Candy Bucket Cookies Food

BUCKEYE BALLS

Steps:

• Combine the melted butter or margarine, confectioners' sugar, peanut butter and the vanilla together and mix well. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on waxed paper.
• In the top half of a double boiler melt the chocolate chips and shortening, stirring constantly. Use a toothpick to dip balls into the melted chocolate, leaving a small uncovered area so balls resemble buckeyes. Place balls on waxed paper. Use fingers to blend in toothpick holes. Refrigerate until chocolate is firm. Enjoy!

CANDY COOKIES

Steps:

• Cover a baking sheet with the foil and lightly coat with cooking spray. Roll out the cookie dough and cut out rounds. Use aspic cutters to cut out shapes within each circle. To make a hanging cookie, punch a hole in the top of each cookie with a chopstick. Place the cookies on the baking sheet and bake as directed. Halfway through the baking time, fill the holes with the crushed candy (do not overfill). Once thoroughly baked, repoke the hole at the top of the cookie. Cool, then thread with shoestring licorice or ribbon.

CANDY BUCKET CAKE

Steps:

• Spray one 8-inch-round cake pan and two 6-cup Bundt pans with cooking spray. Beat the cake mixes, eggs, buttermilk and oil with a mixer; divide among the pans. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 25 minutes for the round cake and 30 to 35 minutes for the Bundts; let cool.
• Tint the vanilla frosting with orange food coloring. Trim the flat sides of the Bundt cakes and the top of the round cake to make level. Turn 1 Bundt cake upside down; spread with frosting. Top with the round cake, more frosting and the other Bundt cake, then frost the whole cake and chill 30 minutes.
• Lightly dust a sheet of wax paper with cornstarch. Roll out the fondant on the paper into a 21-by-8-inch rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into 12 strips, 8 inches long and 1 3/4 inches wide, tapering the ends as shown.
• Attach the fondant strips to the cake, lightly pressing and smoothing them from the base of the cake upward. Refrigerate the cake 30 minutes.
• Draw jack-o'-lantern eyes, a nose and a mouth on paper and cut them out; attach to the cake with toothpicks. Score around the cutouts with a paring knife, then remove the toothpicks and paper.
• Trace the scored lines with the knife, cutting through the fondant and slightly into the cake. Pry out the pieces with the tip of the knife.
• Cut a 1-inch-deep circle out of the top of the cake. Put the dark chocolate frosting in a resealable plastic bag; snip the corner and pipe the frosting into the cutouts.
• Twist the 2 strings of licorice together and insert into the top of the cake to make a handle. Fill the top of the cake with snack-size candy.