Party favorites for ghosts and goblins

As Halloween approaches, our seven-year-old Lexie is busy getting her costume together. At first she wanted to be a giant sub sandwich, but then realized she wouldn't be able to sit down with the box configuration all around her. So like a good daughter of mine, now she wants to dress up like a chef. And the best part of that is we have everything here for her to do just that.

To help you plan for your Halloween event, I pulled several recipes that you might like to serve at your gathering. With Halloween, it's fun to be creative and wild with your food.

Caramel Crunch Popcorn

6 quarts popped popcorn

1 3/4 cups slated Spanish peanuts

1 cup butter or margarine

1 (16-ounce) package light brown sugar

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup molasses

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Place popcorn and peanuts in a large bowl; set aside. Melt butter in a large heavy saucepan. Stir in brown sugar and next 3 ingredients; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over popcorn mixture; stir until evenly coated. Pour into two lightly greased large roasting pans or four 9-by-13-inch baking pans, spreading into a thin layer. Bake at 250 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool in pans on wire racks. Yields about 5 quarts.

Pumpkin Patch Cheese Balls

5 tablespoons pine nuts

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

4 drops of yellow liquid food coloring

2 drops of red liquid food coloring

1 1/2 cups flour

1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

1 (6-ounce) roll garlic cheese

1 (7-ounce) jar pimiento-stuffed olives, drained

Bake pine nuts in a shallow pan at 350 degrees, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until toasted; cool. Stir together butter and food colorings in a large bowl. Add flour and red pepper; cut in cheese with a pastry blender until mixture is blended. Shape into a large ball using hands. Press 1 tablespoon cheese mixture around each olive. Using dull side of a paring knife, score cheese balls with vertical lines to resemble pumpkins. Chill 1 hour. Bake on parchment-paper-lined baking pans at 400 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden browned. Place 1 pine nut into each cheese ball to resemble stem. Serve immediately or at room temperature, or freeze up to 1 month. Yields about 3 dozen.

Breadstick Haystacks

1 (11-ounce) can refrigerated breadsticks

Butter-flavored cooking spray

1 tablespoon dry ranch-style dressing mix

Unroll breadstick. Cut each breadstick in half crosswise, forming 3 1/2-inch pieces; cut each portion in half lengthwise, forming 1/2-inch strips. Place on lightly greased baking sheets. Coat with cooking spray, and sprinkle with salad dressing mix. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve haystacks with warm spaghetti sauce. Yields 4 dozen.

White Ghosts

6 egg whites

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 tablespoon semisweet chocolate mini-morsels

String licorice, optional

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar at high speed with an electric mixer until foamy. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form and sugar dissolves, 2 to 4 minutes. Add almond extract; beat until blended. Spoon mixture into a zip-top plastic bag; snip a small hole in 1 corner, and pipe mixture into ghostly shapes on parchment-paper-lined baking sheets. Add mini-morsels for eyes. If desired, cut licorice into 2-inch pieces. Firmly pinch ends together. Insert one in top of each ghost for a hanger. Bake at 200 degrees for 2 hours without opening the oven door. Turn oven off, and let meringues stand in closed oven with light on for 8 hours. Yields 16 meringues.

Apple-Bobbing Punch

1 (32-ounce) bottle apple cider

1 (32-ounce) bottle cranberry juice drink

1 (16-ounce) jar whole crab apples, undrained

1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed

1 (6-ounce) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

1 (1-liter) bottle ginger ale or lemon-lime soda, chilled

Stir together first 5 ingredients; chill. Stir in ginger ale just before serving. Serve over ice. Yields 4 quarts.

Chocolate Apples On A Stick

6 wooden craft sticks

6 medium apples

1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate mini-morsels

1 cup (6 ounces) peanut butter morsels

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 cup chopped peanuts, optional

Insert a wooden stick into the top of each apple. Cook morsels and oil in a heavy saucepan over low heat until morsels melt, stirring often. Dip apples in chocolate mixture, coating well; roll in peanuts, if desired. Place on waxed paper-lined baking sheet; chill until firm.

Chocolate Pumpkin

1 (18.25-ounce) package devil's food cake mix

1 (5.9-ounce) package chocolate instant pudding mix

1 1/4 cups water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate morsels

1 (7-1/2-ounce) package fluffy white frosting mix

Orange liquid food coloring

Garnish: worm- and snake-shaped chewy candies

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large mixing bowl; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer 2 minutes. Stir in morsels. Pour batter into a greased and floured 12-cup Bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pan, and cool on wire rack. Prepare frosting according to package directions; beat in desired amount of food coloring. Spread frosting over cooled cake, and garnish, if desired.

I hope one or two of these recipes find its way to your Halloween party table. Have fun but remember to be careful on the streets and until next time, happy cooooooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by the Southeast Missourian staff.