Halloween Ghost Cupcakes

I just love dressing up my desserts for the holidays. From my winter Snowman Pudding Cups to my Fourth of July Firecrackers, I love tinkering with treats to make them look as festive as they taste.

One of the very best treats to dress up in holiday attire is the classic cupcake. This is sort of like the little black dress of desserts. It’s completely basic on its own, but it’s really easy to style it to give it any kind of look you want.

These Halloween Ghost Cupcakes are a perfect example. The cake itself can just your basic cupcake, mixed up straight out of the package. (I used chocolate, but you can make them any flavor you like.) I also include a from scratch recipe below! 

But when the cakes come out of the oven, the real fun starts. First, you pipe on a simple buttercream frosting, which can be plain white or colored with food coloring. Then, you plop a marshmallow down in the middle of each frosted cupcake and drizzle it with melted white chocolate to make a little ghost. And just to make them extra spooky, you finish off all the ghosts with little candy eyeballs. (You can buy these at craft stores like Michael’s, or order them online.)

Because why settle for an ordinary cupcake, when you can have a cupcake and a cute Halloween pal all in one?

HALLOWEEN GHOST CUPCAKES

(printable recipe at bottom of post)

NOTE: You can use your favorite box mix cupcakes or the from scratch version below!

INGREDIENTS – Cupcakes:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk

 

INGREDIENTS – Vanilla Buttercream:
1 cup butter, softened
3-4 cups icing sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
pinch salt
2-3 tablespoons milk or heavy cream

INGREDIENTS – Ghosts:
1 cup white candy melts
1 Tablespoon shortening or vegetable oil
24 large marshmallows
48 candy eyes

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with themed cupcake liners.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla.
3. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk; beat well. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

For the frosting and ghosts:
1. Place softened butter into a bowl and beat in 2 cups of icing sugar. Add 2 Tablespoons heavy cream and vanilla. Add remaining icing sugar 1/2 cup at a time until you reach your desired consistency.

2. Spoon the frosting into a piping bag with no tip or a circular tip. Swirl the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes.

3. Melt the candy melts with the shortening for 25 seconds, stir, and reheat if necessary. Place a large marshmallow in the center of each cupcake and spoon 1-2 Tablespoons of the candy melts overtop. Use the back of a spoon to help the candy melts move if needed.

4. Repeat with the other ghost cupcakes. After each ghost has dried for about 5 minutes, attempt to attach the eyes – if the candy melts are still too soft, give it another couple minutes before re-attempting.

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XO
Corey, Darryl, Big D & Little D

 

 

Here’s what I used for these Halloween Ghost Cupcakes. Click on images for details! (affiliate links)