Halloween baking recipes you should try to celebrate the spookiest month of the year

Halloween baking recipes you should try to celebrate the spookiest month of the year

The spookiest month of the year is here and we want to share with you our favourite Halloween baking recipes. From Halloween-themed layer cake to bloody velvet cake, these Halloween baking recipes will surely add more spookiness to this scary holiday!

Chocolate and Pumpkin Loaf

Ingredients

  • 125g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing pan
  • 300g plain flour
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 nutmeg, for grating
  • 175 g cooked pumpkin or butternut squash
  • 100 ml buttermilk
  • 150 g quality milk chocolate
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 175 g caster sugar
  • 175 g dark brown sugar
  • 3 large free-range eggs

Ginger Icing

  • 2 cm piece of ginger
  • 1 clementine
  • 200 g icing sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 170ºC and grease and line a 12 cm x 25 cm loaf pan.
  2. In a bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Add a good grating of nutmeg, and set aside.
  3. Purée the cooked pumpkin or squash, then whisk with the buttermilk in a jug. Melt and add the chocolate, followed by the vanilla extract. Set aside.
  4. Using an electric whisk, cream the butter and both sugars in a separate bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs, whisking continuously, then fold in half the flour until combined, and add half of the buttermilk liquid. Repeat until everything is mixed in.
  5. Pour the batter into the loaf pan, then bake it in the oven for 1 hour, or until golden. Insert a clean wooden skewer into the center of the loaf: if it comes out clean, it is ready. Remove it from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then take it out and let it cool on a wire rack.
  6. While the cake is cooling, make the icing. Peel and finely grate the ginger, then place it in a bowl. Finely grate the clementine zest and put aside. Squeeze the clementine juice into the bowl, then beat in the icing sugar to make a thick but spoonable topping. Pour over the warm cake, sprinkle the zest on top and serve.

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

  • 750 g pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into chunks
  • 350 g sweet shortcrust pastry
  • Plain flour, for dusting
  • 140g caster sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp fresh nutmeg, grated
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 25 g butter, melted
  • 175 ml milk
  • 1 tablespoon icing sugar

Instructions

  1. Place the pumpkin or butternut squash in a large saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes or until tender. Drain pumpkin; let cool.
  2. Preheat oven to 180ºC. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and use it to line a 22 cm loose bottom tart pan. Chill for 15 minutes. Line the pastry with baking parchment and baking beans, then bake for 15 minutes. Remove the beans and paper, and cook for another 10 minutes until the base is pale golden and biscuity. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.
  3. Increase the oven to 220ºC. Push the cooled pumpkin through a sieve into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, salt, nutmeg and half the cinnamon. Mix in the beaten eggs, melted butter and milk, then add to the pumpkin purée and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into the tart shell and cook for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 180ºC/160ºC fan/gas 4. Continue to bake for 35-40 minutes until the filling has just set.
  4. Leave to cool, then remove the pie from the pan. Mix the remaining cinnamon with the icing sugar and dust over the pie. Serve chilled.

Carrot Cupcakes

Ingredients

  • 125 g soft brown sugar
  • 125 ml sunflower oil
  • 2 large free-range eggs
  • 225g plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 clementine
  • 200 g carrots
  • 75 g walnuts, plus extra to sprinkle
  • 200 g cream cheese
  • 110 g icing sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas 6. Line your cupcake trays with paper cases.
  2. Beat the sugar, oil and eggs together. Fold in the plain flour, spices, baking soda and baking powder. Grate in the clementine zest, then add a pinch of sea salt.
  3. Coarsely grate the carrots and chop the walnuts, then fold them into the batter.
  4. Divide the mixture between 12 to 16 cupcake cases, then bake for about 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool on a rack.
  5. Beat the cream cheese and icing sugar together. Spread over the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with extra chopped walnuts.

Spider Biscuits

Ingredients

  • 70 g butter, softened
  • 50 g peanut butter
  • 150 g golden caster sugar
  • 1 medium egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 180 g plain flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 20 peanut butter cups, Rolos or Maltesers
  • 100 g milk chocolate, chopped
  • Icing eyes, or icing to make your own

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan/gas 4 and line two baking sheets with parchment. Using an electric hand whisk, cream the butter, peanut butter and sugar together until very light and fluffy, then beat in the egg and vanilla. Once combined, stir in the flour, baking soda and salt.
  2. Scoop 18-20 tablespoons of the mixture onto the trays, leaving enough space between each to allow for spreading. Make a thumbprint in the centre of the cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until firm at the edges but still soft in the middle – they will harden a little as they cool. Leave to cool on the tray for a few minutes before topping each biscuit with a peanut butter cup, Rolo or Malteser. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  3. Heat the chocolate in the microwave in short bursts, or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water, until just liquid. Scrape into a piping bag and leave to cool a little. Pipe the legs onto each spider, then stick two eyes on each. Leave to set. Will keep for three days in an airtight container.

Halloween Cookies

Ingredients

  • 150 g butter, softened
  • 50 g caster sugar
  • 100 g light brown soft sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 250 g plain flour
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 100 g milk or dark chocolate chips
  • To decorate:
    • 60 g dark chocolate, melted
    • 60 g royal icing sugar, mixed with 2 teaspoons water
    • 20 Maltesers
    • 5 cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies
    • 10 caramel-filled chocolates

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan/gas 4, and line two baking sheets with baking parchment. Beat the butter and sugars together with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and egg and beat again to combine. Stir in the flour and baking powder with a wooden spoon until you have a stiff dough, then fold in the chocolate chips.
  2. Divide the dough into 20 pieces and roll into balls. Arrange on the prepared baking sheets, well spaced out to allow space for spreading (you may need to bake them in batches). Press the tops of the cookies down very slightly using the palm of your hand or the bottom of a glass. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until golden around the edges, then leave to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes. Transfer to wire racks and leave to cool completely.
  3. To make the spider cookies, lay 10 of the cooled cookies out in front of you. Spoon the melted chocolate into a piping bag and the royal icing into another, then snip off the ends using scissors. Pipe a dot of royal icing onto the back of two Maltesers, and arrange these onto one of the cookies to create the head and body of the spider. Repeat with the remaining nine cookies and the rest of the Maltesers. Pipe eight spider legs around the bodies of the spiders using the chocolate. Pipe two small dots of royal icing onto the heads to create eyes, then pipe very small dots of chocolate over the eyes to create pupils. If you like, decorate the bodies with the royal icing.
  4. To make the bat cookies, lay the remaining 10 cookies out in front of you. Separate the cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies, and carefully scrape the cream filling off the chocolate cookie pieces. Cut the chocolate cookie pieces into semicircles using a small serrated knife. Stick a caramel-filled chocolate onto the middle of each cooled cookie using the royal icing, then use a little more to stick a chocolate cookie semicircle on either side of the chocolates to make the bat wings. Pipe eyes onto the chocolates using the royal icing and melted chocolate.

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