MomSkoop
Halloween is the perfect time to get creative in the kitchen and whip up some spooky treats that taste as good as they look. Whether you’re planning a party, looking for fun activities to do with your kids, or just want to celebrate the season with something sweet, these dessert ideas will make your Halloween extra special.
From creepy cupcakes to ghostly goodies, these recipes are simple enough for young bakers to help with and delicious enough that everyone will be asking for seconds!
1. Monster Eyeball Cake Pops
Cake pops are always a hit at parties, and turning them into monster eyeballs takes them to a whole new level of fun. Start with your favorite cake flavor mixed with frosting, then roll them into balls and stick them on lollipop sticks. Dip each pop in white chocolate or candy melts, then immediately add a large candy eyeball on top.
While the coating is still wet, drizzle red icing around the eyeball to create bloodshot veins. You can use different colored coatings like green or purple to make alien or zombie eyeballs too. Kids will love helping decorate these creepy treats, and they’re surprisingly easy to make even if you’ve never tried cake pops before.
2. Ghostly Meringue Cookies
Light, airy, and adorably spooky, meringue ghosts are a healthier Halloween option that still delivers on cuteness. Whip egg whites with sugar until stiff peaks form, then pipe the mixture into ghost shapes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Use mini chocolate chips to create simple faces before baking at a low temperature.
The slow baking process creates a crispy exterior while keeping the inside slightly chewy. These ghostly treats practically melt in your mouth and contain no butter or oil. Best of all, they look impressive but require only a few basic ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.
3. Mummy Brownies with Chocolate Drizzle
Transform ordinary brownies into wrapped-up mummies with just a little creativity and white chocolate. Bake your brownies according to your favorite recipe, let them cool completely, then cut them into rectangles or squares. Melt white chocolate and transfer it to a piping bag or zip-top bag with the corner snipped off.
Drizzle the white chocolate back and forth across each brownie to create the bandage effect, leaving a small gap in the middle. Press two candy eyes into the gap while the chocolate is still soft. The contrast between rich, dark chocolate brownies and sweet white chocolate bandages creates a treat that looks spooky but tastes absolutely amazing.
4. Pumpkin Patch Dirt Cups
Dirt cups get a festive Halloween makeover with pumpkin candies and creepy crawlies peeking out from the chocolate cookie crumbs. Layer chocolate pudding in clear cups, then top generously with crushed chocolate sandwich cookies to create the dirt effect. Push candy pumpkins partially into the dirt so they look like they’re growing in a pumpkin patch.
Add gummy worms crawling over the surface for extra Halloween flair. Kids absolutely love the combination of textures and the fun of discovering what’s buried in their cup. You can make these ahead of time and keep them refrigerated, making them perfect for parties or busy Halloween nights when you need a quick dessert.
5. Witch Hat Cookies
With just three ingredients and minimal effort, you can create adorable witch hats that look like they took hours to make. Start with fudge-striped cookies as your base, pipe a circle of orange frosting around the center hole, then immediately press a chocolate kiss candy upside down into the frosting. The cookie becomes the hat brim, the frosting creates the decorative band, and the chocolate kiss forms the pointed top.
These little hats are ridiculously cute and taste like a perfect combination of cookie, chocolate, and sweet frosting. You can switch up the colors by using different frosting shades or trying peanut butter cups instead of chocolate kisses for variety.
6. Spider Web Cheesecake Bars
Cheesecake bars become extra spooky when decorated with delicate chocolate spider webs that look intricate but are actually simple to create. Bake your favorite cheesecake recipe in a square or rectangular pan, then let it chill completely until firm. Melt dark chocolate and transfer it to a piping bag or squeeze bottle for precision.
Pipe concentric circles on top of each bar, then drag a toothpick from the center outward to create the web pattern. The technique takes just seconds per bar once you get the hang of it. These elegant treats prove that Halloween desserts can be sophisticated enough for adults while still being fun and festive for the whole family.
7. Candy Corn Rice Krispie Treats
Everyone’s favorite crispy marshmallow treats get a colorful Halloween twist when shaped and colored like candy corn. Prepare three separate batches of rice cereal treats, tinting one yellow, one orange, and leaving one white, using food coloring mixed into the melted marshmallow. Press the yellow layer into a greased pan first, then add the orange layer, and finally the white layer on top.
Once cooled and firm, cut the treats into triangles to mimic the candy corn shape perfectly. The layered effect looks impressive and tastes even better than regular rice cereal treats. You can wrap individual pieces in cellophane bags tied with ribbon for party favors or trick-or-treat handouts.
8. Frankenstein Cupcakes
Bring the famous monster to life with cupcakes that are almost too cute to eat. Bake chocolate or vanilla cupcakes in your favorite flavor, then frost them with bright green buttercream using a spatula to create a slightly textured, skin-like appearance. Use large candy eyes or make eyes from white frosting with chocolate chip pupils.
Create Frankenstein’s iconic flat-top haircut by placing chocolate chips or cookie crumbs across the top edge of the cupcake. Add pretzel sticks on the sides for the neck bolts and pipe a black frosting line for his stitched-up mouth. Each cupcake becomes its own little character, and decorating them together makes for a perfect family Halloween activity that ends with delicious results.
9. Bloody Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Red velvet cupcakes take on a deliciously creepy vibe when you play up their naturally blood-red color for Halloween. The deep crimson cake paired with stark white cream cheese frosting creates a dramatic color contrast that’s perfect for the spooky season. Pipe or spread generous swirls of frosting on top of each cooled cupcake.
Right before serving, drizzle strawberry sauce or red gel icing over the frosting so it looks like blood dripping down the sides. The combination of tangy cream cheese frosting with rich, chocolatey red velvet cake is absolutely irresistible. You can add plastic vampire fangs or Halloween toppers to make them even more festive and fun for your party guests.
10. Graveyard Pudding Parfaits
Create an entire spooky graveyard scene in individual serving glasses with layers of chocolate pudding and crushed cookies. Start by layering chocolate pudding in clear cups or glasses, alternating with crushed chocolate sandwich cookies to create dirt layers. Top the final layer generously with more cookie crumbs to make the graveyard ground.
Use Milano cookies or rectangular shortbread cookies as tombstones, decorating them with gray icing and writing RIP or funny epitaphs with black food coloring. Stick the tombstones into the dirt and add gummy worms crawling around for extra creepiness. These parfaits are endlessly customizable and fun to assemble, making them ideal for kids to help create their own spooky desserts.