Halloween is one of the most delicious times of the year! It’s a chance to play with food, get creative and enjoy your favourite seasonal treats (and a few tasty tricks). We’ve been getting into the spooky spirit by trying out some of Ocado’s fantastic Halloween recipes; from fun bakes the children will love, to creepy centrepieces perfect for any Halloween party. You’ll also find plenty of pumpkin inspired creations to enjoy. So go on… take a few kitchen risks, have some fun and learn something new. There’s nothing to fear… 👻

Frankenstein’s Monster Head Cake

• 3 280g madeira loaf cakes
• 400 g of tub vanilla buttercream
• 2 tsp of lemon and lime marmalade
• 1.75 tsp of green food colouring
• 6 pieces of liquorice
• 175 g of ready rolled white fondant icing
• 6 drops of black food colouring

Step 1
Arrange the three cakes side by side on a large plate, tray, or cake board, with their long edges touching. Spread 75g of buttercream and the marmalade evenly between the layers to sandwich them together.

Step 2
Place 150g of buttercream in a bowl and use a palette knife to spread a thin, even layer over the entire cake. Scrape off any excess and discard—this is the crumb coat. Chill the cake uncovered for 15 minutes.

Step 3
While the cake chills, mix 1½ tsp of green food colouring into the remaining buttercream. Once chilled, cover the cake with this green icing as before, reserving a small spoonful for later use.

Step 4
Roll out both black and white fondant icing on baking paper to about 3mm thick.

• Eyes: Cut 2 large white crescents and 2 smaller black circles for pupils; attach with a little buttercream.

• Brows and mouth: Cut thin black strips, roll them into long “snakes,” and shape into a menacing expression.

• Scars: Cut 2 shorter strips and position at each end of the mouth to create stitched-up scars.

Step 5
For the nose, knead the white fondant trimmings with the leftover green food colouring. Shape into flat pieces or a small 3D nose, and attach it using the reserved green icing.

Step 6
Re-roll the black fondant trimmings and cut a long, jagged piece for the hair. Press it onto the top and sides of the cake. Insert three bundled liquorice pieces into each side for bolts. Store the finished cake in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Berry Spooky Halloween Cupcakes

• 1 gel icing tube
• 1 packet of liquorice laces
• 1 packet of strawberry laces
• 120 g of butter, at room temperature
• 120 g of sugar
• 2 eggs, at room temperature
• 120 g of self-raising flour
• 250 g of icing sugar, (for the icing)
• 1 bottle capful of orange food colouring
• blackberries
• blueberries
• raspberries

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 170°C (150°C fan) and line a muffin tin with paper cake cases.

Step 2
In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Step 3
Gently fold in the flour until fully combined. The mixture should drop easily from a spoon when lightly tapped.

Step 4
Spoon the mixture evenly into the cake cases and bake for 16–18 minutes, or until the cakes are golden and spring back when pressed lightly on top. Leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
Once cool, make the icing by mixing the icing sugar with 2 tbsp of water to form a smooth paste.

Step 5
Divide the icing into two bowls and colour one half orange. Ice half of the cakes with orange icing and the other half with white.
For the orange cakes, use a black icing tube to draw concentric circles on top. Then, drag the tip of a cocktail stick or skewer from the centre to the edge several times, creating a spider web effect.

Step 6
Place a blackberry in the centre of each web to make a spider, and use small pieces of liquorice for its legs.
For the white cakes, use a raspberry and blueberry together to form the head and body of a bug, then add liquorice or red icing legs and antennae.

Step 7
Tip: If you’re short on time, you can decorate ready-made fairy cakes instead. Alternatively, ice a shop-bought Victoria sponge with a large spider web design and top with berry “spiders” for a fun, quick version.

Haunted Gingerbread House

• 375 g of salted butter
• 300 g of dark muscovado sugar
• 75 g of black treacle
• 75 g of golden syrup
• 950 g of plain flour
• 1 tbsp of bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp of salt
• 2 tbsp of ground ginger
• 1 tbsp of ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp of ground nutmeg
• 1 medium egg white, lightly beaten
• 0.25 tsp of lemon juice
• 250 g of icing sugar, plus extra to thicken if needed
• 0.5 15g tube violet food colouring
• 100 g of white chocolate, melted
• 360 g of dark chocolate, melted, plus extra 100g melted, for sicking
• 2 handfuls of purple and orange (or green) candy sweets
• A handful of chocolate raisins
• A handful of pitted dates
• A handful of jelly spiders

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4. In a large pan, melt the butter, sugar, treacle, and syrup together.

Step 2
Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt, and spices into a bowl. Stir in the melted mixture to form a firm, pliable dough, adding a little water if needed. Knead briefly, then divide into four portions.

Step 3
Using baking paper templates, cut out the house pieces: 2 roof panels (18×18cm), 2 side walls (11×11cm), and 2 front/back walls (12cm base × 18cm peak). Cut a door and window in the front piece. Bake roof and wall pieces on lined trays at 180°C — 17 minutes for large pieces, 12 minutes for smaller ones. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Step 4
For the icing “glue,” whisk egg white and lemon juice, then gradually add icing sugar until thick and glossy. Tint with violet food colouring and cover with a damp towel until ready to use.

Step 5
Pipe icing along the wall edges and assemble the house on a board. Add extra icing inside for support and use cups or glasses to prop it up while drying. Attach the roof with more icing and pipe along the ridge in a zigzag. Leave to dry for 1 hour.

Step 6
For the chocolate web roof tiles, spread melted dark chocolate (360g) onto lined trays. Pipe white chocolate spirals on top, then drag a cocktail stick from centre to edge for a web effect. Chill until set, then break into shards.

Step 7
Brush the roof with melted dark chocolate (100g) and stick on the chocolate shards as “tiles.”

Step 8
Finish with spooky decorations — jelly spiders, fondant pebbles, black cats, or glowing windows. The creepier, the better!

Freaky Faces

• 1 (300g) pack oat cakes, rice cakes or crackers
• 1 (300g) tub houmous
• 1 (200g) tub guacamole
• 1 (160g) pack cheese slices
• 1 (340g) jar pitted black olives
• 1 (200g) pack radishes
• 1 (195g) tin sweetcorn
• 1 red pepper
• 1 (150g) pack sugar snap peas
• 85g tub peeled edamame soy beans
• 2 carrots
• 1 (200g) pack baby corn
• 1 (100g) pack pumpkin seeds

Method

Step 1
Spread oatcakes or crackers with houmous and guacamole.

Step 2
For the eyes, cut small circles from cheese slices using a bottle top. Add pupils made from pieces of black olive, radish, or peas (a metal straw works well for cutting them out).

Step 3
Create mouths using bits of sweetcorn or strips of pepper. For toothy smiles, split open sugar snaps to show the peas inside.

Step 4
Use edamame beans for noses.

Step 5
Finish with fun features – ears, eyebrows, horns, or hair – made from sugar snaps, chopped pepper, radish, carrot, cucumber, baby corn, or pumpkin seeds. Best eaten on the same day.

For even more fangtastic recipes and spooky inspiration, head over to the Ocado website!