By Divian Conner
One of our favorite times of year is fall. While my mom has pumpkins and an array of gold and yellow leaves adorning her table as soon as fall hits, it is no secret in our family that I have been known to bring out the stretched spider webs, black studded pumpkins and Halloween décor at the end of August. To me, fall is Halloween and, in my house, we start planning as soon as we can. I laughed when my mom asked the other week, “We can expect your Halloween table September 1st, right?”
While this year is likely to be a repeat of last year—more of a private, intimate gathering of my close family, the anticipation is still great and the planning intense and thorough. Instead of going door to door with candy, I have already started secretly stocking up on various bags of sugary goodness--I have this vision of a table covered in candy haul to light up just about anyone’s eyes. It may be a bit different, but we will not let it deter us from having a great and wonderfully spooky time.
The cool end of summer leads the way to bonfires, ghost stories and watching movies with jump scares as a family. While it is true that we do not shy away from the spookiness, we also see it as the beginning of holiday family time. Not only do we look forward to our Halloween party, but the movie nights are always a treat. Halloween-themed snacks are laid out while we snuggle up on couches and yell at the actors on the screen, “Run, child, run!” The night is full of frights, but tons of laughs and conversations on what we would do. With older children, who are really no longer “children,” we make it into time to really talk. The nights of gearing up to the finale are appreciated in this household.
This year is no different, I already have a playlist of creaks and moans from the doors of old houses, and the menu has already been started.
I have never been one to need an excuse to throw a themed party, and October is the perfect time to plan a super spooky one for my family and friends. I have been toying with the idea of a Haunted Fairy Tales theme and decided that sometimes, some of the most beautiful things can be spooky. These moss-covered cupcakes can be made any time of the year and topped to fit almost any theme, are super easy to make, and are perfect for Halloween dessert tables everywhere!
Chocolate Blackberry Jam-Filled Cupcakes
Boxed chocolate cake mix, prepared as directed
Sweetened lime juice
Blackberry jam
Cream cheese frosting
Green food coloring
Cupcake liners
Prepare cupcakes as directed on the box. Once cool, spritz with sweetened lime juice lightly.
Using a piping bag, fill with jam. Insert pipe tip into center of cupcake and fill.
Top with cream cheese frosting that has been tinted green and roll in cookie moss crumbs to coat.
Cookie Moss
Refrigerated cookie dough
Green/yellow/blue food coloring
Spooky topper of your choice
Break apart the cookie dough into sections and create various shades of green by mixing in the food coloring.
Prepare and bake the cookies as directed and once cooled, crumble the cookies in different sizes to make the “moss.” Mix them to create the various shades of natural moss.