Candy Recipes: Left-Over Halloween Confections

{Mini York Peppermint Patty Brownies}
Sunday will be filled with ghosts, goblins, monsters and witches and spook-tacular fun!!  For all of you parents out there who will have loads of candy coming home from your frightful trick-or-treaters, check out these easy recipes that your family will love and can be whipped up in a flash.

Having lots of candy in the house is always fun, but sometimes the sheer volume can be overwhelming.  These fun recipes will help all of that candy "magically" disappear sooner than later.  (Wink! Wink!)

Happy Halloween.  Have a "Thriller" of a night and be safe!

{Dulce De Leche and Snickers Terrine}

{Twix Cheesecake Pie & Skittles Meringues}

{Candy Corn and Pretzel Bark & Frozen Reese's Banana Pops}

{Kit Kat-Filled Angel Food Cake & SweeTarts Milk Shake}

{Twizzlers-Popcorn Snack Mix}

{Peanut M&M's and Jelly Cookies}

{Recipes and Photos courtesy of Real Simple Magazine}

Be Sweet.

-Kristy

Monster Mash!

I was working in the lab late one night...When my eyes beheld and eerie sight...For my monster from his slab began to rise...And suddenly to my surprise...

He did the mash!  He did the monster mash!

What a smashing team!  Stationary meets Bakery and have teamed up to form Scissors. Paper. Cake.  Naomi, from Hello Naomi and Nathalie, from Imprintables have combined their expertise in baking and stationary and are making some amazing creations together.  I love their Monster Mash sweets table.  

This sweets table is absolutely adorable and I have to admit, I'm craving some of those delectable confections this morning!!  It's okay to have sweets for breakfast, right??

{Monster Mash Lyrics by Bobby "Boris" Pickett}

{Images courtesy of Scissors. Paper. Cake.}

Be Sweet.

-Kristy

No-Carve Pumpkins

I'm baaaack!!!  Our honeymoon was absolutely perfect in every way.... I couldn't have asked for anything more.  If you are considering taking a trip to a tropical destination and want to get away from the buzz and demands of life, I highly recommend Jamaica.  The island if absolutely gorgeous, the people are so kind and genuine, the food is amazing.  The vibe there is unlike any other place.  It was so nice to disconnect from the world for a while, but all good things must come to an end.  It's nice to be able to say that it feels great to be back!  

I can't believe that Halloween is literally right around the corner.  Only 6 more days!!  Where did the month of October go??  And for those of you out there who are looking for a quick, easy and clean-up free (always a plus!) way to decorate your fall gourds, check out some of these super cute ideas from Real Simple Magazine.

Be Sweet.

-Kristy

The Martha Rules

{Glittered Pumpkin Centerpiece}

I have always loved Martha Stewart.  She is an icon of our era.  She was able to turn entertaining, gardening, cooking and crafting into a multi-million dollar business.  Her story is so amazing and so intriguing to me.  One woman turned the good things in life into an empire.  Phenomenal. 

I've begun reading her book, The Martha Rules: 10 Essentials for Achieving Success as You Start, Build or Manage a Business.  As a corporate business woman and an aspiring entrepreneur myself, every single piece of her advice resonates with me.  If you are in the midst of discovering what you love to do, working on defining the "Big Idea" that will inspire you and your customers, or seeking the difference between a worthwhile risk and a foolish chance, this book is for you.  

Go after your dreams and transform a personal passion into a business success.  

Anything is possible.  

In the meantime, enjoy some of Martha's fabulous DIY Halloween tablescapes and decor ideas.  Click on the link below the photo for the how-to's.  Have a great weekend everyone!!

{Tattered Tablecloth & Spooky Spiderwebs}

{Candy Jar Treats}

{Printable Labels for Candy Jar Treats!!} - Love it!!

{Pumpkin Balloons}

{Halloween Hang-Ups}

{Halloween Tablecloth}

{Pumpkin Lantern}

Be Sweet.

-Kristy

Pumpkin Pie Bites

Oh how I L-O-V-E me some pumpkin pie!  And these mini pumpkin pies are to die for!!  Bakerella, the queen of cake pops, posted this fabulous recipe on her blog.  I can't help but share it with my fantastic readers.  I have received such wonderful compliments from you all - Thank you!!  You propel my inspiration and desire to continue by leaps and bounds.  I couldn't be more appreciative.

Enjoy this cute and simply sweet recipe.  

Roll out a refrigerated pie crust.  It comes 2 to a pack, so if you roll the crust a little bit thinner than it's packed, you'll have 24 pumpkin cut-outs.

Stuff the pie crust cut-outs into a mini muffin pan. 

Press the dough down, in and around each muffin cup.  Make sure the stem for the pumpkin remains sticking out.  It's a good idea to alternate muffin cups so the stems don't touch - you'll end up baking 2 batches this way.

Fill each pumpkin to the brim with pumpkin filling.

When you pull the mini pies out of the oven, they will be puffed up, but unfortunately gravity takes over and they will fall a bit.  No matter what, they are still so cute!!

Let the pies cool on a cooling rack.  

So easy and so perfect for Thanksgiving.  But, I lets be honest...who really wants to wait until then??  (Sound: Crickets)  I thought so, no one.  

Grab that chocolate and drizzle away!

Delicious!

Looking for something to use (and eat - wink!) right away?  Pipe little jack o' lantern faces on the mini pies.  I promise they will be devoured in a flash.

{Recipe & Images courtesy of Bakerella}

Have a wonderful day and remember, today is all we have.  Take advantage of it.

Be Sweet.

-Kristy

Martha Stewart Does Halloween

{Fly Away Treat Bags}

This month's issue of Martha Stewart Living is chock-full of wonderful, inspirational ideas for Halloween parties, trick or treaters and spooky crafts to keep you in high-style through the month of October.  

Today, I'm showcasing some of her fabulous Halloween Treat Bags and Favors that you can DIY and will certainly impress your guests!  Click on the link below the picture for the scoop on the how-to...

{Skull Treat Box}

{Pumpkin Pouches}

{Halloween Crackers}

{Jack O'Lantern Muslin Treat Bags}

{Creepy Custom Treat Bags}

{Skull Potato Stamp Treat Bags}

{Images courtesy of Martha Stewart}

Be Sweet.

-Kristy

Sweet Treats for Halloween!!

After reading Bakerella's book, Cake Pops, I was inspired try some of my own cake creations in preparation for Halloween.  This was my first attempt at making Cake Pops, or as mine turned out to be, Cake Balls...so there were a few lessons learned along the way.  With that being said, I'm pretty pleased with the turnout.  I know my Dad will be very pleased when his Halloween package arrives filled with these delicious goodies!

Halloween Cake Balls

Ingredients:

- 1 box of cake mix

- 1 can of store bought frosting

- 1 package of White chocolate and/or Milk Chocolate Bark Coating (Ambrosia)

- Festive sprinkles

- Good n' Fruity Candy

Supplies:

- Baking Sheets

-Wax paper

-Ramekins or small bowls for sprinkles

-Deep bowl(s) for melted chocolate

-Spoon(s)

1.  Bake cake according to directions on the box.  

2.  Let cake cook completely (I left mine to cool overnight)

3.  Cut cake into 6 equal pieces.  Take 2 pieces of cake and rub them together to crumble the pieces.  Make sure there are no lumps in your crumbled mixture.

4.  Add 3/4 of a can of cake frosting to you crumbled cake mixture.  Mix thoroughly.

5.  Roll cake and frosting mixture into 1-1/2" balls.  Place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper.  Chill for approximately 2 hours.

Now the fun part!!

6.  Place sprinkles in ramekins or small bowl.  This make it quick and easy to use when you are ready to sprinkle the coated ball...

7.  Line a second baking sheet with wax paper, set aside.

8.  Melt chocolate bark in microwave at 20 second intervals in a deep bowl.  Stir candy coating between each interval.  When the chocolate is melted (not too hot!) you are ready to begin DIPPING!

9.  Grab 3-4 cake balls from the refrigerator and place them on the baking sheet.  Submerge each cake ball individually into the melted chocolate candy coating.  Spoon chocolate over the cake ball.  Scoop your cake ball and tap your spoon against your bowl to remove excess chocolate coating from the spoon and the ball.  Gently slide the cake ball off of the spoon onto the lined baking sheet.  

10.  Quickly sprinkle any jimmies, sanding sugar or decorations onto the coated cake ball.  The chilled ball will cause the chocolate coating to set fairly fast, so you want to move on the sprinkle step!  (For pumpkin cake balls take 1 green Good n' Fruity candy and insert into the top of the cake ball.  Sprinkle with orange sanding sugar.)  Repeat until all cake balls are coated.  Let the cake ball set until candy coating is firm.

Lessons Learned:

• I used orange Wilton Candy Melts for the pumpkin cake balls and it is much harder to work with rather than my normal Ambrosia Chocolate Bark Coating.  I will need to invest in some thinning agents when using candy melts as it is very thick and very hard to get that smooth look on the cake ball.  I love the many colors of candy melts though so I will definitely be using them again.

• Not all Chocolate Bark is the same.  I picked up a different brand of White Chocolate bark that I had seen at another grocery store and figured it would melt and coat just as the Ambrosia brand I've used previously  - Wrong.  If you find a candy melt or chocolate bark that you like, stick with it.  

• Make sure you completely enclose the cake ball with your coating.  What makes the cake ball moist is the oil from the cake mix and frosting.  The coating constricts the cake ball, squeezing it tighter, so if you do not fully enclose the ball, oil will escape from the ball.

Sneak attack of the Chocolate Covered Pretzel Stick!  This recipe is SUPER easy and one of my husband's favorite sweet and salty treats.  Check back tomorrow to learn how to make your own!

Be Sweet.

-Kristy