Haunted Graveyard Cake Recipes

GRAVEYARD CAKE FOR HALLOWEEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease sides and bottom of a 9x13-inch cake pan with cooking spray.
• Combine cake mix, water, eggs, and oil in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer on low speed until moistened, about 30 seconds. Beat at medium speed until batter is smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 26 to 31 minutes. Remove from oven and cool pan on wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove cake from pan and cool completely on wire rack before decorating, about 2 hours.
• Spread a layer of chocolate frosting over top of the cake.
• Fill a pastry bag, fitted with a small plain tip, with a few tablespoons of chocolate frosting. Write "RIP" or draw a cross on sandwich cookies. Insert decorated cookies into the cake so that they look like tombstones in a graveyard. Sprinkle chocolate cookie crumbs in between the cookie tombstones to resemble dirt.

SPOOKTACULAR HALLOWEEN GRAVEYARD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Mix together cake mix, water, oil, and eggs according to package directions.
• If your package requires different ingredients to make cake, follow those instructions instead.
• Grease and flour a glass 13x9-inch cake pan.
• If you use a dark or coated pan, do your baking at 325°F.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and bake in a preheated oven for approx 35 minutes (38-40 minutes for dark or coated pans) or until cake is done.
• Allow cake to cool in the pan.
• Spread frosting evenly on cooled cake.
• Sprinkle frosting with crumbled cookies (oreos or whatever you are using).
• Using gel frostings, write sayings on 1/2 of the milano cookies (some sayings might be"Justin Tyme","Yul B Next","RIP","M T Tomb","Will B Back","Barry M Deep", etc).
• Press 1/2 of cookie down into cake and icing to resemble a standing tombstone.
• Arrange ghost marshmallows in a standing position on top of cake.
• Scatter candies and/or sprinkles or sugars on cake to garnish.

GRAVEYARD CAKE

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt; set aside. In a saucepan, combine butter, water and cocoa; bring to a boil over medium heat. Add to flour mixture; beat well. Beat in sour cream and eggs. , Pour into a greased 13x9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 35-38 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes., Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine butter, milk and cocoa; bring to a boil. Remove from the heat; stir in sugar and vanilla. Pour over warm cake. Crumble chocolate cookies; sprinkle over frosting while still warm. Cool completely. , For tombstone, use icing to decorate vanilla cookies with words or faces; place on cake. For ghosts, make mounds of whipped topping; use icing to add eyes and mouths as desired. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Just before serving, add pumpkins and gummy worms if desired.

HAUNTED GRAVEYARD CAKE

Steps:

• To make the ghosts, heat oven to 110C/90C fan/gas ¼. Whip the egg white in a clean bowl until stiff peaks form. Whisk in the sugar a tbsp at a time and keep whisking for a couple of mins until the mixture is thick and resembles shaving foam. Gently spoon the mixture into a large freezer bag, then cut a 1.5cm hole in one of the corners. Cover a baking sheet with some baking parchment. Carefully squeeze a small circle of whipped egg white out of the bag, pulling upwards as you do to make a ghost shape. Repeat until the mixture is used up - you should get about 15 ghosts. Bake for 1½ hrs until crisp. Can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
• Now make the cake. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Tip the cocoa powder, self-raising flour and sugar into a large bowl, breaking up any clumps of sugar. Mix together the eggs, milk and oil in a measuring cup or bowl, then pour over the dry ingredients and stir everything together until smooth. Grease and line a deep baking dish (20 x 30 x 5cm) with baking parchment. Pour in the cake mixture and bake for 30 mins. Leave to cool, then turn out onto a serving plate. Alternatively, wrap well and store for up to 2 days.
• Finish decorating the cake: heat cream in a saucepan until just boiling. Place the dark chocolate in a large bowl and pour over the hot cream. Stir until the chocolate melts. Use a clean brush to paint a layer of chocolate over 7 rich tea finger biscuits, then set aside to cool. Pour the rest of the chocolate mixture over the cake and smooth over with a knife. Whizz the chocolate cookies, or bash in a freezer bag with a rolling pin, until small crumbs form. Sprinkle over the top of the cake.
• Place the white chocolate in a small bowl, set over a pan of simmering water. Leave for 5 mins or until melted, then spoon into a small freezer bag. Wait for 10 mins so the mixture is not too runny, then cut a tiny hole in one corner of the bag. Pipe out 2 small blobs onto each ghost, place a silver ball on each to make eyes, then pipe out suitable words and shapes on the gravestones. Leave for 30 mins to set, then push the biscuit gravestones into the cake and arrange the ghosts around. To get the ghosts to 'fly', push a thin wire (you can get these from a florist shop - remember to remove before eating) into the bottom of the ghost, then place in the cake, hiding the wire behind a gravestone.

HALLOWEEN GRAVEYARD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a disposable foil pan with a domed plastic lid.
• Beat cake mix with water, eggs, and oil in a large bowl using an electric mixer until no dry spots remain. Increase speed to medium; blend well. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 32 to 36 minutes. Let cool completely, at least 30 minutes.
• Frost the cooled cake with frosting.
• Push fudge sticks upright about 1/2-inch apart into 3 outer edges of the cake to represent fence posts. Place additional fudge sticks about 1/2-inch apart in a diagonal line across the cake starting at the fourth corner to create a small area outside the graveyard. Weave licorice whips through the fence posts for crosspieces. Connect 2 parallel sticks with a third diagonal one and attach with frosting to make a gate.
• Make a winding path from the gate to the far edge of the cake with 2 parallel lines of chocolate covered raisins as boulders. Fill the path with toffee chip for rocks. Assemble a licorice whip tree; insert in the middle of the path in the far corner of the graveyard.
• Mix coconut with green food coloring in a small bowl until thoroughly dyed. Arrange outside the gate into a lawn. Pile a mound of candy pumpkins in 1 corner of the graveyard and a few on the grass.
• Write spooky phrases on the upper thirds of the oval cookies with black decorator gel icing such as 'RIP" with a skull and crossbones, "Yul B. Next," or "Here Lies ---." Stick cookie gravestones carefully into the cake. Scatter cookie crumbs all over the graveyard to represent dirt; stack any extra crumbs into a dirt pile in front of a gravestone. Place a marshmallow ghost at the fence, peeking out from between two posts.

GHOSTS IN THE GRAVEYARD

Steps:

• Beat pudding mixes and milk in large bowl with whisk 2 min. Let stand 5 min. Stir in 3 cups COOL WHIP and half the cookie crumbs. Spread into 13x9-inch dish; sprinkle with remaining crumbs.
• Refrigerate 1 hour. Meanwhile, decorate sandwich cookies with decorating gel to resemble tombstones.
• Insert decorated cookies into top of dessert just before serving. Add candies. Drop large spoonfuls of remaining COOL WHIP onto dessert to resemble ghosts.

HALLOWEEN GRAVEYARD CAKE

Steps:

• In a mixer whip the butter until it is fluffy. Add in the vanilla and salt and mix until combined.
• Add in powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream. Alternating between the two. I like to add in 1 cup of powder sugar followed by 2 tbs of heavy whipping cream, let it combine and then add the next round of powdered sugar and heavy cream.
• Once everything is added, mix on high for 20-30 seconds. Then add in the orange food gel and mix on medium low until full incorporated.
• In a mixer whip the butter until it is fluffy. Add in the espresso powder, dark cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt and mix until combined.
• Add in powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream. Alternating between the two. I like to add in 1 cup of powder sugar followed by 2 tbs of heavy whipping cream, let it combine and then add the next round of powdered sugar and cream.
• Once everything is added, mix on high for 20-30 seconds. Then add in the black food gel and mix on medium low until full incorporated.
• In a mixer whip the butter until it is fluffy. Add in the vanilla and salt and mix until combined.
• Add in powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream. Alternating between the two. I like to add in 1 cup of powder sugar followed by 2 tbs of heavy whipping cream, let it combine and then add the next round of powdered sugar and heavy cream.
• Once everything is added, mix on high for 20-30 seconds. Then add in the green food gel and mix on medium low until full incorporated.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease three 6 inch round cake pans with butter and flour (or use floured baking spray like Bakers Joy).
• Using a stand mixer, mix sugar and butter until fluffy. About 5 minutes.
• While mixing the butter and sugar microwave water for 30 seconds then add espresso to it, stirring until dissolved.
• Whisk cocoa powder, then buttermilk and vanilla into water/espresso mixture.
• In a separate bowl sift flour, baking soda and salt together.
• Once butter and sugar are lighter color and fully mixed, add each egg and the yolk, one at a time, into the butter mixture, letting each one fully mix into the batter before adding the next. Add in oil and mix until fully combined. Then beat mixture on medium high speed for a minute- the mixture will be light and fluffy.
• Fold in ½ of the flour and then fold in ½ of the buttermilk mixture to the batter. Then fold in remaining flour and then remaining buttermilk mixture.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Try baking the cakes on the same rack, or baking them one at a time. This will ensure even baking.
• Once the cakes are done let them cool completely, level if needed, then wrap in saran wrap and freeze.
• Crush Oreos (I like to use a food processor because it's easy but crushing them in a ziplock baggie works too)
• Add tape to the bottom of your 8 in cake board and stick to your cake turntable. Then add tape to the bottom of your 6 in cake board and stick to the center of the 8 in cake board.
• Place a small dollop of frosting in the center of the 6 in cake board and place your first cake layer on top.
• Add a nice layer of orange buttercream, then and your second cake layer, then add another layer of buttercream, and add your third cake layer.
• Spread a thin layer of orange buttercream all over the cake as your crumb coat. Don't worry too much about making it super smooth because it will all be covered with the final coat. Once the crumb coat is on refrigerate for 10-15 minutes.
• While cake is chilling, decorate your ghosts and pumpkins. Use the writing tip to make details like eyes and mouths, and lines on the pumpkins.
• Once chilled, add a thick layer of black buttercream all around the center of the cake. Press in the sprinkles and then add the ghosts and pumpkins to the black frosting. I found that halving the ghosts and pumpkins so they were thinner worked well. Chill for another 10 minutes in the refrigerator.
• Add the final orange coat by frosting a large area above and below the black frosting. I found using a piping bag with the end cut off (to make a large circle) worked well to evenly frost these areas. Add frosting to the top of the cake as well.
• Using the bench scraper smooth out the sides, being careful to not mix the orange into the black, but to keep a nice ledge- or fault line.
• Use the offset spatula to clean up the top edge (see my notes on cake decorating here).
• Make several mounds of Oreos on top of the cake, and place KitKats around the bottom of the cake (I halved each KitKat) and then refrigerate for 10 minutes.
• Slide a tooth pick into the bottom of the ghosts and pumpkins, then place on top of the cake. Gently press in the headstones.
• Using the green frosting and the grass tip, pipe on grass around the headstones, and around the KitKats at the base of the cake.
• Enjoy!

THIS HAUNTINGLY DELICIOUS GRAVEYARD COOKIE CAKE IS SURE TO CAUSE SCREAMS OF DELIGHT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F, then grease two 10" springform pans with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
• In a large bowl, beat together white sugar, brown sugar, and butter with an electric mixer until the mixture is fluffy and pale yellow in color. Add in eggs and vanilla, then continue to mix until all ingredients are just well-combined.
• In a separate bowl, combine flour, sifted cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Pour the flour mixture into the bowl of creamed sugar and beat just until all ingredients are fully incorporated.
• Mix in chocolate chunks and M&Ms using a rubber spatula. Measure the dough on a kitchen scale and divide it into two equal portions of dough.
• Press each portion of dough into the prepared pans.
• Place in the oven and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the dough has reached 175°F.
• While the cookies are baking, prepare the graveyard filling by mixing together the shortening, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar. If the mixture is dry, incorporate a few tablespoons of milk until the filling is light and fluffy like a buttercream. Separate the cream filling into 2 cups, 1 cup, and 1 tablespoon. To the 2 cups portion, fold in crushed Oreos with a rubber spatula and set aside. To the 1 cup portion, add 1/4 cup of melted chocolate and mix well. Place the 1 tablespoon portion into a piping bag with a small round tip for piping eyeballs and letters.
• Remove the cookie layers from their pans and place them on a cooling rack.
• While the cookies are cooling, prepare your graveyard toppings. First, prepare a few sets of eyes by piping small, round dots of cream filling onto a piece of parchment paper. Place in the refrigerator until the dots have set, then pipe a smaller dot in the center of the cream eye.
• For tombstones, dip Milano cookies and chocolate finger cookies in melted chocolate, and write "RIP" with the white cream filling.
• For bats, cut one single Oreo cookie (without the filling) down the middle and dip matching corners in melted chocolate. Adhere the Oreo halves on one side of an Oreo Mini with the cut side down to look like wings, then attach two eyes using melted chocolate.
• For spiders, dip one large Oreo and one Oreo Mini in chocolate, as well as eight rounded segments of a mini pretzel and two smaller segments. Once the chocolate has set, assemble pieces in the form of a spider, then adhere two eyes.
• Once the cookie layers have cooled, assemble the cookie cake by placing one layer on a serving plate and spreading 2/3 of the white cream filling evenly across the top.
• Add in gummy worms or any other creepy-crawly treats you'd like to bury in your graveyard and smooth over the remaining filling on top.
• Add the second cookie layer to the cake and spread the chocolate cream (chocolate added to the white cream filling) on top.
• Place the tombstones atop the cake and press in gently to stand them upright.
• Sprinkle crushed Oreos across the entire top layer of the cake for "dirt" and add your spider and bat decorations on top.
• Let set in the fridge for at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving.

HALLOWEEN GRAVEYARD CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Spray the bottom of your pan with non-stick spray. Next, line with parchment paper cut to fit the bottom of the pan. This will help release the cake from the pan and makes clean up much easier.
• Mix your batter in a large bowl or stand mixer according to the box directions. Deeper pans might need more batter - I used a deeper pan, 3 inches deep, so I mixed up 2 boxes of cake mix batter. Most pans are 2 inches deep.
• In a small bowl place 2 cups of batter, stir in orange food color until it's the orange you like. Now, pour dollops of the batter into the pan alternating from chocolate and orange. Try to place the batter on top of each area, it will begin to spread out.
• When all the batter is in the pan, use a skewer to pull lines from the center outward, and then do some slight swirls around the pan. This helps create the marble design. Rap the pan down on the counter to help level the batter and pop any bubbles in the batter that might cause uneven baking.
• Bake according to your box directions, most classic mixes require a 350-degree oven for 28 minutes for a regular 9 x 13 pan. (If you use a pan deeper than 2 inches, reduce baking temperature to 325 degrees and bake longer for 55 minutes). Check with a toothpick, if it comes out clean the cake is done.
• Beat soft butter and shortening in a mixer on high until creamy for 5 minutes.
• At low speed, add 10 cups powder sugar 1 cup at a time until smooth.
• Add 1 cup cocoa powder, mix well.
• On high speed, mix in vanilla, almond extract, and hot water for 5 minutes until fluffy and smooth. Add more hot water if necessary until frosting is smooth.
• Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. Cool the cake in the refrigerator for at least two hours or preferably overnight before decorating. I like to bake one day, then decorate the next. This helps release the steam and the frosting holds on when chilled.
• Place a dollop of chocolate frosting on a small piece of cardboard (cut to fit the cake) on a tray, or cutting board and set the cake on top. This keeps it from sliding around while decorating.
• Frost using a small offset spatula. Smooth out the frosting as best you can all over the top and sides. Chill it in the refrigerator while you make the chocolate decorations.
• Cut parchment paper to fit neatly inside a large baking sheet. Slide the downloadable chocolate design template under the parchment paper.
• Melt the chocolate for decorating. In a double boiler, add chocolate chips and a teaspoon of vegetable oil, and stir until melted over simmering not boiling water. IMPORTANT: don't splash water into the melting chocolate, or it might seize "freeze" up. You might need to add a bit more vegetable oil to get it smooth. Load into a zip-top bag fitted with a small round piping tip. I used a Wilton size 5 tip.
• Quickly pipe the graveyard fence, gate and tree onto parchment paper using the design I provided to guide you, or create your own! PRO TIP: Pipe the chocolate fairly thick, going over the lines. Thin lines will break and snap more easily as you decorate. Let the chocolate pieces chill in the fridge to set, they are fine to chill overnight too. Use a candy mold and fill the tombstones with melted chocolate, and the bones with white candy melts, let set until firm in the fridge.
• Crush Oreos for "dirt" in a small zip-top bag. First pop out the tombstones and bones from the mold. Place those on the cake with Oreo "dirt". Next, add the tree. You might want to pipe some frosting at the base of the tree to hold it up. Now add some chocolate buttercream on the lower part of the fences, and gate, this acts as "glue" to hold them to the sides. Place those pieces around the outside edges, and break off smaller pieces of fence if you need them.
• The cake will hold well overnight in the refrigerator for 1 day, and possibly 2 days. I would decorate either the day of your party or the night before. I have also had guests decorate it during the party which was SO much fun!
• NOTE: The chocolate pieces will melt a bit on a hot day. I recommend you keep the cake chilled until serving time!

HALLOWEEN DIRT CAKE - EASY GRAVEYARD DIRT CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Crush the Oreos in a food processor or blend and place 2/3 of them in the bottom of a 9X13 pan. Set aside.
• Cream together the cream and butter with a hand held mixer or stand up mixer until smooth. Then mix in the powdered sugar and cool whip.
• Then in a separate bowl, whisk together the milk and chocolate pudding mixes. Then fold this mixture into the cream cheese mixture.
• Pour this mixture over the Oreos in the 9X13 pan.
• Then top with the remaining crushed up Oreos.
• Cover and refrigerate the cake for a minimum of 2 hours before serving.
• Decorate the cake right before serving. Write RIP on the top of the Milano cookies with the black icing. Place them in the cake to resemble tombstones and then decorate with the gummy worms and candy pumpkins.
• Enjoy!