Haunted Halloween Hunt

I know, I know. We're not America.
But any excuse to get dressed up. Plus it's scary. And I loooove scary.
Ever since I was a little girl, I loved horror movies. Vampires, werewolves, zombies, witches & all things sci-fi/fantasy. They are my go to. A great escape from reality.
I would watch them with my Dad - much to my mother's angst. 
It was a great bonding time. 

Over the years, I've always enjoyed throwing together a Halloween party and some have been an absolute hoot. Usually we encourage people to bring a plate which gets everyone involved and becomes less hassle to try and think of ideas.

Haunting Halloween Favours

What to make when you're either holding a Halloween party or need to bring a plate to one...
In the past, I've covered maggot tomatoes, sticky ribs, and even made an IT clown red velvet cake amongst others...
The below are the easy ones that won't take long and the kids can help too.
I've only made a small amount of each to give you an idea but you can make as many as you want.

Recipe - Scary Spider Eggs

5 Eggs
Salt & Pepper
1 tsp. Black Food Colouring
1 tbsp. Aioli
1 tbsp. Baby Capers
1-2 drops Red Food Colouring
5 Black Olives

Method - Scary Spider Eggs

Fill a saucepan with water and add some salt - place on high heat. Once the water has come to a rolling boil, place the eggs gently into the water. Leave for 5 minutes, then bring the heat down to low.
After 10minutes, place the eggs under running cold water to cool them down and make them manageable.
Crack the egg shells gently, making sure the shell doesn't come apart. Place them into a deep glass bowl. Add your black food colouring to the bowl and pour hot water until the eggs are covered in the black liquid. Set aside for five minutes.
Empty the bowl of water and peel the eggs. Cut each in half and remove the yolks, placing them into a small bowl. Keep the marbled eggs in the fridge to firm up.
With the yolks, season with salt and pepper, add aioli and chopped baby capers. Mix well. Add the red food colouring and stir until well mixed through.
Place the mix into a piping bag, and pipe the red yolks back into the empty egg cavity. 
Slice the olives in half lengthways, place on top of the red piped yolk to form the spiders body. The other half can be sliced finely, then halved for the spiders' legs - make sure you have 4 on each side of the spider body. Ready to serve.

Recipe - Mummy Madness

1 pkt Cocktail Frankfurts
1 Puff Pastry Sheet
1 Jar Sugar Eyes
1 tspn. Cream Cheese
Tomato Sauce for serving

Method - Mummy Madness

Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees Celsius.
Thaw 1 sheet of puff pastry. Cut in half. Slice into roughly 5mm strips then wrap each frankfurt with pastry until they resemble mummies. 
Place onto lined baking tray and place in oven for 10 minutes. 
Remove and allow to cool down so you can handle the frankfurts without burning yourself. 
Using a small knife or palette knife, place a small amount of cream cheese behind each eyeball and attach two to each frankfurt. Serve with a small bowl of tomato sauce (blood! - LOL).

Recipe - Red Eyes

10 Button Mushrooms
5 Cherry Tomatoes
5 Cherry Bocconcini
2 Stuffed Green Olives
Olive Oil
Salt & White Pepper - to taste

Method - Red Eyes

Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees Celsius.
Scoop out the stem and inners of the mushrooms with a spoon or knife. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and remove seeds. Place each half empty side up inside the empty mushroom.
Inside the tomato, place half of a cherry bocconcini. Trim if necessary to ensure the top of the mushroom is flat.
Thinly slice the green olives and place a slice on each mushroom as the eyeball. Place your eyeballs on a baking tray.
Drizzle each mushroom lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and white pepper.
Cook for 10 minutes to soften the cheese and bring the flavour out. Serve!

Recipe - Witches Fingers with Frogs Blood

1 Bunch Dutch Carrots
1 tbsp.. Cream Cheese
1 Slice Green Capsicum
1 Container French Onion Dip
2 Drops Green Food Colouring

Method - Witches Fingers with Frogs Blood

Wash the carrots thoroughly but don't peel. Lay them flat on a chopping board to see the way the carrot lie and slice a small section at the tip where the nail will attach. Trim any stringy parts. Remove the top's so they resemble severed fingers.
Slice the membrane off the capsicum and you will be left with a thin outer skin to slice the nails. Using a small sharp knife, cut triangles out of the skin to resemble nails. Attach with a small amount of cream cheese on each carrot. Place onto serving platter.
In a small bowl, mix the French onion dip and the green food colouring, Place with witches fingers and don't forget to let everyone know what they're eating!

Recipe - Prosciutto Zombie Head

1 large plastic or glass skull head
1 string battery operated small LED lights
15 thin slices prosciutto

Method - Prosciutto Zombie Head

Fill the skull with the lights. Cover the skull with the sliced prosciutto making sure each slice overlays the others so they stick correctly.
Present in darkness on platter and don't forget to turn on the lights!

Happy Hunting!