Easy Cupcakes

There’s gum on this cupcake, and we don’t mean gum paste! (Sorry, cake decorating joke). Gum from a roll makes the wrapping on this not-so-scary mummy.

What You Need: 1 cupcake (baked and cooled); white frosting; white or light green rolled gum; two blue M&Ms.
Make That Cupcake!: Frost cupcake white. Unroll section of gum. (Our gum was wider than we liked, so we used scissors to cut it in half lengthwise). Cut gum into various lengths and lay over top of cupcake, leaving space for 2 M&M eyes. You can lay the gum in longer-than-needed strips and trim with scissors while on the cupcake if you’d like. Add eyes and there you have it!

The moon on this cupcake, which is perfect for Halloween, is actually a banana candy!

What You Need: 1 cupcake (baked and cooled); chocolate frosting; Junior Mint; brown M&M; bit of black licorice (for tail); black writing icing or gel and Runts banana candy.
Make That Cupcake!: Frost cupcake. Position Junior Mint as cat body and M&M as head. Use writing icing to draw triangle ears. Add black licorice for tail (or you could just draw the tail). Add banana moon and there you go! A fun cat for Halloween or anytime.

Want to make friendly spider cupcakes for Halloween or another occasion? How about mean ones with evil fangs? Well, you can make both!


What You Need: 2 cupcakes (baked and cooled); chocolate frosting; red and black licorice strings; mini Oreo cookie; 4 cinnamon imperial (”red hot”) candies; 2 Tic Tac mints.
Make Those Cupcakes!: Frost both cupcakes with chocolate frosting. Cut licorice into 8 lengths for each cupcake and stick into cupcake to form legs. For friendly spider, place mini Oreo near front of cupcake for head. Use dab of icing to adhere 2 red hot eyes and a bit of licorice for smiling mouth. For mean spider, use 2 red hots for eyes and cut small stands of black licorice for frowning eyebrows. Add 2 Tic Tacs for fangs. These would also be great for a kids’ bug-themed party.

The trick to these Halloween werewolf cupcakes is to make sure the frosting looks nice and “furry” by pulling upward with your knife or spatula several times to form peaks.

What You Need: 1 cupcake (baked and cooled); chocolate frosting; 4 candy corn pieces; 1 red jellybean; 2 yellow M&Ms; candy eyes (or use candy dots or just a dab of black writing icing).
Make That Cupcake!: Frost cupcake generously, and pull upward with knife or spatula to form fur-like peaks. Add 4 candy corns for teeth, a red jellybean nose, 2 upside-down yellow M&Ms for eyes and then use a tiny dab of icing to attach a candy eye or candy dots (the kind that come on a strip of paper) or just a little dot of writing icing. It’s howling good fun!

This Jack o’ lantern cupcake comes with his own handle! But don’t try to pick him up; it’s just licorice.

What You Need: 1 cupcake (baked and cooled); white or off-white frosting; orange food coloring (paste or mix red and yellow liquid food coloring); 2 candy corns; 1 orange M&M; candy orange slice; length of black licorice.
Make That Cupcake!: Tint icing orange and frost cupcake. Add candy corn eyes, M&M nose and candy orange mouth. Poke ends of licorice string into cupcake for “handle.”

These snowy owls would work just as well for a Halloween party as a Harry Potter party. They’re a real “hoot”–ugh, sorry!

What You Need: 1 cupcake (baked and cooled); white frosting; coconut flakes; two red Lifesavers candies; small green “dot” candies (the kind sold on a paper strip) or similar candy; Junior Mint candy.
How to Make It: Frost cupcake and immediately sprinkle with coconut. Using butter knife, make small slit a little below the center of cupcake and insert Junior Mint, sideways, for beak. Add two red Lifesavers for eyes and put small green candies in the center. (Tip: You might want to wait until just before serving to put the eyes on, as the red might “bleed” onto the white background.)

These long-legged spider cookies are quick to make and fun to eat, thanks to a chocolate sandwich cookie perched on top.

What You Need: 1 cupcake, baked and cooled; white or off-white icing; orange paste or red and yellow liquid food coloring; chocolate sandwich cookie (such as Oreo; we used Joe Joe’s from Trader Joe’s); black licorice whips; cinnamon imperials (red hots).
How to Make It: Tint icing orange and frost cupcake orange. Cut licorice into eight equal lengths and press four into each side of the cookie. Use dab of icing to attach red hot eyes to cookie. Place cookie on cupcake. Couldn’t be easier!