Halloween Party Food!

Black Cat Fudge

8 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup whipping cream

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. salt

4 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

30 white chocolate chips

Cat-shaped cookie cutters

Directions:

1. Line 11x7 in. pan with foil, extending foil beyond edges of pan; grease foil.

2. Melt chocolate and butter in saucepan over low heat. Stir in corn syrup, whipping cream, vanilla and salt.

3. Remove from heat and gradually stir in powdered sugar until smooth.

4. Spread evenly in prepared pan. Refrigerate until firm about 1 to 2 hours.

5. Using foil as handles, remove fudge from pan; peel off foil.

6. Using cat cookie cutters cut out cat shapes in fudge.

7. Place 2 vanilla milk chips on each cat for eyes. Score feet to make claws. Cover; refrigerate until ready to serve.

Chocolate Halloween Lollipops

1 bag any color chocolate melts

Lollipop molds of your choice

1 bag of lollipop sticks

Disposable pastry bags

1 bag of lollipop wrappers with ties

Directions:

1. To melt the chocolate (Wilton's Candy Melts work great), follow the directions on the back of the bag. The easiest way is to use a disposable pastry bag. Fill it with the melts, tie off the open end and zap it in the microwave. Squeeze the bag every few minutes as it melts to mix it.

2. Cut off the tip of the bag and fill each sucker shape to the top. For Halloween, use orange melts and jack-o-lantern molds. You can also melt some yellow and brown melts and fill in the jack-o-lantern face before you fill with orange. Just let the faces harden first, then fill.

3. When they are full, insert the sticks, you may have to work them into the chocolate a little and top it off to seal them in. They may look a little bumpy but they will level out as the chocolate settles. Place in your refrigerator to set. You can also look for different molds that have witches, skulls, etc. and fill them accordingly.

4. To remove after they are set, just lift by the stick, they should easily pop right out. If they don't come out, just bend the mold slightly, like getting ice from a tray. You can use candy paints or glazes at this time to add some color. Or use decorating gel or frosting to add faces!

Tips: For a Halloween party, serve on on a large serving tray or decorative plates. For treats, wrap individually in those little cellophane bags for suckers. You can find orange ones during the Halloween season.

Popcorn Balls

2 ½ quarts popped popcorn

1 14-oz package light caramels

1/4 cup light corn syrup

2 Tbsp water

Directions:

1. Keep popcorn warm in a 200 degree oven.

2. Melt caramels in top of double boiler over simmering water. Add corn syrup and water

and mix until smooth.

3. Slowly pour over popcorn in a large bowl. Stir to mix well.

4. With greased hands, shape into balls about the size of softballs. Let cool completely before wrapping with plastic wrap.