Ghoulishly Good Halloween Treats

Tuesday, 10/20/2009

Photo ©photoXpress.com

Unlike other holidays, baking for Halloween presents a truly unique opportunity to create fun, crazy and even scary treats. Whether you make a pile of “bones,” “frightful spiders” or a “pair of scary eyes” Halloween confections are fun for the whole family!

They also present a great opportunity to get you little ones into the kitchen. Since the holiday is so kid-centric, making treats is can easily become a Halloween tradition. We’ve scoured the internet to find you the best recipes and holiday ideas to help foster your child’s interest in cooking, and get him excited about Halloween.

Sharon Bowers, mother and author of the cookbook Ghoulish Goodies spoke with Epicurious.com about some great tips to keep in mind while cooking with kids:

• Play It Safe
  Cooking with children inevitably raises safety questions. In addition to the obvious—keep little ones away from anything hot or sharp—Bowers stresses the need to make sure everything is edible. Rather than reaching for a toothpick to secure a marshmallow, use a pretzel rod or a dab of icing.
• Lower Your Standards
  Some of your finished products will be less than perfect. Don’t despair. Bowers uses the “50/50 rule”: She’s happy if half of the cookies or candies look nice enough to share. Let kids get creative (and even messy) with the other half. After all, the point is to have some fun with your children, not to turn them into professional food stylists.
• Embrace the Mess
  While she sympathizes with parents worried about kids making a mess of the kitchen, Bowers finds that children are actually less sloppy when you back off and let them do things on their own. She encourages you to be there to assist your son or daughter but also to limit how much you fuss over their work.
• Make a Plan
• The best way to ensure that kids have a good time in the kitchen is to look at each recipe and determine what they will enjoy, what will bore them, and which steps you should do on your own. [Lauren Salkeld, Epicurious.com]

Here are some declicious recipes for your spooky Halloween fun:

• Funny Bones (epicurious.com)
• Mini Halloween Pumpkin Cupcakes (Bonappetit.com)
• Snake Bites Rice Krispies (Parenting.com)
• Glowing Jack-o-Lantern Cookies (Epicurious.com)
• Pecan Caramel Spiders (FoodNetwork.com)
• Icy Witch Ice Cream (Parenting.com)
• Chocolate Caramel Apples with Sprinkles (Sunset.com)
• Choco-Caramel Critters (Parenting.com)
• Meringue Ghosts (Sunset.com)

Want More? Check out this fun video from Epicurious with Dylan Lauren of Dylan’s Candy Bar. She shares decorating tips to make your very own Halloween Haunted House.

Posted by » walden
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