Zombie Brains Cheese Ball (re-run)

I made this back in 2017 and thought I'd share again in case you're in need of an easy fun appetizer for Halloween (or any time really, it's good even without forming it into brains hahaha):

I have very nice friends who don't seem to mind that every time I bring food to a party, I'm going to make something that I want to blog hahaha. So even though it was NOT a Halloween party I brought this zombie brains cheese ball to Ronda's party so I could try it out...and no one even blinked.

This is quite easy to do and tastes yummy (once you get past the way it looks that is!). It's a pesto flavored cheese ball topped with squiggly "brains" made from feta and cream cheese, surrounded by sun-dried tomato sauce. Even if you don't want it "zombie" themed this is a very good combo, just spread the topping on instead of making it look brain- like!

Ingredients:

• 2 pkgs (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 pkg (3.5 oz.) crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup Classico Traditional Basil Pesto Sauce
• 2 T. toasted pine nuts
• 1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 T. balsamic vinegar
• crackers for serving

Directions  - see my note after about the feta mixture:

1. In a food processor, blend 1 pkg. of cream cheese and the feta until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary. Spoon into a plastic baggie and refrigerate. 
2. Add the remaining 1 pkg. cream cheese, parmesan, and pesto sauce to the food processor and process until well blended. Add the toasted pine nuts and pulse several times to mix. Place the mixture into a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a ball, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, water, olive oil and balsamic vinegar to the food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.
4. Unwrap the pesto ball and turn onto a plate. Gently shape into an oval. Cut the tip off one corner of the feta mixture baggie and pipe onto the pesto ball in a twisting brain-like pattern. Spoon the sun-dried tomato sauce around the cheese ball and serve with crackers. 

note: I put the feta mixture in a baggie and into the fridge like they said but two things - 1) it was too firm after chilling it to squeeze out of the baggie and 2) I couldn't control the squiggles like I wanted to using the plastic bag. So I let the mixture set out to warm up a bit and then put it into a decorator bag with a big circle tip so I could make the "brains" look better.

original recipe found here. 



one year ago: baked crab cakes
two years ago: Halloween spider soap

Mummy Cupcakes

Need some Halloween cupcake ideas for any upcoming parties? Or just 'cuz you want to make cute cupcakes haha? I have 3 cute and easy ones to share with you over the next couple days...they are all about the decorating, not the baking. Start with your favorite cupcake - these are devil's food boxed mix doctored up with an extra egg, replace the water with milk, add a teaspoon of vanilla and handful of mini chocolate chips.

To make each mummy I frosted with my chocolate buttercream frosting (see below), add 2 candy eyes, then pipe white buttercream frosting in strips across the top (I used a #104 piping tip).

Buttercream frosting: using a mixer, beat 1 stick of unsalted room temperature butter with about 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and a few tablespoons of heavy cream (or milk) until fluffy. Add more sugar or cream for spreading consistency.

Chocolate Buttercream: follow the above recipe adding cocoa powder (probably 1/4 to 1/3 cup).

one year ago: Mickey's 2 ingredient pumpkin spice cookies
two years ago: no sew trick or treat bag

Zombie Brains Cheese Ball

I have very nice friends who don't seem to mind that every time I bring food to a party I'm going to make something that I want to blog hahaha. So even though it was NOT a Halloween party I brought this zombie brains cheese ball to Ronda's party so I could try it out...and no one even blinked.

This is quite easy to do and tastes yummy (once you get past the way it looks that is!). It's a pesto flavored cheese ball topped with squiggly "brains" made from feta and cream cheese, surrounded by sun-dried tomato sauce. Even if you don't want it "zombie" themed this is a very good combo, just spread the topping on instead of making it look brain- like!

Ingredients:

• 2 pkgs (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 pkg (3.5 oz.) crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup Classico Traditional Basil Pesto Sauce
• 2 T. toasted pine nuts
• 1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 T. balsamic vinegar
• crackers for serving

Directions  - see my note after about the feta mixture:

1. In a food processor, blend 1 pkg. of cream cheese and the feta until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary. Spoon into a plastic baggie and refrigerate. 
2. Add the remaining 1 pkg. cream cheese, parmesan, and pesto sauce to the food processor and process until well blended. Add the toasted pine nuts and pulse several times to mix. Place the mixture into a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a ball, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
3. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, water, olive oil and balsamic vinegar to the food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.
4. Unwrap the pesto ball and turn onto a plate. Gently shape into an oval. Cut the tip off one corner of the feta mixture baggie and pipe onto the pesto ball in a twisting brain-like pattern. Spoon the sun-dried tomato sauce around the cheese ball and serve with crackers. 

note: I put the feta mixture in a baggie and into the fridge like they said but two things - 1) it was too firm after chilling it to squeeze out of the baggie and 2) I couldn't control the squiggles like I wanted to using the plastic bag. So I let the mixture set out to warm up a bit and then put it into a decorator bag with a big circle tip so I could make the "brains" look better.

original recipe found here. 



one year ago: baked crab cakes
two years ago: Halloween spider soap

Brain Hemorrhage

Going to a Halloween party tonight and I asked what I can bring. Amy said to bring whatever I feel like making, but Scott goes "if you want to bring something I want it to be brain hemorrhages" - apparently a long time ago I made them and he still remembers it hahahah. I have a terrible memory and do not remember making them but he does so I'm happy to bring them! I'm hoping the reason I can't remember this is that my memory is just bad and it's not because I drank to many of them LOL!! Yes, they look disgusting but it's a Halloween party and I'm pretty sure that's the point - you might not have anyone that wants to try them cuz it's a gross looking drink, but it tastes good if that helps...be brave!

for each drink: put 1 ounce chilled Peach Schnapps in a shot glass and slowly add 1 teaspoon of chilled Baileys. Wait a second and it'll start to curdle which looks nasty. Top with a little bit of chilled grenadine.


Dekuyper's website has the ingredient amounts listed as 3/4 parts peach schnapps to 1/4 part irish cream (baileys) with a few drops of grenadine. It doesn't say to have them each chilled beforehand but I think it tastes even better cold. The picture I'm using is from their site since it's early in the morning and I don't want to make one of these right now hahah - but it should look like this!

Click here to see how to make brain hemorrhage shots if you'd rather! 

Witch Hat Cupcakes

Happy Halloween! For my last post this month I decided to make witch hat cupcakes for my niece's soccer game today - probably not the most practical treat at a soccer game but they are so cute I'm doing it anyway :) Girls are going to love them!

I just made regular white cupcakes from a mix and frosted with white store bought vanilla frosting (left over from Halloween gingerbread houses) whipped with some cocoa to make it light brown and fluffy. My sister heard a tip somewhere that if you whip the store bought frosting with a mixer it gets light and fluffier and it worked! Giving the non-baking sister credit for that baking tip of the day ;).

For the witch hats: melt black candy melts in the microwave according to directions on the bag (I added a little bit of shortening to it to make it a little runnier, maybe a tablespoon), then using a pastry brush I brushed small sugar cones with the melted candy and set them on a parchment lined baking sheet to dry - it doesn't take long to set up.

 For the brim I cut small (about 1 1/4")  holes in patterned cupcake liners and slid them over the top of the cones. Set on top of frosted cupcakes at a slight angle so you can see some of the frosting underneath.

This idea came from Country Living Magazine , click here for the article.

Skeleton Pretzels

Woooooooo (spooky noise) - look how cute these skeleton pretzels turned out! I made these in 20 minutes start to finish with very quick clean up. What a fun Halloween treat! Check out how easy these are to make:

• place white yogurt pretzels on a parchment lined baking sheet
• microwave some candy melts (any color, I had orange and black left over from another project), spoon into a small ziplock baggie and snip a small hole off one corner. 
• fill in the eyes as shown with melted candy, before it sets up add sprinkles or small candies for the pupils. 
• put them in the fridge until they harden (although mine were setting up really quickly and didn't need time in the fridge). 

I saw this idea in a magazine but of course can't remember which one, so can't link their page for you...

Mummy Meatballs

I had a busy week and got a little behind making stuff this week - so you get a repeat of one of my favorite Halloween recipes originally posted 10/27/15 (an oldie but goodie!):

Saw this idea a few places online, they are too cute and I had to try them. Not only are they a super cute idea, they taste and smell really good! My husband came into the kitchen as I was finishing putting the eyeballs on and started eating them - in between bites he said "I feel guilty eating them, they're so cute", but he managed to eat the whole plate so I guess he didn't feel THAT bad haha!

I bought turkey meatballs in the freezer section and 1 can of refrigerated low-fat crescent roll dough (turkey and lite dough - I'm trying to make them a little healthier!). Remove the dough from the tube, press the triangles all together, don't separate them; cut into 4 rectangles. With a pizza cutter or knife, cut each rectangle lengthwise into narrow strips. Wrap dough around each meatball to look like mummy bandages, leaving a place open for the mummy eyes, and bake. 

To make the eyes I sliced a mozzarella cheese stick into thin rounds (less than 1/4"), cut out small rounds with a large straw (this is the white eye part), then cut a smaller hole in that with a little straw and inserted a black peppercorn. Use anything you can find that will fit in the small hole that you have around - pieces of black olives would work,  mini chocolate chips (might not taste great haha but you just need a dark center for the eye), just look around and you'll find something. The recipe I followed dotted on mustard or ketchup for eyes but I like the white eye with something dark in it.

You could serve these many different ways - use your imagination! Could be with spaghetti for dinner, dipped in marinara as dinner or appetizers, standing at the counter inhaling them like someone I know, whatever you want. They taste good, are easy to make, come together quickly - all good! I'm going to take the 2 that I hid from my husband for my lunch tomorrow - I think they'll even taste good cold :)

Original recipe (I only changed the eyes):

• 1 can (8 oz) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls 
• 20 frozen cooked meatballs, thawed
• Ketchup or mustard, if desired
• Marinara sauce, as desired

Heat oven to 375°F. Line work surface with cooking parchment paper. On parchment-lined surface, unroll dough and press perforations to seal; cut into 4 rectangles.

With knife or pizza cutter, cut each rectangle lengthwise into 10 pieces, making a total of 40 pieces of dough.

Wrap 2 pieces of dough around each meatball to look like "bandages," stretching dough slightly to cover meatballs.

Separate "bandages" near 1 end to show meatball "face." On ungreased large cookie sheet, place wrapped meatballs.

Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until dough is light golden brown and meatballs are hot. With ketchup and mustard, draw "eyes" on mummy bites. Serve with warm marinara sauce.

Sponsor recipe courtesy of © 2015 ®/™ General Mills All Rights Reserved
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