Jack O Lanterns Recipes

JACK-O'-LANTERN STUFFED PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a small pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the macaroni to al dente according to the package instructions. Drain and hold until the meat mixture is ready.
• In a cast-iron pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and sweat until translucent, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 1 minute. Add the ground beef, season with salt and pepper and cook until starting to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cream and cook until the mixture is reduced, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, add the cheese and stir until well incorporated. Stir in the cooked macaroni and season with salt and pepper.
• Cut each pepper around the stem and remove to create a lid. Remove the seeds and, if the peppers do not sit flat, trim the bottoms slightly; just be careful not to cut a hole in the bottom of the peppers. Using the tip of a small serrated knife, cut a face like a jack-o'-lantern into the side of each pepper.
• Fill the peppers with the beef mixture and put on a baking sheet with the lids on the side. Bake until the peppers are fork-tender, about 30 minutes.

JACK O LANTERNS

Steps:

• Use a cookie cutter or knife to cut each slice of bread into a circle.
• Spread orange cheese spread on the slices, all the way to the edges.
• Use pieces of black olive to make eyes, noses and mouths on each Jack O Lantern.

JACK-O-LANTERNS

Steps:

• 1. Fill 3½ - to 4-cup container with Keebler® Fudge Stripes™ Dark Chocolate cookie crumbs to form base, if desired. Set aside.
• 2. Prepare Kellogg's® Eggo® Mini Homestyle waffles according to package directions. Cool for 5 minutes. Press one lollipop stick into each waffle. Cool completely.
• 3. Use white frosting, chocolate frosting, food coloring, orange sprinkles, green sprinkles, chocolate morsels and marshmallow pieces to decorate waffles as jack-o-lanterns. Press pretzel pieces into each as pumpkin stem. Push lollipops sticks into cookie crumbs to stand upright.

GINGERBREAD JACK-O'-LANTERNS

Steps:

• Beat together the shortening, sugars and the egg until fluffy. Stir in the molasses. Sift together the flour, spices, baking soda and salt, and blend into the sugar mixture. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 3-4 hours.
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. This is a tender dough, so work quickly to roll the dough 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured surface and cut out pumpkin shapes using a pumpkin cookie cutter, or freehand using a small knife. If you're cutting your pumpkins freehand, don't make the stem too thin or it will break off after baking. Use a spatula to lift the pumpkins onto lightly greased baking sheets and bake for about 10 minutes. Don't overbake. Cool completely on wire racks before decorating.
• To decorate the pumpkins, set aside 1/3 cup of the royal icing and color it green. Color the remaining icing orange by blending in red and yellow food coloring. (Start with 5 drops of red and 6 drops of yellow and add more coloring as desired to make the color more intense.)
• Spread orange frosting over the pumpkin, avoiding the stem. Allow to set, then use a toothpick to dab green frosting on the stem.
• You can press on candy corn or chocolate chips to make a face on each pumpkin, or you can pipe a face on with melted chocolate using the following method. Melt 1/2 cup of chocolate chips in the microwave in a heatproof bowl for 1 minutes. The chips may look unmelted, but stir them with a spoon to see if they have actually softened before putting them in for another minute, if necessary.
• Spoon the melted chocolate into a zipper-lock bag. Seal the bag, pressing out any air. Use a toothpick to make a very tiny hole in one corner of the bag to release a thin stream of chocolate. Pipe eyes and noses and jagged grins as desired. Allow the chocolate to set before stacking the cookies.
• With beaters or a standing mixer, whip the egg white and lemon juice until frothy. At medium speed, beat in the confectioners' sugar, a little at a time, until the mixture is thick but still liquid enough to beat. Then beat on high until the mixture is thick and glossy, about 3 minutes. Cover the surface with plastic wrap while waiting to use it. Royal icing will set to a firm, glossy finish when applied to a cookie. The icing can be stored, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to a week.

JACK-O'-LANTERN EMPANADAS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add corn, onion and pepper; cook and stir 2-3 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in pumpkin, black beans and seasonings; heat through. Cool slightly., On a lightly floured surface, unroll pie crust. Cut 60 pumpkins with a 3-in. floured pumpkin-shaped or round cookie cutter, rerolling crust as necessary. Place half of the pumpkin cutouts 2 in. apart on parchment-lined baking sheets; top each with about 1 tablespoon pumpkin mixture. Using a knife, cut jack-o'-lantern faces or slits out of the remaining cutouts. Place over the top of the pumpkin mixture; press edges with a fork to seal., In a small bowl, whisk egg and water; brush over empanadas. Bake until golden brown, 12-15 minutes. Remove from pan to wire racks.

JACK-O'-LANTERNS

Steps:

• Place sheet of waxed paper on work surface. In 2-quart saucepan, heat butter and marshmallows over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. Stir in both food colors until mixture is orange. Stir in cereal until evenly coated.
• Lightly spray hands with cooking spray. For each pumpkin, shape about 1/3 cup cereal mixture into a ball. Press 1 cashew into top center of ball for stem. Place balls on waxed paper. Cool completely, about 15 minutes.
• Attach raisins and candies with decorating icing to make faces on pumpkins. Store in loosely covered container.