Homemade Halloween Treats!

With Halloween in the air and the certainty of Thanksgiving and Christmas close behind, stores are filled with all kinds of overpriced sweet treats full of paraffin, sugar (both good and bad kinds), cornstarch, wheat starch, and who knows what. You can eat gallons of the stuff but wind up with little to no food value, craving more and more yourself while sending your kids on impossible sugar-highs! With all the imitation additives (flavor, sugars, coloring) and stuff that's just generally bad for you, wouldn't it be a good thing to go back to some of the homemade stuff your grandmother, your mother and the neighbors used to make?

Here are  a couple of wonderful recipes that are easy to make for Halloween treats. You'll find yourself making them all year long! Don't stop with Grammy's "Caramel Crispy Corn Crunch"  featuring hot, fresh pop corn, but go ahead and try the very easy cupcakes  "Nutty Ghost Puffs" that follow.

Grammy's Caramel Crispy Corn Crunch:

• Preheat over to 200°
• 6 qts. dry popped corn (white or yellow)
• 1 cup mixed nuts (salted or plain)
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2 sticks butter or margarine
• 1/2 cup white corn syrup
• 1 tsp. salt (optional)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 quart sauce pan
• 1 large cookie sheet or deep, wide ovenproof pan - pre-heated

Place sugar, syrup, salt and butter in a 2 quart sauce pan and bring to a rolling boil; turn heat down to a good simmer and allow to simmer for five minutes. Remove from heat and add baking powder; stir well. Note: addition of baking powder will cause sugar mixture to become frothy.

Add nuts to popped corn, toss lightly; pour syrup mixture over corn and nuts stirring and tossing to coat well until you have used all of the syrup and it is fairly evenly mixed.

Spread mixture into the large ovenproof container, pressing down with clean non-stick spatula or oiled spoon. Toss and stir every 15 minutes for one hour. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature. When completely cool, you may store in a covered container OR spoon servings into zip-lock sandwich bags, seal, affix a colorful seasonal sticker on the bag and use to hand out as treats!

Warning! You'd better make a double batch because they'll be howling at your door for more and there won't be enough for you! While this might not be exactly guiltless, popped corn is wholesome and good for you. And you may rest easy knowing there are no imitation sugars or anything less than wholesome in this special homemade treat! Enjoy!

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Nutty Ghost Puffs:

• Preheat over to 350°
• 1/3 cup shortening
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup light molasses

Cream together shortening and sugar; add egg and molasses, beat well; then sift together:

• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Add dry ingredients plus 1/4 cup chopped nuts (salted or plain) to creamed mixture alternately with 3/4 cup buttermilk or sour milk. Fill greased cupcake pans half full and bake in moderate over (350°) for 20  minutes. Allow to cool then top with whipped cream or white icing. Make ghostly faces with cut raisins or pecans. You can also be creative by decorating the cupcakes with red or black frosting in tubes. In Grammy's day, she improvised and came up with some pretty scary creations! She'd have loved the variety of decorations available today.