Candy Glass: Perfect for Halloween cupcakes. Or anytime (I guess?)

Every year there is a charity bake sale and raffle at my work to celebrate Halloween.  Just so you know, this is probably my single favorite day of work in the entire calendar year.  OK.  Not probably.  It is *definitely* my favorite day!

I always make things for the bake sale that are a little bit over-the-top because I figure that:

1. Each one can be priced higher and thus make more money
2. People might want to buy something they can't make themselves
3. I make it a challenge and I get to try things out that I would never, ever make for just myself

In the past 5 years I've made all kinds of things, including chocolate cupcakes topped with tiny chocolate "dead" trees looming over a cookie gravestone and a molded chocolate coffin filled with white chocolate skulls.  In other words, I go a little bit crazy.

This year I wanted to make something different than ever before.  Looking around online, I found lots of people with photos of bloody cupcakes stabbed with broken candy glass. Heck, even Martha Stewart had a version.

Note: Tons of people not making these cupcakes also had instructions for the glass.  Weirdly, most of them were for blue glass and they were related to theme parties for either Disney's Frozen or Breaking Bad.  (Pretty much on opposite ends of the entertainment spectrum, huh?)    

I decided in making my cupcakes that a few things were really important, and most of them had to do with the candy glass.  (I'll talk about the cupcake manufacture in another post, promise.)  I wanted my glass to be flavored, not just sugar.  Because plain-sugar flavor isn't that interesting.  I also wanted it to be brown.  Both because it would show up better against the frosting and because clear glass could be from all kinds of things, but brown is probably from some kind of bottle.  It's nice to have a story behind my cupcakes, but nobody says that has to be a classy story, right?

Anyway, candy glass turned out to be pretty easy to make.  The vital part is the candy thermometer...or if you are me, the awesome thermometer-spatula that you got as a gift!

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup water
• optional: 1 to 2 tsp. flavoring (I used coffee)
• optional: food coloring

Instructions

1. Spray a 13 x 9 jelly roll or cake pan with PAM spray.  No, like REALLY spray it.  
2. Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan and heat over a medium-high heat.
       
3. Stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture starts to boil.
   
4. Once the mixture is boiling, stop stirring.
   
5. If you want to color/flavor, add now and the bubbles will work to distribute it without stirring.  (I added about 1 tsp coffee flavor extract at this time and it worked to color as well.)
   
6. As soon as the mixture hits 300 degrees, take the pan off the heat.
     
7. Let it sit for just a few seconds while it stops boiling.  (This probably isn't a great idea, but I added another tsp. of coffee extract at this time and stirred it in.  It foamed up pretty good for a few seconds, but ultimately worked.)
      
8. Pour the mixture out into prepared pan.
   
9. Let candy sit until completely hardened and cooled.  At least a few hours.
   
10. Break up the candy.  I used the metal end of a kitchen spoon, because it was small and I wanted shards.  If you are looking to make smaller pieces of candy, you might want to use a mallet or something with a larger surface area.  

And here are the cupcakes, stabbed with glass but before the "blood" was added.  Yeah, you're right.  They look WAY cooler when they are "bleeding!"

Revisting the Magical, Surprise-Inside Bundt Cake: Halloween 2016 edition

In January of this year I posted the instructions for a "surprise" bundt cake: it looks chocolate from the outside, but when you slice into it, it has swirls of color.  This week I made another surprise cake, this time for my annual Halloween gathering.  It was devil's food on the outside, had three colors of vanilla cake in the middle (orange, green, and purple), and was finished off with a chocolate fudge frosting drizzle and orange, green, and purple sprinkles.

The cake was a big hit!  Delicious and pretty....this might be my new go-to, bring-to-everything type of cake!

Brains! Delicious, yummy BRAAAIIIINS!!!! (Strawberry Rice Krispy Treats, shaped like little brains)

Last year for my Halloween gathering I was looking for something "spooky" to serve, foodwise.  I found a kit at Target for strawberry Rice Krispy treat brains.  They were tasty and fun, but the kit only made a small number of treats (like, a sadly small number!) and was a little pricey.  This year, I decided to try to recreate the kit myself.  

Turns out that I not only figured out how to make them, but I  managed to improve upon the taste significantly.  And also, as a bonus upside, the flavoring process is definitely a winner.  So if you are interested in making flavored-but-regularly-shaped treats, Jello is the key ingredient!  

I also had a brainstorm (he, he!  See what I did there?).  If you wanted, I think you could make one large brain instead of many small ones.  Then people could hack off pieces with a big knife.  Let's all be honest: that could be really fun for a party!

Ingredients:

• 7 cups Rice Krispies
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 small (1.5 oz.) package of strawberry Jello 
• 1 package (10.5 oz.) mini marshmallows
• For Optional Decoration: Wilton "blood red" sparkle gel
   

Directions:

1. Measure out cereal in a large bowl
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan/small soup pan
   
3. When butter is melted, add marshmallows
   
   
4. Allow to partially melt (about 30 seconds)
5. Add vanilla
   
6. Stir with whisk
7. Add jello
   
8. Stir with whisk.
    
9. Once marshmallow mixture is smooth, turn off heat
   
10. Add cereal and stir until completely coated
     
11. Turn out onto waxed paper, spread out, and allow to cool to room temp (if you wanted to make regular treats, you would put in a 9x13 inch pan at this point)
    
12. Form into rough ball-shapes (if the mixture is sticking too much to your hands, put a tiny bit of vegetable oil or some Pam spray on your hands)
    
13. Using the dull side of a knife, make a groove down the middle to divide the "hemispheres" of your "brain" Hint: don't use the sharp side ofyour knife.  The sharp side will cut into the cereal and marshmallows, rather than smooshing them out of the way.  (However, be really careful that you don't hurt yourself while improperly using your knife. Real blood on the treats is a bad thing!)
    
14. When completely cool, drizzle red gel down the groove and on the two hemispheres...to add some bloody realism!

Mary Poppins Costume Accessories

I know that it is now January, but I wanted to catch up with several of my older projects that are worth documenting and sharing.

Because I love Halloween (LOVE it!), I decided long before the end of October that I would have two different Halloween costumes in 2014: one for work and one for my now-annual Halloween party.  I also decided to be Mary Poppins for work.  Why?  Well, it is a costume that is mostly based around things that I either already had or could acquire cheaply...a main point in favor of any costume.  More importantly, however, it was something that could be work appropriate if you stretch the idea of business casual just a tiny smidge.  (Although, to be fair, my boss is OK with us dressing up....as long as we don't get too crazy.)

The main costume consisted of a made-by-me black circle skirt with a made-by-me black crinoline under it to give it shape.  (I know, I know.  Not authentic to have Mary Poppins in a swirly skirt.  But it was MY costume.  Also, I made these in 2013 when I made my wind-up doll costume.  Yeah, I know.  That WAS cool.)  A white button-up shirt, black tights, black heels, and black blazer completed the actual outfit.

As for basic accessories, I added a $1 red bow tie--I think I found it at the dollar store--and a red grosgrain ribbon belt (ribbon purchased with a coupon at JoAnn fabrics) that I affixed to itself and my skirt with fashion tape (also purchased with a coupon at JoAnn's).

BTW: If you haven't tried fashion tape, you should.  It works on gaps in shirts, missing buttons, broken hems, keeping necklines up/work appropriate, etc.  I love this stuff!  The best kind comes in pink and black packaging and can come in either a tin of strips or a roll of tape.  Cost saving tip: Don't bother buying the dispenser if you buy the rolls; just keep a set of scissors with it in your drawer/dresser/bathroom.

As for the other accessories, I needed two other things: Mary's distinctive hat and her talking bird umbrella.  I bought the basis for both at the Goodwill.  The hat was a costume bowler-style hat that was new and cost me about $3.  The umbrella had an L-shaped handle and was also about $3.

To decorate the hat, I purchased one piece of thick white scrapbook paper embossed with flowers of different types.  I cut out a few of the flowers, colored the centers yellow-orange, and attached them with double-stick tape.  I also purchased ($1) a small bunch of Christmas greenery that had some berries on it.  I used just the 2 bunches of berries, tucked in the band of the hat.

To make the umbrella, I bought two different colors of air dry clay.  It is super light-weight and sold in the kids' section of craft stores.  My packages were a light, bright green for the main head and beak, and a white for the eyes.  Crayola makes a nice version, but many craft stores have a generic version as well.  Again, I had a coupon for both packages.  I molded the green clay around the l-shaped handle, using the handle as an armature that would support the beak.  I spread the clay down around the main handle, to be sure that it would stay on and sort of become a part of the handle.  I let the surface dry and then added the small white round pieces for the eyes.  The next day, I used multi-colored Sharpie markers to color the beak, add "feathers" to the neck, and add details to the eyes.  Then I left the bird to totally dry for another 2 days.

If I had needed to ditch my costume quickly--for an unexpected meeting with someone important, for example--I would have left the hat and umbrella at my desk with the bow tie, buttoned my blazer, and perfectly ready. Also, I now have all these items and accessories, so a costume party at a non-Halloween time would be no problem (Purim, anyone?).

Most important lesson to impart on costume making: think ahead.  This helps both with the gathering of items and the ability to comparison-shop/save money.  Several 50% and 60% off coupons saved me huge, as did the ability to make a few trips to find just the right items at the thrift shop.

After work on Halloween, a small group of people from work played trivia at Summit Brewery.  We got second place, and so Michael, Tim, Rosie the Riveter, and Mary Poppins had a photo taken to commemorate our near-win.

Halloween Papercrafting

I'm still working on my pre-Halloween catch-up for my projects... and here's one of them:

In order to add a little Halloween flair to my salon picture-frame wall, I needed a few cool and appropriately themed images.  I filled some of the frames with creepy art that I love, but the rest I filled with some fun paper art that I...MADE MYSELF!  Some were free-handed (Frankenstein), others are from direct patterns for paper-crafting (the rats and the cat), and one was from a pumpkin carving pattern (the wolf howling).  All in all a very satisfying afternoon of work.

Oh!  A tip for doing this sort of papercrafting: Find small scissors.  I actually bought a nail set at the dollar store that included a small set of straight scissors and they worked perfectly for this sort of thing.  

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

 One of the great things about fall and winter gatherings is that you can fix warming foods...things that you couldn't dare serve in the middle of summer because the idea of turning on the oven in a house full of people in the heat is just unthinkable.

After I moved into my townhouse, I decided that I needed to start some traditions for my new home.  Since I have a deep and abiding love of all things Halloween, I have held a Halloween party for friends for the past two years.  One of the main dishes that I've served both years is an autumn soup.  It can be left to warm on the stove or in a crock pot, and people can eat more or less of it whenever they want.  Plus, there are so many hearty vegetarian options that it makes preparations for a diverse group of people much, much easier!

This year's soup was a butternut squash-apple variety and the recipe came from (though I'm a bit sad to admit it) Martha Stewart's online presence.  It was really good, simple to make, and warm both in temperature and from spices.  Also, the ingredients are the perfect fall produce combo and the recipe is really quite healthy.

I did not follow Martha's serving instructions, which included a fussy garnish of diced apples and jalapeno slices.  Instead I served it with some optional sour cream and AMAZING pumpkin-cornbread croutons that I got at Trader Joe's.

Seriously, these are the greatest and most unique croutons of all time.  It is like someone took the perfect fall day and somehow transformed it into crouton form.  Am I enamored?  Yes.  Absolutely.  Do I count on ever seeing these croutons in a store again?  No.  Of course not.  Trader Joe's discontinue everything that I truly love!

By the way, what follows is double the size of the original recipe.  So, if you don't want quite so much soup, this version should half down really well.  

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 medium onions/1 large onion, diced
• 2 butternut squash (about 4 pounds), peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 8 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped (I used Haralsons and Galas, I think) 
• 4 tsp coarse salt
• 3 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
• 5 cups water, plus more if needed

Directions 

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. 
2. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften (about 4 minutes) 
3. Add squash and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft (about 10 to 12 minutes) 
4. Add apples, salt, cumin, coriander, ginger, cayenne, black pepper, stock, and just enough water to cover everything.  
5. Bring to a boil. 
6. Reduce to a simmer and cook until vegetables are very soft (about 30 minutes)
7. Puree in batches in a blender until smooth and return to saucepan. 
8. Heat over low, adding more water if the soup is too thick.   
9. Serve with croutons and/or a dollop of sour cream.

Poetry Pumpkin

This Halloween I decided that I would do a few projects that would be crafty but festive for my house.  I found all sorts of amazing things on Pinterest, including the idea of using sharpies to decorate pumpkins for indoor use.  Some people just drew on their pumpkins, some people wrote on their pumpkins, and some people did both (see below).  The basic idea is just to spray paint the pumpkin and then get creative with your sharpie pens!  

My pumpkin was also obviously silver, rather than white.  Mostly because I had silver spray paint already and thought it would look cooler.  I like the way it turned out, but writing on the silver was more difficult than it would have been if I had used a matte color spray paint.  It was also probably harder to read.  

As for what to put on the pumpkin: I can't really draw very well, but the idea of poetry on a pumpkin seemed perfect for me, what with my love of books and all.  I love, love, love Poe's poetry...and basically everything he ever wrote.  However, I already had a passage from Edgar Allan Poe hanging on my wall, so I decided to go for something a bit different: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "Haunted Houses."  

I think that my decorative indoor pumpkin turned out really well.  I made sure to pick a pumpkin that was whole and firm, with no soft or damaged spots.  I also made sure it had an appropriately nifty stem, which I covered with newspaper during the painting process.  I spray-painted it (two coats) about a week and a half before Halloween and it was still in good shape over a week after.      

Here is the poem I used, if you're interested:  

Haunted Houses

 All houses wherein men have lived and died

Are haunted houses. Through the open doors

The harmless phantoms on their errands glide,

With feet that make no sound upon the floors.

We meet them at the door-way, on the stair,

Along the passages they come and go,

Impalpable impressions on the air,

A sense of something moving to and fro.

There are more guests at table than the hosts

Invited; the illuminated hall

Is thronged with quiet, inoffensive ghosts,

As silent as the pictures on the wall.

The stranger at my fireside cannot see

The forms I see, nor hear the sounds I hear;

He but perceives what is; while unto me

All that has been is visible and clear.

We have no title-deeds to house or lands;

Owners and occupants of earlier dates

From graves forgotten stretch their dusty hands,

And hold in mortmain still their old estates.

The spirit-world around this world of sense

Floats like an atmosphere, and everywhere

Wafts through these earthly mists and vapours dense

A vital breath of more ethereal air.

Our little lives are kept in equipoise

By opposite attractions and desires;

The struggle of the instinct that enjoys,

And the more noble instinct that aspires.

These perturbations, this perpetual jar

Of earthly wants and aspirations high,

Come from the influence of an unseen star

An undiscovered planet in our sky.

And as the moon from some dark gate of cloud

Throws o’er the sea a floating bridge of light,

Across whose trembling planks our fancies crowd

Into the realm of mystery and night,—

So from the world of spirits there descends

A bridge of light, connecting it with this,

O’er whose unsteady floor, that sways and bends,

Wander our thoughts above the dark abyss.