Let's face it: Nobody really gets scared on Halloween.
We all know that those ghosts and witches and vampires flying around aren't there to haunt us or to drink our blood; they're just children looking for a good time and a lot of candy.
In a similar vein, so to speak, Halloween party food that claims to be frightening, isn't. It is merely meant to be enjoyable, something to evoke the idea of horror.
And yet, there is something ... unnerving ... about eating something that is looking back at you. Even when it's all in fun.
This Halloween, the eyes have it.
For a lighthearted Halloween party this year, we made food that really has its eyes open. Candy eyeballs, painted eyeballs, googly eyeballs _ they are all essential parts of a happy Halloween feast.
And they're all so deliciously easy to make.
Chocolate-covered pretzels have been popular for years. The crisp pretzel base and sprinkling of salt bring out the very best in chocolate. Nothing can beat it, unless you put candy eyeballs on them and call them Screaming Pretzels.
It's all in the marketing. Who could resist something called Screaming Pretzels?
They're a snap to make, and they are so much more giddy fun to eat than regular chocolate-covered pretzels.
Monster doughnuts are, if possible, even easier to make. Simply take a glazed doughnut and put vampire teeth in the hole and candy eyeballs above them. Like magic, you have turned a regular doughnut into a monster doughnut. You have made a doughnut even better. It is as if you have improved on perfection.
Continuing the monster theme, Cheese Monsters are actually kind of healthy, or at least they are not unhealthy. You take those miniature rounds of cheese wrapped in red wax _ they are made by Babybel _ and cut scary or funny teeth in the middle of the wax, where the pull-apart strip is found. A couple of googly eyes on top completes the treat, but if you really want to have fun, use just one eye. Or three. Or maybe 15. These are monsters, after all.
If you enjoy playing with your food, and you don't mind things a bit spicy, you will love Jalapeno Popper Mummies. These begin with the familiar jalapeno popper beloved by patrons of every sports bar in America. But instead of frying them, you wrap them in mummy-like strips of refrigerated crescent dough and bake them.
Add a couple of candy eyeballs just for spooky fun, and you have a spicy treat that will make you run screaming for your mummy.
By this time, you may be tired of candy eyeballs. So why not make a party treat that actually resembles an eye? Better still, a bloodshot eye.
All you need are deviled eggs, slices of black olives for the pupils, and thin strips of pimento radiating from them across the yolk. What could be tastier? _ in a slightly gross way, of course.
Finally, you're sure to delight when you combine eyes with America's favorite cookie _ and then make it even cuter by turning it into a cat.
Black Cat Oreos begin with an Oreo. A couple of green M&M's with black pupils painted with edible marker become the eyes. An orange sprinkle serves as the cat's little orange nose, and its cat ears are created by a couple of chocolate chips on top.
It looks too good to eat, but I don't think your guests will have a problem with it. If only those unsettling green eyes weren't looking at you.
