creepy brownie spider bites {for halloween}

Photo by Bakerella, courtesy of pauladeen.com

I love that my kids' school still lets parents bring homemade treats for birthdays, etc., because I love making homemade treats! Last year I let my son choose a cake pop from Bakerella's Cake Pops book, and he chose the robots. So darn cute! A ton of work and supplies, though. He wanted them again for his new school, but the book is in storage in Seattle (I couldn't bring everything, remember?).

So while perusing Bakerella.com for some new ideas, I found these brownie spider bites that she put together for Paula Deen's site. They were just right for my birthday boy (who is 8 today--I can't believe I have a cub scout on my hands already!). Aren't they creepy? Also a lot of work, but not so pricey. And my son thought mine were cooler than the original. Score one for mom!

Here they are all packaged up, ready to go to second grade!

I couldn't find the black licorice wheels for the spiders' legs, so we improvised with Twizzlers red Pull-N-Peel. And there was no way I was going to spend the money to buy the raspberry gumpdrops for a bunch of 2nd graders, so I used red and orange M&Ms. I just colored a little black pupil in with a black edible food marker.

Please forgive the pictures, as I was finishing these up after midnight last night. I won't tell you how long after midnight I was up, but I will tell you I love my kids. A LOT. You see, I had to make something for my Kindergartener's class, too, because his birthday is tomorrow and they celebrated it in class today. He chose the ghost pops, which are about the easiest of Bakerella's pops and one of the cheapest (no crazy candies to buy). I made them out of a brownie mix instead of cake (like the spiders called for), which is awesome because they're not only yummy, but you don't have to mix in the frosting and you can skip the freezer. Yipee!

This is Bakerella's photo, not mine. Mine weren't quite as perfect, but just as yummy. One tip. The Wilton edible markers do not write well on the candy bites for some reason. I have had nothing but bad luck with them. I know Bakerella uses a more professional one (not sure what it's called). So I drew my ghost's eyes and mouths on with a little melted chocolate candy coating and a toothpick. They looked cute! Sorry, no pic. I was too tired to think of it by the time I was done with them. But either of these spooky treats would be perfect for a Halloween party. Try them with a brownie mix instead of cake and frosting--they're dangerously delicious!