Halloween cup cakes even the kids can make?

Sometimes, you just can’t make things from scratch. We parents and Carer’s can get pretty time-poor, and so we need quick solutions!

Last year we had all the time in the world, and even carved our very own full-sized Mickey Mouse Disney pumpkin but this year was another story. My daughter was invited to a Halloween party, and we needed a quick-fix for Halloween treats to take along. Enter: the packet mix-based Halloween decorated cup cakes – that are also super-fast to decorate!

Halloween cupcake decorations made easy

There’s nothing like a good short-cut, and I wasn’t overly confident about making gluten free cup cakes from scratch, so I decided to cheat and bought two cup cake packet mixes. Two (each make a dozen) so that we could make both a chocolate version, and a vanilla version. Spooky graveyard and Mummies (or ghosts, if you prefer!)

The best thing about these Halloween treats is that they are the easiest ever to make – even children can make them!

We made our cup cakes gluten free to suit all kids dietary requirements at the party, but of course you can just use any packet mix that suits your needs, and by buying one vanilla pack and one chocolate pack you can cut out the cocoa in the below method. Easy!

Gluten free Halloween cup cake step-by-step recipe

Ingredients (Serves 24)

We bought all our gluten-free ingredients from Coles, but all of these products can also be sourced from Woolworths, IGL, Aldi and other supermarkets.
You can swap out any of the below gluten free products for standard grocery products – and they’ll probably be a bit cheaper, too!

Skip to how to make ghost and mummy Halloween cup cakes

Skip to how to make spooky grave Halloween cup cakes

Shopping list

2 x Betty Crocker (or other brand) gluten free cup cake packet mixes ($6 each)
To add to the cake mixes:
1/2 x 250gm stick of butter 
1 x 250ml cup of milk
6 large eggs

To decorate the cup cakes:
1 x packet of Halloween patty pan cases (purple/orange/green) ($4)
1 x Wiltshire (this cheap one has the finest point) piping bag set or a set with both a large and a very fine point for writing ($10)
1 x bag of dark chocolate chips for melting and eyes – Coles Brand ($1.50)
1/2 cup 125gms of Cocoa ($4.00 a tin – to add to one vanilla packet mix to make it chocolate for the graves)
1 x packet of Gluten Free arrowroot biscuits (not Arnotts brand – get these from the health food aisle)

Kitchen Appliances required

• A mixing bowl
• An oven, thermomix or air fryer
• Electronic cake mixer/mix master to make the cup cakes and whip the icing
• 2 x 12 cup cake baking trays (or one and bake them one batch at a time)
• A microwave & microwave safe bowl to melt the choc chips
• A piping bag capable of fine and wide piping
• A large knife

Method

Add 1/2 a cup of cocoa to one packet mix (if you have 2 vanilla packet mixes), to make one chocolate mix and leave one as vanilla.
Make up both cake packet mixes separately and bake cupcakes according to packet mix instructions (pouring the mix straight into the Halloween patty pans to bake, 20 minutes bake time on 180 degrees celcius/356 Fahrenheit).
Allow the cooked cupcakes to cool completely.

How to decorate Mummy / Ghost Halloween vanilla cup cakes

• Mix both cake mix vanilla butter cream icing packets together according to instructions – you’ll need the excess icing to swirl on the ghosts/mummies! Ensure your icing is a firm consistency – you don’t want them runny, so take care with the added milk!
• Spoon the icing into your piping bag.
• Use a large piping fitting (rounder for a ghost or more defined for mummy bandages) and pipe the icing on the top of the vanilla cupcakes, starting wide at the base and working your way around to a smaller head at the top – try to make them high to resemble a ghost or mummy figure! You can even criss-cross the piped icing a bit for a Mummy to resemble bandages.
• Add two chocolate chips for eyes by pressing them gently on.
  Your mummy ghost cupcakes are complete!

How to decorate RIP grave stone chocolate cup cakes

• Prepare the biscuit grave stones by laying them out, flat, plain side up, ready for piping.
• Put a couple of handfuls of chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl and melt the chocolate chips in the microwave (for about 30-60 seconds).
• Pour the smooth melted chocolate into your (fine tipped) piping bag. If you are worried about the chocolate seizing/setting before you can do the writing, add a few drops of vegetable oil to the melted chocolate.
• Pipe the letters “RIP” onto each biscuit laid flat and wait for the chocolate to dry.
• Using a large knife, slice off the top of the cupcake level with the top of the patty pan – keep the top.
• Make a deep, narrow slit into the cake with your knife tip for the biscuit to slot firmly into.
• Crumble the inside of the sliced-off cake top in front of the biscuit grave stone to resemble “dirt” – the smaller and finer the better.
  Your RIP grave stone cupcakes are complete!

Watch our Halloween cup cake YouTube video

Our video below is a super-fast mash up of us making our cup cakes. I think you’ll agree, the finished result is pretty cute!

I hope you enjoyed making these spooky wooky Halloween cup cakes – we certainly did, and they taste pretty great too.

Happy Halloween from our family to yours!

If you enjoyed reading this article or found it useful, please consider sharing it on Facebook, or leaving a comment below – thank you!

Pin it for later on Pinterest!

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Yes, you’ve read it right! We’ve teamed up with @MumsWhoAU to give away THE Ultimate Cooking prize for one very lucky winner including:

A brand new Thermomix TM6 valued at $2,260!
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***This competition is now closed***

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We were thrilled to find out that the Let’s go Mum Australian single parent travel blog had been entered in the MrPromocode Travel Blog Awards of 2017 – so we want to share the joy with our readers!

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The gift card can be used at thousands of stores around Australia, including Coles, Myer, Target, Kmart & more!

Just use our competition entry form at the bottom of this page to go to the MrPromocode website to vote for us.

When you go to the voting page, simply scroll down to the Let’s go Mum logo, then mouse over it and click “vote”!

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Please screenshot your “thank you for voting message” to help validate if you win the big prize.

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Plus, to celebrate the release of Ballerina, in cinemas January 12 you could win a prize pack!

A little about the movie Ballerina…

Félicie is a young orphan from Brittany with only one passion: dance. With her best friend Victor, who wants to become a great inventor, she devises a madcap plan to escape the orphanage for Paris, the City of Lights where the Eiffel Tower is still being built! Félicie will have to work like never before to surpass herself and to learn from her mistakes, to make her wildest dream come true: becoming a prima ballerina at the Paris Opera…

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Take a sneak-peek at the Ballerina movie and watch the official trailer here:

Go to the official Ballerina website for more information, activity sheets and more, here: www.ballerinamovie.com.au

Win 1 of 5 fantastic Ballerina Prize Packs!

I’m excited to tell you that Studiocanal have teamed up with Let’s go Mum! to giveaway an amazing prize-pack of Ballerina treats to five of our lucky Let’s go Mum followers!

Here’s what you could win…

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 What a gorgeously pink prize pack!

To enter this awesome competition, simply:

1. Facebook Like or Share this competition page

PLEASE NOTE – we do check the above step!

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Summer holidays are all about relaxing and spending quality time with loved ones but traveling when pregnant, or with little people means you have to be switched on to SAFETY needs, at all times. Here are a few key items from Dreambaby®, Australia’s leading child safety brand, to make sure you and your family have a safe trip this summer and you could win them all!

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To enter this awesome competition, simply:

1. Facebook Like or Share this competition page

PLEASE NOTE – we do check the above step!

2. Use the form below to enter– and good luck!

Win 1 of 4 Dreambaby® Summer Safety Packs

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Win a fantastic Disney Tsum Tsum Toy Prize Pack!

I’m excited to tell you that Disney have teamed up with Let’s go Mum! to giveaway an amazing prize-pack of the latest Tsum Tsum toys to four of our lucky Let’s go Mum followers!

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To enter this awesome competition, simply:

1. Facebook Like or Share this competition page

PLEASE NOTE – we do check the above step!

2. Use the form below to enter– and good luck!

Win 1 of 4 Disney Tsum Tsum prize packs!

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Win a pack of 3 brand new Nickelodeon kids’ DVD releases!

Here’s a little something to lighten your Christmas gift-giving load!

Universal Sony have Christmas covered with three exciting new releases available now on DVD.

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PAW PATROL: PUPS SAVE CHRISTMAS DVD: Rating: G

It wouldn’t be Christmas without the adorable PAW Patrol pups! Join Ryder, Chase, Marshall, Skye, Rocky, Rubble, Zuma and Everest for five snowy saves, including a special double-length Christmas episode! The pups gear up to fix Santa’s sleigh in the middle of a snowstorm and save Christmas, return penguins to their frozen home, help Everest on some slippery snowy rescues, and more!
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Win a fantastic 3 x DVD Prize Pack!

I’m excited to tell you that Universal Sony have teamed up with Let’s go Mum! to giveaway an amazing prize-pack of the latest release kids’ DVDs to five of our lucky Let’s go Mum followers!

Here’s what you could win…

1 x Prize Pack of 3 New Release Universal Sony DVDs containing:

1 x PAW PATROL: PUPS SAVE CHRISTMAS DVD – RRP $19.95
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That’s a total prize pack value of $59.85!

To enter this awesome competition, simply:

1. Facebook Like or Share this competition page

PLEASE NOTE – we do check the above step!

2. Use the form below to enter– and good luck!

Win 1 of 5 x kid’s Nickelodeon DVD prize packs!

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Win one of 5 x $100 Classic Underwear Packs by Modibodi    

I’m excited to tell you that Modibodi have teamed up with Let’s go Mum! to giveaway Classic Underwear Packs by Modibodi to 5 of our lucky Let’s go Mum followers!

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A long time supporter of Reef conservation, Sir David Attenborough reflects on how the reef has lost almost half of its coral since his first visit and looks at what the future may hold. He consults with top scientists and visits island research stations where marine biologists and climate scientists are trying to combat the rapid decay of this natural wonder of the world.

Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough is available to own on DVD from April 27 2016.

Win the new release Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough DVD!

I’m excited to tell you that Roadshow have teamed up with Let’s go Mum! to giveaway the new release DVD Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough to 9 of our lucky Let’s go Mum followers!

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1 of 9 Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough DVDs – RRP $29.95 each

There’s 9 DVDs to be won!

To enter this awesome competition, complete the following two actions:

1. Facebook “Like” this competition page!

2. Use the form below to enter- and good luck!

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Jeepers! Spooky-fun, hi-tech gaming thrills come to Australia in the all-new family musical “Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up”! 

The much-loved Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. Gang take centre stage in an all-new family musical, featuring everyone’s favourite Great Dane, Scooby-Doo!

In this exciting new production, the Mystery Inc. Gang have taken up summer jobs in Crystal Cove – The Most Hauntedest Place on Earth. Can Shaggy, Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Scooby-Doo unravel this latest Scooby-Doo mystery in time?

Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up is an interactive new live show featuring big musical numbers, stunning multi-media content and kooky characters that pay homage to classic video games. With perplexing puzzles, an abundance of Scooby Snacks, and the iconic Mystery Machine close by, it’s Scooby-Doo and friends at their best, solving mysteries wherever they go.

Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up World Premier – Australia 2016

Saturday 9 July Her Majesty’s Theatre Melbourne
Wednesday 13 July Canberra Theatre Centre Canberra
Friday 15 July Roslyn Packer Theatre Walsh Bay Sydney
Saturday 16 July Roslyn Packer Theatre Walsh Bay Sydney
Tuesday 19 July Adelaide Entertainment Centre Theatre Adelaide
Saturday 23 July Riverside Theatre, PCEC Perth

Tickets are now on sale. Get your Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up tickets at www.scoobydoolive.com

Win 1 of 4 Gold Family Passes to Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up

Jeepers! I’m excited to tell you that Life Like Touring have teamed up with Let’s go Mum! to giveaway Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up Gold Family Passes to 4 of our lucky Let’s go Mum followers!

Here’s what you could win…

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Each family pass includes four tickets with a total RRP of $200. There are four family passes to be won. Winners may nominate their preferred show location (Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide or Perth), and will have their prize voucher emailed to them.

To enter this awesome competition:

1. Facebook “Like” this competition webpage!

2. Use the form below to enter- and good luck!

Scooby-Doo Live! Level Up Family Gold Pass Giveaway

Need more Scooby-Doo in your life? You can read our exclusive Let’s Go Mum! kid’s interview with Velma here.

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