Monster Chocolate Cupcakes For Halloween Food

EASY CHOCOLATE MONSTER CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt, until combined.
• Add the buttermilk, water, and oil. Whisk until well-combined. Stir in the egg and vanilla, and whisk until smooth.
• Use a cookie scoop to divide the batter between the muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center of each cupcake comes out with only a few crumbs.
• Remove from the oven, and let cool for at least 5 minutes in the pan, before transferring to a baking rack to cool completely. Be sure the cupcakes are at room-temperature before decorating.
• Using an standup mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a hand-held electric mixer, cream the butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, a full 2 minutes.
• Turn the mixer down to low, add 2 cups sugar, the milk, and vanilla, and beat together until smooth and fluffy. Add more confectioners sugar until the frosting reaches your desired consistency, preferably that it's stiff enough to easily hold its shape once piped onto the cupcakes.
• Add food coloring, as desired, and mix until the frosting reaches your preferred color(s).
• Scoop the frosting into a piping bag fitted with a star tip, and starting in the center of each (cooled) cupcake, and working in a loose spiral, pipe on the monster "fur." Top with candy eyes. Best enjoyed the day of.

MONSTER CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES FOR HALLOWEEN

Steps:

• Combine milk and vinegar in a bowl. Let stand until milk curdles, about 5 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line cups with paper liners.
• Combine 1/2 cup butter, white sugar, and vanilla sugar in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Mix 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Alternate adding flour mixture and curdled milk to the creamed butter mixture, mixing until batter is well blended. Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each 3/4 full.
• Bake in the preheated oven until tops spring back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted in the center of 1 cupcake comes back clean, about 14 minutes. Cool in the muffin tin for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Combine cream cheese and 1/4 cup butter in a bowl; beat with an electric mixer until well combined. Mix in vanilla extract. Stir in confectioners' sugar gradually. Color frosting green with a few drops of food coloring.
• Place green frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a grass tip. Hold the pastry bag at a 90-degree angle 1/8 inch above the surface of a cupcake. Squeeze bag to form green 'fur' by pulling tip up and away when the icing strand is about 1/2 inch high. Repeat to cover cupcake evenly with fur. Add 2 eyes to each cupcake.

HALLOWEEN CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES WITH MONSTER PEANUT BUTTER EYES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line cups with paper liners.
• Sift cocoa powder into a large bowl and add 5 tablespoons boiling water. Stir into a thick paste, adding more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if needed. Add 3/4 cup butter and 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, until batter is smooth.
• Mix flour and baking powder in a bowl and stir into the batter until well combined. Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each 2/3 to the top using an ice cream scoop.
• Bake in the preheated oven until tops spring back when lightly pressed and a toothpick comes out clean, 10 to 15 minutes. Allow to cool in muffin tin for a few minutes; transfer to wire rack and cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Beat confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, 1/4 cup butter, and vanilla extract in a bowl until a thick dough forms. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.
• Remove the peanut butter mixture from the fridge and roll into small balls to make monster eyes. Chill mixture or moisten hands if it starts to stick. Arrange balls on the prepared baking sheet and freeze for 30 minutes.
• Place white chocolate in top of a double boiler over simmering water. Stir continuously, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula to avoid scorching, until chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes.
• Remove the eyes from the freezer and individually pick them up with a toothpick. Dip balls into melted chocolate leaving a small circle on one side blank. Twirl the toothpick to remove excess chocolate and put back on the parchment lined baking sheet.
• Dig out a bit of the peanut butter mixture from each ball where it isn't covered with chocolate to make room for the red decorating gel. Fill the holes with red decorating gel.
• Frost cupcakes with chocolate frosting. Place 2 peanut butter eyes on top. Draw on a mouth with the white decorating gel.

SCARY MONSTER CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for cupcakes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Divide frosting into five separate small bowls. Stir 1 teaspoon desired color gel food color into each bowl. Spoon each color frosting into separate decorating bag fitted with desired tip. Pipe frosting on cupcakes to look like monster's fur.
• Decorate each cupcake as desired using candy eyeballs and decorating gel.

MONSTER CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups or spray with cooking spray. Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for cupcakes, using water, oil and eggs. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Tint 1 container frosting with green food color. Tint second container frosting with purple food color. Place green frosting in decorating bag fitted with star tip #109. Place purple frosting in second decorating bag fitted with #109 tip. Pipe green frosting on half of the cupcakes. Pipe purple frosting on remaining cupcakes.
• Attach gummy candies for eyes. With frosting, attach candy eyes in center for eye pupils. Attach licorice pieces for mouths. With dampened kitchen scissors, cut marshmallows into small pieces for fangs. Attach candy corn above eyes for horns and on sides for ears.