HALLOWEEN SUGAR COOKIES #1

You will need:

3/4 cup shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup milk
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
food coloring
Almond Icing (recipe follows)

Here's what you do:

1. In a large bowl cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy
2. beat in eggs and almond extract.
3. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking and salt; blend into creamed mixture. Wrap and refrigerate dough 2 to 3 hours. Or chill at least 1 hour before cutting out cookies.
4. Have an adult preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Working with half the dough at a time on a lightly floured surface, roll to 1/8-inch thickness.
5. Cut into desired Halloween shapes using 3-inch cookie cutters. Using a rigid spatula carefully transfer to ungreased cookie sheets.
6. Bake 8 to ten minutes. Cool completely on wire racks. Frost with specially colored vanilla icing.(makes about 4 dozen cookies)

Almond Icing:

2 cups powdered sugar until well blended; add 1/2 teaspoon Almond extract. Blend 1/8 cup milk to start possibly 1/4 cup, one tablespoon at a time, until of spreading consistency. Divide icing evenly into small bowls, one per color. Add food coloring until mixtures are desired color.

Suggestion:

Homemade recipe is better than storebought.

Short cut:

Roll out store bought refrigerated dough and cut out shapes with cookie cutter. Bake and cool as directed. Add food coloring to instant frosting; frost cookies.

HALLOWEEN SUGAR COOKIES #2

You will need:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1/4 cup solid vegetable shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
4 tablespoons milk
4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
food coloring
Vanilla Icing (recipe follows)

Here's what you do:

1. In a large bowl cream butter, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy
2. beat in eggs and vanilla.
3. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; blend into creamed mixture. Wrap and refrigerate dough 2 to 3 hours.
4. Have an adult preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Working with half the dough at a time on a lightly floured surface, roll to 1/8-inch thickness.
5. Cut into desired Halloween shapes using 3-inch cookie cutters. Using a rigid spatula carefully transfer to ungreased cookie sheets.
6. Bake 8 to ten minutes. Cool completely on wire racks. Frost with specially colored vanilla icing.(makes about 4 dozen cookies)

Vanilla Icing:

Beat 6 tablespoons butter and 4 cups powdered sugar until well blended; add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Blend in 3 to 4 tablespoons milk, one tablespoon at a time, until of spreading consistency. Divide icing evenly into small bowls, one per color. Add food coloring until mixtures are desired color.

Short cut:

Roll out store bought refrigerated dough and cut out shapes with cookie cutter. Bake and cool as directed. Add food coloring to instant frosting; frost cookies.

MONSTER BREATH PUNCH

Here's what you do:

Mix together 8 cups cranberry juice, 6 cups sparkling apple cider, and 6 orange slices for some rosy punch that is "fang"tastic!

WORM FILLED APPLES

Here's what you do:

Have a grown-up preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Core 12 large apples and stuff each hole with a teaspoon of jam (your favorite flavor will do) and butter. Place in a pan and cook the apples for 35 to 45 minutes until they're tender (not too mushy). Take out of the oven (be careful, they're hot!) and let cool. Then take 12 gummy worms and place one in each apple so that you only see half of its body poking out. (Gross!!!)

REAL LOOKING BLOOD

Here's what you do:

1. Place 3 tablespoons of cornstarch in a bowl.
2. Slowly add 3 tablespoons of water, stirring constantly.
3. Mix 3 tablespoons corn syrup and 3 tablespoons water.
4. Mix the corn starch mixture and the corn syrup mixtures together.
5. Add one blue(ONLY ONE DROP OF BLUE) red food coloring one drop at a time until desired color is achieved.

MONSTER BLOOD POPSICKLES

Here's what you do:

Freeze lime-aid in ice cube trays with wooden popsicle sticks--and enjoy a ghastly green treat.

(As most people know, the blood of a monster is green. However, don't be afraid to experiment with other creepy color combinations.)

GRAVEYARD SURPRISE

Dig into this sweet treat and you'll discover "bone" bits, worms, and other monstrous morsels!

You will need:

1 package instant chocolate pudding mix prepared according to directions on the box.
8 oz. tub of whipped topping, thawed.
8 oz. chocolate sandwich or wafer cookies.
1 small can or pack of flaked coconut.
Green food color.
2 white chocolate bars (any kind).
Chewy candy worms, insects, and/or flies.(the grosser, the better!)

Here's what you do:

1. Crush cookies to fine crumbs.
2. Break up white chocolate into "bonelike" pieces.
3. Stir whipped topping into prepared pudding. Mix in cookie crumbs, white chocolate pieces and candy worms. Pour into a 9" x 13" pan and refrigerate.
4. Place coconut in plastic bag and add 3 drops of food coloring. Shake to mix. Add more food coloring and mix to get a nice, grassy shade of green. Sprinkle coconut on pudding.
5. Cut tombstone shapes out of cardboard and decorate. (Perhaps with family members' names) Just before serving, stick tombstones into pudding to create a "graveyard."

CHEESE WORM SANDWICH

This tasty sandwich looks like a giant cheese worm is emerging!!

You will need:

1 can of cheese food or product in a can
chopstick or knitting needle

Here's what you do:

1. Use one pita for each sandwich. On only one side of the pita bread, make a small hole with the chopstick. (That's your "worm hole!") Don't poke through the other side.
2. Poke chopstick through hole and wiggle to clean out inside of pita without separating or breaking edges.
3. Push nozzle of cheese can into hole--and squirt. Push cheese into edges, and fill the rest of pita. (Make it nice and thick for a super-long worm)
4. Take sandwich in both hands and squeeze a little bit. Out comes a long cheese "worm!"

TERRIFYINGLY TASTY INSECTS!

Why not eat bugs or try flies, spiders, worms and other insects in this gruesome treat that looks like a quivering, prehistoric horror! If you have the stomach for it try making these incredible, edible, crawly creatures in amber:

You will need:

2 packages of peach or orange gelatin dessert
Gummy worms, spiders, flies or any other bugs that give you the Creeps
Big bowl

Here's what you do:

1. Prepare gelatin according to directions and pour into the bowl. Place in refrigerator.
2. After gelatin has started to set--about 45 minutes--turn gummy creatures upside down and push them into gelatin. Be careful not to push them too far or leave any part sticking out of the gelatin, since you want them to look like they've been suspended in amber for millions of years. Replace in refrigerator.
3. When the gelatin is completely set--after an hour or so--dip bowl in warm water to loosen gelatin. (If necessary, run a dull knife around the edge of the dessert.) Place a plate over the bowl and carefully flip the bowl over so that the dessert is on the plate. You should now have a big, quivering lump of "amber," complete with bugs. Dig in and enjoy!

SNEAKY SNACKS!

Imagine....you and your friends are hanging out, and hunger hits. You bring out a bowl of chips or popcorn, which makes everyone happy...until they notice something's strange. Something's stirring up those snacks. All by itself. ARRRGHH! Is there a Cockroach in the junk food? No..just a ghoulishly clever special effect you can set up to give your friends the funniest, creepiest surprise of their lives!

You will need:

A big bowl
Potato or corn chips or popcorn
A wind-up toy (the bigger the wind-up key the better--those jumping mice and kangaroos work well)
Masking tape

Here's what you do:

1. Cut an L-shape out of the card-board. It should be about 2 inches long by four inches tall and about an inch wide all around.
2. Securely tape the short end of the cardboard L to the wind-up key on he toy. You should be able to wind up the toy and watch the L twirl.
3. Tape the toy to the bottom of the bowl so the cardboard L sticks straight up. (Wind it up to make sure it works.)
4. Now, the fun begins! Wind up the toy and pour in the popcorn or the chips. The snacks should jump around on their own--just like there's something super-crawly burrowing around in there!

MOLASSES JACK-O-LANTERN COOKIES

You will need:

Cookies Ingredients
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup butter or margarine softened
1/3 Cup molasses
1 Egg
2 Cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp grated orange peel
1&1/2tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cloves

Frosting Ingredients
1/2 Cup butter softened
1/4 Cup shortening
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
4 Cups powdered sugar
2 to 4 Tablespoons milk
3 drops red food coloring
6 drops yellow food coloring
4 drops green food coloring
assorted candy pieces for Jack-O-Lantern faces like, gum drops, candy corn, chocolate chips, m&m's and mini marshmallows

1. In large bowl, combine sugar and margarine; beat until light and fluffy. Add molasses and egg; blend well. Add all remaining cookie ingredients; mix well. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate 1 to 3 hours for easier handling.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. On well floured surface, roll half of dough at a time to 1/8th inch thickness. Cut with floured 3 inch pumpkin shaped or round cookie cutter. Place one inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 6 to 9 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheets.

4. In large bowl, combine butter and shortening; beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and 1/8 tsp salt; mix well. Beat in powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, scraping down sides of bowl. Add 2 Tbls milk; beat at high speed until light and fluffy. Add enough additional milk for desired spreading consistancy.

5. In small bowl, combine 1/2 frosting, 3 drops red food coloring and 3 drops of the yellow food coloring; blend well to make orange frosting. Divide remaining frosting in half; place in two small bowls. Add 4 drops food coloring to 1 bowl and remaining 3 drops yellow food coloring to second bowl; blend each well. To decorate cookies, frost each cookie with orange colored frosting. Use green and yellow frostings, candy corns, gum drops, m&m's, chocolate chips and marshmallows to make faces on the Jack-o-Lantern cookies.