Every Halloween, we throw a big party for all of our friends! We used to do it Halloween night before trick-or-treating but the past couple of years, we switched it up and had our party a week before and made it a pumpkin carving party! It is so much fun to create a spooky environment where everyone can make one big mess and cleanup is a cinch with lots of helpers (smile).
Part of the fun is in the planning of the party! The food is always a big part of the evening and while I try to keep the food somewhat nutritious, there are always plenty of sweets and treats! So I found these ideas to get inspired this year.
I love these mini-pumpkin cakes from Country Living! I have never seen any quite so realistic and the dark chocolate is so striking! To get the look of these single-serving pumpkin treats, trim the bottoms of cakes baked in mini Bundt pans to create a flat surface. Join two cakes so that the fluted tops are at either end, then drizzle with Chocolate or Vanilla Glaze and sprinkle with coarse colored sugar or nonpareils before the glaze sets. Top with a marzipan stem. The dark chocolate cake with the bright orange icing is amazing! And set it off on a black cakestand and you have the perfect addition to your dessert table.
Now on to these super cute Witches Cauldron cupcakes! These would be great for a Wicked themed party or a Harry Potter themed party. And of course they would be a perfect addition to any Halloween party too! You could even add party flags to the licorice handles for extra embellishment.
And these Ghost Cupcakes are one of my all time favorite ideas! I haven't had the courage to actually try it yet. Although I bet Keisha from Cupcake Wishes & Birthday Dreams could whip these up! She recently had a tutorial on using marshmallow cream cheese icing.
Marshmallow creme is the secret behind these ghosts. (Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens.)
Start with frosted store-bought or homemade cupcakes. Microwave 1 cup marshmallow creme (enough for 8 cupcakes) in a microwave-safe bowl on High for 20 seconds or until warm. Cool slightly. Place in a large heavy-duty resealable plastic bag; snip one corner and pipe a ghost shape onto each cupcake. Quickly attach chocolate chips or other small candies for ghost eyes and mouth before marshmallow creme sets.
And when you're done baking, don't forget to serve your treats up on some really cute Halloween party plates & napkins!
But if you aren't into making cupcakes yourself, check out Georgetown Cupcake. They will ship you a dozen cupcakes for $29! Look how cute these are.
Whether you choose to make your own or buy some cute Halloween cupcakes, have fun and let your kids get creative! You may be amazed by their creations. What are your favorite Halloween cupcake recipes? Comment and link to them below so we can all get inspired!
, a general store where the kids could shop after
earning their tickets and topped it off with a full candy bar (see my post dedicated fully to the 
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where they
could spend in the general store for prizes like 
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! As everyone was
leaving, they each got a circus train box to fill up with candy from the candy
bar including Clown Cake Pops custom made for our party from 
