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!

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The post Easiest ever Halloween ghost & grave cupcakes – step by step guide – inc. gluten free version appeared first on Let's go Mum.

We’re the first to admit – we’re probably some of the biggest Disney-crazy fans in Australia (Check out our Australian Disney Lovers Instagram account here) – and that’s a fact! So when Halloween rolls around each year, it’s all about those spooky sweet treats like these easy to make Ghost and Graveyard Cupcakes and Halloween decorations for us!

Of course the Nightmare on Christmas range had us screaming at first sight in BigW this year, but we wanted to add a personal touch to our very-Disney-Halloween…enter our Disney Mickey pumpkin carving!

Here I’m going to share with you the simple steps I used to carve our Halloween pumpkin to get that cute Mickey Mouse-look pumpkin – done in the same style as the ones that are hung along Main Street, Disneyland each Halloween.

I’m also including a child-friendly no carve version too, from the Disney Blog website. A gentle reminder that whilst the no-carve version is child friendly, there should always be adult supervision at all times, as sharp implements such as scissors are still needed.

How do I carve a Mickey Jack-o’-lantern?

Watch our How to Carve a Mickey Halloween Pumpkin video

Our video below shows how I carved our Mickey pumpkin. It’s intended for adults, as I use a small, sharp knife to carve with.

If you want to short-cut the learning process, just watch this YouTube video first!

A step-by-step guide to make a real Mickey Halloween pumpkin

Shopping list

To make your own Mickey pumpkin, you’ll need:

1. One large pumpkin from the supermarket or farmers markets
2. Two smaller pumpkins or plastic craft/decorative pumpkins (for ears)
3. Small kitchen knife
4. Scissors, preferably small
5. A pencil

Optional:

1. A cheap pumpkin carving knife/saw kit
2. A candle or flameless candle to light the pumpkin

You will also need to be able to print out two templates

• • Buy a pumpkin that is uniformly rounded and as orange as possible – preferably with a thick green stem at the top. It will be much easier to work with, and the stem will not only act as a lid handle, the pumpkin will look more authentic too!
  • While you are shopping, try to find two small-medium sized pumpkins for ears. Plastic pumpkins will also do the job!
  • Any basic Mickey Mouse template will do, but we downloaded and used the Disney Blog website Mickey Template by Pretty Providence here – print out 2 copies – one to use for the pumpkin, and one for reference.
  • (Skip cutting a lid for no-carve or no lighting pumpkin) Adults only! Cut your “lid” off the top of the pumpkin with a knife. Plastic pumpkin carving kits can be handy for fiddly shaping bits, but you really need to pull out the big-guns – a proper knife – to cut the large parts of this project. Pumpkins can be tough, and cheap pumpkin carving kits are not very strong, and may bend or break.
  • Kids or adults can scoop out the insides of the pumpkin. Pumpkin carving kit plastic scrapers are useful for scraping the insides clean, but you’re going to have to get your hands in there and scoop it all out! Use gloves or a plastic bag if you’d like to keep your hands clean. Once you’re done, discard the innards of the pumpkin.
  • After it’s all out, scrape the sides down to get rid of any loose of fibrous pieces – especially if you intend to use a real candle inside your pumpkin for a true Jack-o’-lantern!
  • Cut out the eyes, nose and mouth of the template as carefully as you can using small scissors for the next part – the no carve pumpkin, or the carve version!

Kids version – no carve pumpkin!

(For the adult carve version, skip to the next section)

• using double sided tape (easy enough to make out of normal sticky tape back to back) or blue tack, stick the Mickey Mouse features directly onto the pumpkin, trying to keep them centered and spaced as according to the original template. Use the second complete template as a reference guide. Continue to the next part of the kids no carve Mickey pumpkin here.

Adult version – carve it!

• Using double sided tape (easy enough to make out of normal sticky tape back to back) or blue tack, stick the Mickey Mouse features directly onto the pumpkin, trying to keep them centered and spaced as according to the original template. Use the second complete template as a reference guide.
• Use a pencil (not a thick marker, as this may show after you’ve carved the pieces) to trace around each of the facial features. Make sure they are situated in the same layout as the template to ensure that you get that characteristic Mickey-look. If you make a mistake, just reposition them and retrace – because you’re using pencil, it’s not going to show!
• Remove the template pieces and tape from the pumpkin, revealing the traced lines for you to follow with a knife.
• Using a small, sharp knife (remember, adults only, and never cut towards yourself or others!) slowly make indentations (sometimes it helps to puncture small holes with a skewer and then join the dots with a knife) all the way around the shapes first.
• Carve each piece fully out. You can use a plastic pumpkin carving mini-saw/knife once the initial cuts are made if you like. Be sure to go slowly. Some of the shapes are situated very close to each other, such as the nose and eyes. The mouth corners can be fiddly, and do require some patience! Each piece should lift neatly out as you finish each one. The order you do the facial features doesn’t matter, but you may find it best to start with the easiest one – the nose.
• Gently scrape or trim around the edges of each carved out shape within the pumpkin so it has a clean, neat edge – it will look much better, especially when lit at night!

Kid and Adult version – complete your pumpkin with Mickey ears!

• For Mickeys ears, the kids no carve version can simply cut out and stick on the template ears with tape. For a real-life ears look, you’ll need to source either two small real pumpkins or plastic pumpkins to attach to your main pumpkin. Painted foam balls could also be used.
• To secure the ears, first double check the right spot – Mickeys ears are slightly to the side/0ffset of his head, not directly on top! It’s best to check our video, or google up some Disneyland Mickey pumpkin images.
• If using real pumpkins for ears, a short wooden skewer can be inserted through the underneath-center of the pumpkins and then pushed through the top of the main pumpkin, to spike-attach them to each other. You may need to cut a nick out of your main pumpkin lid for a flush fit. Plastic round pumpkin ears can be attached with the help of glue or tape, or just wedged through extra carved small holes by their plastic stem.
• Add a real candle (take all care and give 100% supervision if using a real candle) or a fake flameless candle inside your Mickey pumpkin for a super-spooky flickering affect!
• You can keep your Mickey pumpkin in the fridge if you still have a few days to Halloween, to keep him fresher for longer and to prevent mould or mildew starting to grow on the pumpkin.
• Enjoy your authentic Disney pumpkin!

Watch our Disney Halloween decorations come to life!

We couldn’t help ourselves, and decided to go full-out in our Halloween holiday caravan decorations this year with a special Disney Halloween extravaganza!

Our focus this year was Nightmare Before Christmas, including large life-like decorations of Jack Skellington, the King of Halloween Town and Sally. Of course, our Mickey Mouse Halloween pumpkin was front and center too, carrying on the Disney Halloween theme. It was all super fun to do – we hope you love watching our indulgent Disney-fan Nightmare Before Christmas glow-up!

Watch our Disney Halloween stop-motion glow up video

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Pin it for later on Pinterest!

The post How to carve a Disney Mickey Halloween pumpkin – a beginner’s guide appeared first on Let's go Mum.