Popcorn Jack O Lanterns Recipes

Steps:

• Place popcorn in a roasting pan; keep warm in a 200° oven. , In a large heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, water, corn syrup, vinegar and salt. Cook over medium heat until a candy thermometer reads 250° (hard-ball stage)., Remove from the heat. Stir in vanilla and food coloring (about 1 teaspoon yellow and 9 drops red) until blended. Immediately pour over popcorn and stir until coated. When mixture is cool enough to handle, quickly shape into 3-1/2-in. balls, dipping hands in cold water to prevent sticking., Cut triangles and rectangles from candy bars for pumpkin eyes, noses and mouths. In a small bowl, combine the frosting with 5 drops of yellow and 3 drops of red food coloring; attach facial features with frosting. Attach a spearmint leaf to the top of each.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a 10-inch round baking dish or skillet with nonstick cooking spray.
• Beat the egg together with 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl and set aside.
• Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface. Divide and cut the dough into 12 rectangles. Brush the egg wash on top of each rectangle.
• Place a Cheddar cube in the center of each rectangle. Place a couple jalapeño slices on every other rectangle (see Cook's Note). Close the dough around the cheese cubes and jalapeños and shape the pieces into balls. Place the balls around the edge of the prepared baking dish.
• Mix the shredded Cheddar, cream cheese, mayonnaise, mozzarella, Parmesan, chives, salt, pepper, garlic and onion together in a medium bowl. Spoon the mixture into the center of the baking dish. Sprinkle additional Cheddar on top. Bake until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Arrange the blue corn tortilla chips and olive slices to resemble a Jack-o'-lantern. Serve hot with more tortilla chips.

Steps:

• Chop 11 cookies; toss with popcorn and raisins in large bowl.
• Cook marshmallows and butter in saucepan on low heat until marshmallows are melted and mixture is blended, stirring constantly. Pour over popcorn mixture; toss to coat.
• Shape into 10 (2-1/2-inch) balls. Cut remaining cookies in half. Insert 1 cookie half into top of each ball to make a "stem." Serve in cupcake liners if desired.

Steps:

• Microwave butter and marshmallows in large microwavable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 to 2 minutes or until marshmallows are puffed. Stir in gelatin until well blended.
• Pour marshmallow mixture over popcorn in large bowl; mix well. Shape into 12 balls with lightly greased or moistened hands.
• Top each ball with a gumdrop piece to resemble pumpkin stem. Decorate with melted chocolate to resemble jack-o'-lantern faces.

Steps:

• Beat together the shortening, sugars and the egg until fluffy. Stir in the molasses. Sift together the flour, spices, baking soda and salt, and blend into the sugar mixture. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 3-4 hours.
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. This is a tender dough, so work quickly to roll the dough 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured surface and cut out pumpkin shapes using a pumpkin cookie cutter, or freehand using a small knife. If you're cutting your pumpkins freehand, don't make the stem too thin or it will break off after baking. Use a spatula to lift the pumpkins onto lightly greased baking sheets and bake for about 10 minutes. Don't overbake. Cool completely on wire racks before decorating.
• To decorate the pumpkins, set aside 1/3 cup of the royal icing and color it green. Color the remaining icing orange by blending in red and yellow food coloring. (Start with 5 drops of red and 6 drops of yellow and add more coloring as desired to make the color more intense.)
• Spread orange frosting over the pumpkin, avoiding the stem. Allow to set, then use a toothpick to dab green frosting on the stem.
• You can press on candy corn or chocolate chips to make a face on each pumpkin, or you can pipe a face on with melted chocolate using the following method. Melt 1/2 cup of chocolate chips in the microwave in a heatproof bowl for 1 minutes. The chips may look unmelted, but stir them with a spoon to see if they have actually softened before putting them in for another minute, if necessary.
• Spoon the melted chocolate into a zipper-lock bag. Seal the bag, pressing out any air. Use a toothpick to make a very tiny hole in one corner of the bag to release a thin stream of chocolate. Pipe eyes and noses and jagged grins as desired. Allow the chocolate to set before stacking the cookies.
• With beaters or a standing mixer, whip the egg white and lemon juice until frothy. At medium speed, beat in the confectioners' sugar, a little at a time, until the mixture is thick but still liquid enough to beat. Then beat on high until the mixture is thick and glossy, about 3 minutes. Cover the surface with plastic wrap while waiting to use it. Royal icing will set to a firm, glossy finish when applied to a cookie. The icing can be stored, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Steps:

• CHOP 11 of the cookies; toss with popcorn and raisins in large bowl.
• PLACE marshmallows and butter in saucepan; cook on low heat until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring constantly.
• Pour over popcorn mixture; toss to coat.
• SHAPE popcorn mixture into 10 (2-1/2-inch) balls.
• Cut remaining 5 cookies in half.
• Insert 1 cookie half into top of each ball to make a "stem.".
• Serve in cupcake liners.

Steps:

• Place popcorn in a roasting pan; keep warm in a 200 degree F oven. In a large heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, water, corn syrup, vinegar and salt. Cook over medium heat until a candy thermometer reads 250 degrees F (hard-ball stage). Remove from the heat. Stir in vanilla and food coloring (about 1 tsp. yellow and 9 drops red) until blended. Immediately pour over popcorn and stir until coated. When mixture is cool enough to handle, quickly shape into 3-1/2-inch balls, dipping heads in cold water to prevent sticking. Cut triangles and rectangles from candy bars for pumpkin eyes, noses and mouths. In a small bowl, combine the frosting with 5 drops of yellow and 3 drops of red food coloring; attach facial features with frosting. Attach a spearmint leaf to the top of each.