Candy Corn Rice Crispy Treats

Happy Halloween

I've got a super easy Halloween treat to make your Halloween night even sweeter - Candy Corn Rice Crispy treats.  They're super easy and fun to make and your little (and big) trick or treaters will LOVE them.  

 

Do you remember the blog post about the watermelon rice crispy treats?  I used that same idea (and recipe) to create a Halloween themed snack. 

Candy Corn Rice Crispy Treats

For the outer ring-
4 cups Rice Krispies cereal
4 cups mini marshmallows
3 Tablespoons butter
orange food coloring
For the middle -
5 cups Rice Krispies cereal
5 cups mini marshmallows
3 Tablespoons butter
yellow food coloring

Directions:

Prepare 2- 8" cake pans by greasing with butter or non-stick spray.

Melt 4 c. marshmallows and 3 T. butter in microwave for 2 minutes.

Stir in a small amount of yellow food coloring.  Add 4 c. cereal and mix well.

Spray hands with cooking spray and shape yellow cereal into a ring around the outside of 2 cake pans. 

 

Melt 5 C. marshmallows and 3 T. butter in microwave for 2 minutes.

Stir well.  Pour a spoonful of the mixture over 1 c. cereal and mix well.  

Add orange food coloring to the remaining marshmallow mixture and stir in cereal.

Drop half of the orange mixture into the center of each yellow ring.  Use hands to shape into a circle.

Spoon the white cereal into the center and use hands to flatten into a disk.

Allow dessert to cool for at least an hour in the pan before trying to remove it.  Carefully turn pan upside down on cutting board to remove.

 Use a sharp knife to cut into wedges.

If you're feeling super ambitious, you could even wrap them in celophane bags and pass them out to all the trick or treaters who ring on your doorbell tonight.

Have a great (and safe) Halloween!

Ciao!

Pumpkin Smores Cupcakes

All I can say before this blog post is --- brace yourself!

Pumpkin Smore Cupcakes

That's right --- I went there.  Moist, pumpkin cupcakes filled with creamy, rich, milk chocolate filling on top of a crunchy graham cracker crust topped with a swirl of gently toasted, whipped, sweet meringue frosting and a Hershey's candy. 

Seriously, this is Halloween all wrapped up in a cupcake. 

 

 

Want to see what the inside looks like?

This recipe is compliments of howsweeteats.com.  If I could, I would give her a big hug for this most excellent recipe.  I think a new Halloween tradition was just created at the Davis house.

Pumpkin S'mores Cupcakes

Yield: makes 12 cupcakes
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 16-18 minutes
Total Time: 1.5 hours

Ingredients:

graham crust
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
cupcakes
1 1/3 cups loosely packed brown sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup milk
fudge ganache filling
4 ounces chopped milk chocolate
2 tablespoons heavy cream
marshmallow frosting
6 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with lines.

Combine the melted butter and graham crumbs together, mixing well until combined.






Spoon about 1/2 tablespoon into each cupcake liner, pressing with the back of a spoon to form a crust.
 

To make the cupcakes, whisk egg and sugar together in a large bowl until combined and no lumps remain.










Add in vanilla extract and butter.













Whisk in pumpkin puree.










Add in flour, baking soda, powder, salt and pumpkin spice.













Add in milk and stir until combined and smooth.









Drop about 1/4 cup of batter on top of each graham cracker crust, filling the liners 3/4 of the way full.

Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until cupcakes are set and spring back at the touch. Let cool completely.


 

While cupcakes are baking, heat the heavy cream until warm. Pour over the chopped milk chocolate in a large bowl, then use a spoon or whisk to stir until melted and combined.




When cupcakes are cool, use a corer or a small paring knife to gently take the center out of each cupcake.

Spoon the chocolate ganache straight down into the cupcake center. 

To make the frosting, combine the egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar in a heat-proof bowl, preferably the bowl of your electric stand mixer. Place over top of a double-boiler that contains simmering water, and whisk constantly for 3-4 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and the egg whites are slightly warm. Immediately remove the bowl and place it on your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beating slow at first and gradually increasing the speed to high. Beat for 6-7 minutes until glossy and thick, then beat in vanilla extract for another minute until combined.







Frost cupcakes!

Toast meringue gently and add a piece of chocolate to the top.

 

I didn't eat ALL of the cupcakes by myself.  I shared them with some neighbors and a few of the kids teachers.

These cupcakes might just be the best Halloween treat ever.

I have a few of these tucked away in my frig. to pass out to some of the parents of the trick or treaters who show up at my door tomorrow night.  After all, the parents deserve a treat now and then too.  

Ciao!