It’s Halloween next week and once again time to start thinking about witches’ noses, toffee apples and trick or treating. If you decide to have a Halloween party for your children, then we’ve come up with a few ideas for party cupcakes and the perfect ways to make them scary!

Makes 12

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cooking Time: 18 mins

Ingredients

110g/4oz butter (for best results, leave at room temperature for 20mins before hand)

110g/4oz Caster sugar

110g/4oz Flour

2 eggs

2tbsp milk

¼ tsp Vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas 4.

2. Add the sugar to the softened butter and mix it in well until both ingredients are combined.

3. Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk lightly with a fork.

4. Pour about a little of the egg mixture into the butter and sugar mixture and mix well. Add more egg and mix well before adding the rest of the mixture. Remove all larger lumps by mixing well.

5. Now add the milk and vanilla essence to the mixture and mix well for 30 seconds or so.

6. Fold in the flour to the mixture and gently mix it in until all ingredients are combined well.

7. Spoon the mixture into the cup cake containers, filling each to about two thirds full with a teaspoon. Leave the cupcakes for about five minutes to allow the mixture to settle evenly.

8. If using a flat baking tray, ensure the cakes are kept well apart. Place in the preheated oven and bake for about 15 to 20minutes or until golden brown. Leave to cool for 20 minutes before decorating.

Decoration Ideas

• For some scary spiders, try topping the cupcakes with chocolate icing and chocolate sprinkles, black licorice for legs and little coloured sweets for eyes.
• For monster faces, ice the cakes and pop a variety of sweeties, mini marshmellows and chocolate chips in the middle of the table and let your kids go wild creating ugly, scary monsters!
• You could even use body part sweets and snakes and bugs as toppings to create spooky Halloween treats!

This recipe was adapted from Cook UK.