Phant-astic Halloween Cupcakes

Here is a simple vanilla cupcake recipe you can use to make these phant-astic Halloween cupcakes for your little critters this Halloween. These are spooktacular!

Phant-astic Halloween Cupcakes

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

  

• 1 ½ cup sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4 egg whites from large eggs
• ½ cup shortening
• 1 cup 2% milk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, shortening, milk and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Mix at low speed for 2 minutes. Scrape bowl. Add eggs and egg whites and mix at high speed until fluffy and smooth, about 2 minutes. Fill liners ½ to 2/3 full of batter.  Don’t overfill.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean.

Cool 10 minutes in pan then remove, place on wire racks to cool.

Frost and decorate!

Butter Cream Frosting

• 5 oz butter (150 g) butter softened
• 1 cup icing sugar (8 oz)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp hot water

Beat together butter and sugar in a stand mixer or electric hand-beater.  Add vanilla and water. Beat until smooth and creaming.  Makes enough frosting for 12 cupcakes.

Spiders

Make spiders by combining 2 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips and ¼ cup milk in a glass bowl.  Microwave on high for  1-2 minutes, stirring until smooth. Stir in peanuts or cereal and or chow mein noodles. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper. Stick on extra noodles for spider legs and chill. Top each frosted cupcake with a spider.

Ghosts

Melt marshmallow in the microwave for a few seconds and sculpt into a ghost shape.  Once cooled, add facial features with black gel/icing and top cupcake.

Worms

Place a pile of black gummy worms on top of the cupcake.

Pumpkins

Add orange food coloring to icing and frost. Use candy or frosting to make faces.