyeballs) onto parchment paper and leave to dry. Add pupils to the eyes with a small brush and black food colouring.
To make black cat cupcakes, pipe some black buttercream onto a cupcake and smooth with a palette knife. Pipe two ears by making a blob for each and pulling the icing bag upwards to form a point. Add two Smarties for eyes and use the black icing pen to draw a pupil on each, then add a triangle nose made of pink fondant icing and use strawberry laces to create whiskers.
To make monster cupcakes, cut circles of green or blue fondant to fit the tops of the cupcake and fix them in place with buttercream. Add eyes, noses and mouths made of sweets or use icing eyes.
To make skeleton cupcakes, cut out a skull shape with white fondant and fix in place with the buttercream.
Edible fake blood.
The perfect addition to any Halloween recipe - including those listed above - edible fake blood looks disgustingly realistic and kids will love adding it to their scary treats.
Ingredients.
To make edible fake blood, you will need:
1 tbsp cornflour
45ml cherry juice
250g glucose syrup
red, blue and yellow food colouring gel
Start by mixing the cornflour with 1 tbsp cherry juice, then tip the mixture into a small pan with the glucose syrup and remaining cherry juice. Heat gently over a low heat, whisking well to combine, then remove from the heat.
Squeeze in a good amount of the red food colouring gel and stir well, then add a very small drop each of the blue and yellow food colouring gels and stir again. Continue to add little drops of food colouring, stirring well between each addition, until you reach your desired colour.
This recipe makes thick, gooey blood; if you want it thinner, simply stir in a little more cherry juice.
Happy Halloween!
If you're hosting a Halloween party this year or just want a hot drink to take with you trick-or-treating, we've got you covered - contact your nearest Cafe2U van here and we can provide all your coffee needs!
