There’s nothing better than making and feasting on homemade Halloween treats! Sweet, salty, or savory, the possibilities are endless there’s bound to be a recipe for any one of your cravings. So, what better to get into the Halloween spirit with treats ranging from caramel apples, popcorn balls, to pizza skulls!

What are some pros and cons to baking your own treats? Baking isn’t exactly an easy task. It’s definitely a hobby that takes some skill, trial and error, and practice. Depending on what ingredients you use it can potently lower the fat content, which is good. A con would unfortunately be no matter what you bake it’s mostly going to be unhealthy, filled with flour and an excess amount of sugar. Sometimes when you bake you can find yourself in messy sticky situations. If you do succeed in your dessert making, you’ll be left with delicious treats and a great satisfactory feeling. If the recipe fails, you night be a little frustrated and disappointed.  But, regardless, it’s a fun activity nonetheless.  And, you’ll “kill” with these reciptes:

Pizza Skulls

Equipment:  Skull cake pan — don’t have one?  Just use cupcake tins!

 Ingredients:

• ! (13.08-oz) can refrigerated pizza dough
• 6 tbsp. pizza sauce
• ! ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• ¼ cup cooked and crumbled Italian sausage
• 24 slices pepperoni, chopped

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. Spray skull cake pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Unroll pizza dough and press into a 15×10-inch rectangle. Cut into 6 strips. Drape each strip into skull cavity.
3. Sprinkle with a little cheese, top with 1 Tablespoon of sauce, 4 pepperoni slices and some sausage. Top with remaining cheese. Fold dough over and press seams to seal.
4. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Notes:

• Buy the Skull Cake Pan here: https://amzn.to/2FF5Jda
• I used Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough.
• You can use any pizza toppings you prefer inside the pizza skulls – mushrooms, olives, onions, pepper, pineapple, ham.
• Here is the recipe for our Homemade Pizza Sauce: https://www.plainchicken.com/easy-homemade-pizza-sauce/
• Can freeze baked skulls for later.
• To reheat frozen pizza skulls, reheat in the microwave until warm or wrap in aluminum foil and bake at 350ºF until warm.

 Credits: https://www.plainchicken.com/pizza-skulls/

Black Caramel Apples

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. corn syrup
• 2 tbsp. water
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• Pinch of salt
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• 2-3 tsp. McCormick black food coloring
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter

Instructions:

1. Line a baking sheet with silicone mat or parchment paper
2. Prepare apples; wash, dry and remove stems, Insert sticks or Popsicle/ craft sticks. Set aside.
3. In a medium heat proof bowl, add corn syrup, water and granulated sugar. Microwave for 5-7 minutes until mixture until mixture boils and turns a light amber color. Watch closely and remove immediately after it has reached ideal shade.
4. Stir in heavy cream, followed by salt, vanilla and food coloring. Mix until well incorporated. Finally stir in butter until smooth.
5. Immediately dip and coat one apple at a time. Tilt and rotate to coat completely. Hold over bowl with stick up, allowing excess to dip off or 10-15 seconds. Flip upside down, with stick down, letting caramel set for 15-20 seconds. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining apples.
6. Chill for at least 30-60 minutes to completely set caramel.
7. Can be made up to a day ahead.

Notes:

*If caramel doesn’t immediately stick to apple, the caramel may be too hot and liquidly. Stir until slightly cooler and thicker.

***If caramel thickens quickly, reheat in the microwave or over a saucepan of simmering water until it is pourable consistency again.

Credits: https://www.bakedbyrachel.com/spooky-black-caramel-apples/

Halloween Popcorn Balls

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup popcorn kernels
• ¼ cup butter
• 1 cup white chocolate chips
• 1 10z bag mini marshmallows
• 8 Oreos, broken up
• Halloween sprinkles

Instructions:

1. In a large saucepan melt the butter.
2. Once the butter is melted add in the white chocolate chips and mini marshmallows. Stir on medium-low heat until the marshmallows are chocolate are fully melted.
3. Dump the popcorn and mashed Oreo cookies into the marshmallow mixture and combine.
4. Add in the sprinkles and mix until the popcorn is fully covered.
5. Grease up your hand with coconut oil or butter and start to form marshmallow balls with the popcorn mix, we take about a handful.
6. Place the marshmallow popcorn balls onto a piece of parchment paper and allow them to firm.

Credits: https://www.courtneyssweets.com/halloween-popcorn-balls/