Halloween

T r e at s
A Recipe Sampler

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

Clem_9781607740032_3p_all_r1.indd 106

from The Sriracha Cookbook by Randy Clemens

9/8/10 4:36 PM

BlEEdIng mARy
Freezing Bloody Mary mix into ice cubes is a cool idea I picked up when I worked at Modern Spirits Vodka.
As the ice cubes melt, their red color bleeds into the vodka, creating a dazzling drink that changes with
every passing moment. Just know that the first few sips are going to be heavy on the booze since the cold,
carmine cubes are just starting to thaw, so be sure to use top-shelf vodka. makes 4 servings

12 fluid ounces (11/2 cups) premium

Bloody Mary mix

ice cubes in each glass and fill with 3 fluid

ounces room-temperature vodka. Garnish

2 teaspoons Sriracha

with a celery stick and freshly ground black

4 dashes Worcestershire sauce

pepper. Swirl your drink with the celery to

Celery salt

help get the blood flowing.

12 fluid ounces (11/2 cups) premium vodka

4 celery sticks
Freshly ground black pepper
In a medium measuring cup, combine the
Bloody Mary mix, Sriracha, and Worcestershire sauce. Pour the mixture into an ice cube
tray with large ice cube compartments, making eight equal cubes. Place the tray in the

OVER THE TOP TIP The sky is the

limit on this one. If you want more
heat, try a spicy Bloody Mary mix. If
youre brave enough, use Absolut
peppar vodka. And if its a different
garnish youre after, the pickled Green
Beans (page 33) make a great alternative to the ubiquitous celery stick.

freezer for at least 2 hours to freeze solid.

When you are ready to serve, rim each
glass with celery salt. Place two prepared

Drinks and Desserts

Clem_9781607740032_3p_all_r1.indd 107

from The Sriracha Cookbook by Randy Clemens

107

9/8/10 4:36 PM

Dylans CanDy Bar

Caramel apples
Makes 6 caramel apples
6 small tart apples, such as Granny smith
6 (4- to 5-inch) popsicle sticks
Vegetable oil spray
cup each assorted candy toppings (mini chocolate chips,
sprinkles, candy corn, mini marshmallows)
1 (14 ounce) bag soft caramels, unwrapped
2 tablespoons rum, coffee liqueur, coffee, or water

Dylans CanDy Bar

Vampire Cosmo
1 serving
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
red sugar (pucker powder) or a cherry pixy stix
1 ounces (3 tablespoons) vodka
ounce (1 tablespoons) triple sec
ounce (1 tablespoons) cranberry juice
ice cubes
Glassware: cosmopolitan glass
Garnish: wax fangs

Wash the apples and pat them dry. remove any stems and
insert a popsicle stick where the stem was, about 1 inch into
the center. line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly
spray it with vegetable oil. Have the toppings ready in
separate bowls.
Combine the caramels and rum in a small, heavy saucepan.
melt over moderate heat, stirring constantly with a wooden
spoon until smooth and combined well. immediately, working
with one apple at a time, and tilting the saucepan and apple,
dip each apple, turning it to coat three-fourths of it and
leaving the stem end exposed. let excess caramel drip back
into the pantake time to do this or your toppings will not
adhere and you wont have enough caramel mixture for
remaining apples. immediately dip the apple in the desired
topping on bottom and halfway up sides. Transfer apples as
dipped to prepared sheet pan. let apples stand at cool room
temperature or chill until caramel is set and firm. serve on a
platter.

i ngo!t 21
wa ryn
oure n

Dip the rim of a cosmo glass into the lime juice and
then dip again into the cherry-flavored colored sugar.
pour the vodka, triple sec, cranberry juice, and lime
juice into a cocktail shaker with ice. shake well. strain
into the glass and attach the wax fang to the rim.

l if
not coo

from Dylans Candy Bar by Dylan Lauren

from Martha Stewarts Cookies by Martha Stewart

Dulce de Leche Bat Cookies

These creature-of-the-night creations sandwich a rich dulche de leche

filling between chocolate cookies. You will need an aspic cutter to form the
bat shapes. m akes 1 d oz en
1

4 cup all-purpose flour, plus

more for dusting

4 cup unsweetened Dutchprocess cocoa

4 teaspoon coarse salt

4 teaspoon baking powder

4 cup granulated sugar

4 cup packed light-brown

sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter,
room temperature

1 large egg plus 1 large egg

yolk

4 ounces semisweet chocolate,

melted and cooled

2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Whisk together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder. Beat butter and

sugars with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg, yolk, chocolate, and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add
flour mixture, and beat until just combined. Shape into a disk, wrap in
plastic, and refrigerate 1 hour.
2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to D inch thick. Cut out

36 rounds with a 2-inch cutter, and space 1 inch apart on parchmentlined baking sheets. Using an aspic cutter set, cut a triangle, point side
up, in the center of half the cookies, and then use the half-moon cutter to
make one wing on each side of the triangle. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375F. Bake until set, 7 to 9 minutes. Let cool. Top
each uncut cookie with 1 teaspoon dulce de leche and a cutout cookie.
Cookies can be stored in an airtight container between layers of parchment at room temperature up to 3 days.
3.

4 cup plus 2 tablespoons

dulce de leche
(page 291, or store-bought)

rich

a nd

dense

from Martha Stewarts Cookies by Martha Stewart

. 297

U
M

This is every little kids favorite dessertand one of mine

too! Its fun to make with younger siblings or even just after
school. You can decorate the top any way you want. We did
a cemetery, but you can do it as a garden, or even just a
worm hole.

HALLOWEEN DIRT PIE

SERVES 6

CRUST

To prepare the crust: Place the chocolate cookie crumbs in

1 cup chocolate cookie

crumbs

an ungreased 8- or 9-inch pie pan. Add the butter and

stir until combined. Press the mixture onto the bottom

and sides of the pan with the back of a spoon.

FILLING

To prepare the filling: Fill a large bowl about halfway

with ice cubes and add enough water to almost cover

/4 cup butter, melted

/3 cup sugar

the ice.

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a saucepan.

Pinch of salt

Gradually stir in the milk. Add the chocolate and cook

over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes, or
until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 1 minute.

2 cups milk
1 ounce unsweetened
chocolate

Beat the eggs slightly in a small bowl. Very slowly

whisk some of the hot liquid into the eggs to temper
them. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook over low
heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes, or until the mix-

2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

ture barely begins to bubble. (Do not allow the filling

TOPPINGS
5 gummy worms
/2 cup chocolate cookie
crumbs

Kitchen
Shortcuts

6 oval sandwich cookies

Use a prepared chocolate

cookie crust and omit the
crust ingredients and
preparation.
Use instant chocolate pudding and omit the
filling ingredients and
instructions.

84

from Teens Cook Dessert by Megan and Jill Carle

to boil or the eggs will curdle.) Remove from the heat

and stir in the vanilla.
Strain the filling into a bowl through a fine-mesh sieve
and place the bowl in the ice water bath. Stir occasionally for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the filling is cool.
To assemble the pie: Remove the bowl from the ice water
bath and gently pour the filling into the crust. Cut the
gummy worms in half and insert them around the pie
with about 1 inch sticking up. Place the sandwich
cookies upright in the filling and sprinkle the cookie
crumbs over the top of the pie. Refrigerate for at least 2
hours, or until ready to serve.

85

from Teens Cook Dessert by Megan and Jill Carle

2 32

. special days: Birthdays

from Martha Stewarts Cupcakes by Martha Stewart

Wicked Witch Cupcakes

Green-faced,straggly-hairedwitchesmaylookmean,buttheyareactually
sweetchocolatecupcakesdressedupforHalloween.Invertedchocolate
ice-creamconesmakeperfectlypointedhats.Bakeacovensworthandset
themoutondisplaytogreetandtreatHalloweenpartyguests.makes 24

24 One-Bowl
Chocolate
Cupcakes
(page152)or
DevilsFood
Cupcakes
(page34)

1. Tint

buttercream green with gel-paste food color. Spoon a generous mound of buttercream onto each cupcake; using an offset spatula,
smooth into a dome shape. (Or use an ice-cream scoop to place a mound
of buttercream atop each cupcake.)
Place an inverted sugar cone on top of each cupcake, tilting cones
slightly backward. Press two candy-coated chocolates and one piece of
candy corn into buttercream to make the eyes and nose.
2.

3. With a paring knife or kitchen shears, snip licorice laces into pieces

SwissMeringue
Buttercream
(page304)

longer ones (about 2A inches) for hair, and shorter (about A inch) for
eyebrows and bangs. Insert longer licorice pieces into frosting, just below
the sugar cones, to make hair, and press two short licorice pieces over
eyes, slanting them slightly to make eyebrows. Decorated cupcakes can
be stored up to 1 day at room temperature.

Greengel-paste
foodcolor
24 chocolatesugar

cones
24candycornpieces
48brownminicandycoatedchocolates,suchasmini
M&Ms
1 smallbag(about
5ounces)black
licoricelaces

special days: holidays

. 2 33

from Martha Stewarts Cupcakes by Martha Stewart

 ne-BowlChocolateCupcakes
O
withGumdrops

Piped buttercream starbursts and chewy gumdrops make playful toppings

for these ever-popular chocolate cupcakes. As the name of the recipe
implies, all the ingredients come together in one bowl. Using vegetable oil
instead of butter makes an exceptionally moist cake; good-quality cocoa
powder, such as Valrhona, produces a deep, dark color and the best flavor.
White icing and clear gumdrops combine in this elegant monochromatic
motif; use multi-colored gumdrops for a more whimsical effect. You can
customize the cake flavor by using a different extract in place of the vanilla;
for example, anise would complement the clear gumdrops used here
(increase amount of extract to 1 1/2 teaspoons). makes 18

1 1/2 cups all- purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line stan-

3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder

dard muffin tins with paper liners.

With an electric mixer on medium
speed, whisk together flour, cocoa,
sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Reduce speed to low.
Add eggs, buttermilk, oil, extract,
and the water; beat until smooth
and combined, scraping down
sides of bowl as needed.

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

/4 cup warm water

3

3. To finish, fill a pastry bag fitted

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

(page 304)

3/4 pound gumdrops, for

garnish

piping starbursts and

topping with gumdrops

152

2. Divide batter evenly among

lined cups, filling each about
two-thirds full. Bake, rotating tins
halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out
clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer
tins to wire racks to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks
and let cool completely. Cupcakes
can be stored overnight at room
temperature, or frozen up to 2
months, in airtight containers.

with a medium French-star tip

(Ateco #863 or Wilton #363)
with buttercream. Pipe 5 starbursts
around perimeter of cupcake, then
pipe another starburst in the center. Cupcakes can be stored up to
1 day at room temperature, or refrigerated up to 3 days, in airtight
containers. Bring to room temperature and place a gumdrop in
the center of each starburst before
serving.

. any day: piped and topped

from Teens Cook Dessert by Megan and Jill Carle

S wi SS M e r i n g u e B u t ter c r e aM
If there is one frosting recipe a home baker should always have on hand,
this is it. This all-purpose buttercream has an ultra-silky, stable texture
that spreads beautifully over cakes and cupcakes, and can be piped into
perfect peaks and patterns. Swiss meringue buttercream is also less
sweet than other types of frosting, with a wonderful buttery taste. It can
be varied with different extracts, juices, zests, and other flavoring agents,
and tinted any shade. Dont worry if the mixture appears to separate, or
curdle, after youve added the butter; simply continue beating on
medium-high speed, and it will become smooth again. makes about 5 cups
5 large egg whites

1. Combine egg whites, sugar, and salt in the heatproof bowl of a stand-

ing mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly by hand
until mixture is warm to the touch and sugar has dissolved (the mixture
should feel completely smooth when rubbed between your fingertips).

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

Pinch of salt

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted

butter, cut into tablespoons,
room temperature

1 /2 teaspoons pure vanilla

extract
1

2. Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting

on low and gradually increasing to medium-high speed, whisk until stiff

(but not dry) peaks form. Continue mixing until the mixture is fluffy and
glossy, and completely cool (test by touching the bottom of the bowl),
about 10 minutes.
3. With mixer on medium-low speed, add the butter a few tablespoons at

a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all butter has been added,
whisk in vanilla. Switch to the paddle attachment, and continue beating
on low speed until all air bubbles are eliminated, about 2 minutes. Scrape
down sides of bowl with a flexible spatula, and continue beating until the
frosting is completely smooth. Keep buttercream at room temperature
if using the same day, or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate
up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat with paddle attachment on low speed until smooth
again, about 5 minutes.
4. (Optional) To tint buttercream (or royal icing), reserve some for ton-

ing down the color, if necessary. Add gel-paste food color, a drop at a
time (or use the toothpick or skewer to add food color a dab at a time)
to the remaining buttercream. You can use a single shade of food color
or experiment by mixing two or more. Blend after each addition with
the mixer (use the paddle attachment) or a flexible spatula, until desired
shade is achieved. Avoid adding too much food color too soon, as the hue
will intensify with continued stirring; if necessary, you can tone down
the shade by mixing in some reserved untinted buttercream.

304

. the basics

from Teens Cook Dessert by Megan and Jill Carle

When we first found a recipe for bleeding cupcakes, we were

very intrigued. Unfortunately, when we tried them we were not

impressed. They oozed a little if they were hot, but you cant

frost a hot cupcake, so what good is that? So, of course, we

had to come up with our own version. Theyre a little more
work, but they definitely bleed.

VAMPIRE CUPCAKES
MAKES ABOUT 16 CUPCAKES
To prepare the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350F.
Line 16 cupcake cups with paper or foil liners.

CUPCAKES
/2 cup butter

Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat

with an electric mixer on medium speed for 3 to 4 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and mix
for 30 seconds, or until blended. Add the eggs one at a
time, mixing after each addition until completely
incorporated. Add the baking powder and salt and mix
well. Alternately add the flour and milk, half at a time,
mixing well after each addition.

1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
/4 teaspoon salt

11/3 cups cake flour

/2 cup milk

Fill each of the cupcake cups about two-thirds full and

bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the centers spring
back when gently pressed.

FILLING
2 ounces cream cheese

To prepare the filling: Place the cream cheese in a

bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed

/4 cup corn syrup

Red food coloring

for 2 minutes, or until creamy. Add the corn syrup and

mix until smooth. Add the food coloring a few drops at
a time, mixing after each addition, until the filling is
the desired color.

Kitchen
Shortcuts
Use yellow or white cake
mix and omit the cupcake ingredients and
preparation.

from Teens Cook Dessert by Megan and Jill Carle

86

FROSTING
/2 cup butter

2 cups confectioners sugar

2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Green food coloring
Candy corn

Cut a 1-inch-wide by 1-inch-deep hole in the center of

each cupcake, reserving the cutouts. Spoon a heaping
teaspoon of the filling into each cupcake. Remove the
bottom half of the cutouts and insert the tops back into
the cupcakes.
To prepare the frosting: Place the butter in a bowl and
beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 1
minute, or until creamy. Add the confectioners sugar,
milk, and vanilla and mix on low speed for 1 minute.
Add a few drops the food coloring. Increase to medium
speed and mix for 2 minutes, or until fluffy.

Licorice

Spread the frosting over each of the cupcakes and use

Chocolate chips

the candy corn, licorice, and chocolate chips to form

vampire faces.

87

from Teens Cook Dessert by Megan and Jill Carle

H a l l o w e e n T r e at s
from

Bleeding Mary

Vampire Cosmo and

Caramel Apples

from The Sriracha cookbook

by randy clemens

Halloween Dirt Pie

from DylanS canDy bar

by Dylan lauren

and

Vampire Cupcakes

from TeenS cook DeSSerT by Megan and Jill carle

Wicked Witch Cupcakes

Dulce de Leche Bat Cookies

from MarTha STewarTS cupcakeS

from MarTha STewarTS cookieS