Author: Headless Bob

Food

Chocolate Coffee Halloween Cupcakes

Post author By Headless Bob
Post date September 1, 2020
No Comments on Chocolate Coffee Halloween Cupcakes

Chocolate Coffee Halloween Cupcakes

Chocolate Coffee Halloween Cupcakes with Cookie Dough Frosting and White Chocolate Tombstones

Are you looking for a way to add a fresh new twist to your standard Halloween cupcakes? Try these chocolate coffee Halloween cupcakes with cookie dough buttercream and white chocolate tombstones for a dreadfully delicious treat.

The Cupcake Batter

The base of this recipe is a chocolate coffee batter. I highly recommend using Deadly Grounds Coffee with this recipe. Their house blend works very well with the chocolate flavor, or you can try some of their flavored blends to add additional complexities to the taste. Coffee flavors that may be fun to try are:

Death by Chocolate
Devil’s Night Roast (Chocolate & Pumpkin Spice)
Maple Bourbon
Pumpkin Spice

Now that you have selected your coffee, it is time to wrangle all the ingredients for the cupcakes:

1½ cups flour
¼ cup coco powder
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup coffee
1 tablespoon white vinegar
½ tablespoon vanilla
1/3 cup olive oil

Step 1 – Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Step 2 – In a bowl, combine flour, coco powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt.

Step 3 – Add the coffee to the mixture, stirring thoroughly. Add white vinegar, vanilla, and olive oil.

Step 4 – Pour into 12 cupcake liners. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick poked in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

The Buttercream Frosting

Buttercream frostings are usually a bit boring for me (I prefer to use ganaches when possible), but this cookie dough flavor buttercream is surprisingly tasty.

The ingredients are simple:

½ cup butter (softened)
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup brown sugar
1 ¼ cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 tablespoon milk
½ tablespoon vanilla
(optional) chocolate chips
(optional) food coloring

Step 1 – Combine butter, salt, and brown sugar.

Step 2 – Add powdered sugar. Stir thoroughly.

Step 3 – Add flour. Stir thoroughly.

Step 4 – Add milk and vanilla. Stir thoroughly.

Step 5 – If desired, chocolate chips and/or food coloring can be added to the mixture. The frosting is now ready to pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

The Tombstones

Get out your favorite candy mold and make some tombstone toppers. For these, I just brought some water to a boil, placed a glass bowl over the pot with the boiling water, and melted white chocolate chips with about 1 tablespoon of butter.

Once thoroughly melted, pour the chocolate into the candy mold. Pop that mold in the refrigerator for at least half an hour, and then use them to top your cupcakes once they are frosted.

The mold I used was a Place & Time Orange Silicone Candy Mold Graveyard from Joann Fabrics.

The Horror of Being Emily

Chocolate Coffee Cupcakes with Cookie Dough Buttercream Frosting

Try these for a fun Halloween treat!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings: 12 Cupcakes

Course: Dessert

Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients

Chocolate Coffee Cupcake Batter

1 ½ Cups Flour
¼ Cup Coco Powder
1 Cup Sugar
1 Tsp Baking Soda
½ Tsp Salt
1 Cup Coffee
1 Tbsp White Vinegar
½ Tbsp Vanilla
⅓ Cup Olive Oil

Cookie Dough Buttercream Frosting

½ Cup Butter softened
¼ Tsp Salt
¼ Cup Brown Sugar
1 ¼ Cup Powdered Sugar
⅓ Cup Flour
1 Tbsp Milk
½ Tbsp Vanilla
Chocolate Chips Optional
Food Coloring Optional

Equipment

Stand Mixer
Cupcake Liners

Method

The Cupcakes

Preheatoven to 350°F.
In a bowl, combine flour, coco powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
Add the coffee to the mixture, stirringthoroughly. Add white vinegar, vanilla, and olive oil.
Pour into 12 cupcake liners. Bake for 25 minutesor until a toothpick poked in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

The Frosting

Combine butter, salt, and brown sugar.
Add powdered sugar. Stir thoroughly.
Add flour. Stir thoroughly.
Add milk and vanilla. Stir thoroughly.
If desired, chocolate chips and/or food coloring can be added to the mixture. The frosting is now ready to pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Need something savory before this decadent dessert? Try my Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi.

Enjoy!

Screamfest Presents “Darkman”

July 3, 2025 No Comments

Screamfest presents “Darkman”. Join Screamfest Horror Film Festival at the LOOK Dine-In Cinemas Glendale on Wednesday, July 16th, 2025, for a special screening of Sam Raimi’s Darkman (1990). Dive into

2025 Hauntathon Open for Submissions

June 17, 2025 No Comments

Haunted Attraction Network’s 2025 Hauntathon Open for Submissions The Haunted Attraction Network’s 2025 Hauntathon is open for submissions! Now in its eleventh year, the 61-day multimedia celebration spotlighting haunted

2024 Halloween Shopping

September 4, 2024 No Comments

Happy Halloween shopping 2024! For over two decades now, the Halloween shopping season has been my main time for household and clothing purchases. Each year, I love to shop around

Tags Baking, Halloween, Recipe

Home Decor

Halloween Shopping 2020

Since mid-July, Halloween fans have been anxiously awaiting the Halloween collections from our favorite brands for the 2020 Halloween shopping season. From big box retailers to “boo-tiques”, an increasing number of places offer special merchandise for the Halloween & autumn season starting in late July/early August.

Here is my list of the best new products hitting shelves this fall. I hope you enjoy your Halloween shopping this year and find something fun to add to your collection!

Halloween 2020 Shopping Highlights

Skeleton Hand Champaign Glasses - Pottery Barn ($29.50)

These 11″ high Champaign glasses will add an elegant eeriness to your dining room this Halloween. They are made of glass and zinc alloy and are phthalate, BPA, lead, and latex free. They are hand wash only, but their sleek design makes them worth the effort.

Home Goods has been selling similar-looking products (in the L.A. area, at least), for about $10 each but those do not seem to be very high quality. Specifically, the areas where the metal and glass connect seemed to be a little flimsy on the glasses I saw on the shelf. I think that in this case, it may be worth it to spring for these more expensive alternatives as the pictures look like they are a more durable product.

Raven Serving Bowl - Grandin Road ($199.00)

Grandin Road’s Halloween party line for 2020 is raven-themed. This beautiful glass punch bowl is the centerpiece of the collection. It has a 160 ounce capacity. It measures 13 3/4″ in diameter and weighs 9 pounds (unfilled). The glass bowl can be removed from the resin base for easy hand washing.

It is certainly too pricey for my Halloween activities this year, but for those who would like to splurge, this is a well-crafted piece.

Haunted House Nightlight Projector - Bath & Body Works ($32.50)

Every year I can find a Haunted House Wallflower plug at Bath & Body Works. This year they have added a projector to the standard nightlight. We can now have a bright green witch illuminated on the wall above the nightlight plug!

Once plugged in, this will illuminate continuously. Bath & Body Works claims the plug should last for at least two years. My previous experience with these types of items is consistent with that claim – the first one I purchased lasted for over 3 years.

Combine this with some of their autumn scents – like “Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin”, “Leaves”, “The Perfect Autumn”, and “Sweater Weather” to keep your home smelling spooky all year round!

Various Halloween Frabrics . Joann Fabrics ($6.99 - $14.99/Yard)

Fabric Prints. Images from Joann.com

I love sewing and fabric crafts – even though I am not the most skilled at them! Joann Fabrics always has an amazing selection of fabrics for all your creative needs. They offer prints on cotton and fleece and have a selection of spiderweb lace perfect for quilts or costumes. Be sure to visit their website as well, as they do have a few patterns that are online only. Additionally, online they have a few prints you can customize to find that extra special color for your project.

Mini Mantel Halloween Decor - Target ($8.00)

Target’s Mini Mantel Halloween Decor from the Hyde & EEK! Boutique™. Images from Target.com

It wasn’t until day-after-Halloween shopping that I came across these cute Mini Mantle Halloween items. These are durable little painted wooden displays. They are marketed as mantle decorations, but I think they are great toys as well.

The 2020 collection includes new locales and characters, including a fun house, castle, and pirate ship. Each setting has a matching set of characters to purchase (separately). I especially love the skeleton knight and helmet-clad octopus. At only $8 per set, I did pre-order 11 of the different sets this time around. I highly recommend these and expect them to fly off the shelves again this year.

Skellie Toile Tea Towel - Williams Sonoma ($24.95/pair)

Having a Halloween-themed kitchen year-round means that I am constantly buying new hand towels to replace worn-out ones throughout the year. This animal skeleton print from Williams Sonoma will allow me to add a bit of morbid whimsy to my decor. The towels are 100% cotton and machine-washable. They are standard hand towel size – measuring 20″ x 30″.

A Ghastly Scene Nightgown - Modcloth ($35.00)

ModCloth, while expensive, has many sophisticated and unique offerings for this Halloween season. This nightgown with their “A Ghastly Scene” ghost print immediately caught my eye. The fabric is semi-sheer and made up of 60% Cotton, 20% Viscose, 14% Polyester, and 6% Elastane. It has crossing adjustable straps in the back.

If the nightgown is not your preferred type of sleepwear, ModCloth also carries a standard pajama set with a button up top and shorts in the same patterned fabric.

You’ll sleep like the dead in this spirited nighttime ensemble!

12' Giant-Sized Skeleton with LifeEyes - Home Depot ($299.00)

As I stand only slightly taller than 5′ 1″, this 12′ tall giant skeleton is an impressive sight to behold in one’s yard. Home Depot is increasingly becoming the place to go for creative Halloween yard decorations.

The skeleton is 12′ high and requires a 6.4′ area for the base. Four C batteries power the LED eyes, creating a spooky life-like effect. The legs are fixed, but the arms can be moved to different positions (ex. reaching out, at the sides, etc.).

If you get this monstrosity, be sure to persuade a friend to help with setup. The instructions estimate that it takes two people about twenty minutes to complete the 24 steps in the assembly process.

Halloween Book-Shaped Gift Boxes - Dollar Tree ($32.00/case)

Halloween Book-Shaped Gift Boxes (4 Designs). Images from DollarTree.com

Dollar Tree is often a nice place to find goodies for trick-or-treaters. Every once in a while, I can find something there for my personal Halloween shopping. This year I found these Halloween Book-Shaped Gift Boxes. Available in four designs and five different sizes, they are spooky vessels to dole out your Halloween party favors to friends.

Sizes include: XL (7.12×4.92×3.19-in.), L (6.5×4.5×2.9-in.), M (5.9×3.94×2.6-in.), S (5.3×3.35×2.28-in.), and XS (4.8×2.75×2-in.). The designs feature “Witches Spell Book”, “Love Potions”, “Tales of Halloween”, and “Scary Stories”. You can buy them individually at a Dollar Tree location or you can buy them in a case online. A case contains 32 pieces, which will be a mixture of designs and sizes.

Orange Hallowen Tree - Treetopia ($129.99 - $449.99)

Each year I see more and more people putting up Halloween trees in October. Treetopia offers this vibrant and full artificial tree with built-in LED lights. The PVC needles are fire-retardant, making this just as safe as your standard Christmas tree. It is available in 5′, 6′, 7.5′, and 9′ heights, so you can find the right fit for your space.

This tree would also be perfect for a more spooky Christmas and holiday celebration. Pair it with some Horror Ornaments and you will be ready to celebrate any holiday!

What are your favorite Halloween items so far for 2020? Have you already bought any of the above items and have a review? Let me know on Instagram or Twitter @EmilyIsHorror

Want to see what I’ve loved in past years? Check out previous shopping guides below:

2019

2018

2017

2015 (Part 1), 2015 (Part 2)

Screamfest Presents “Darkman”

July 3, 2025 No Comments

2025 Hauntathon Open for Submissions

June 17, 2025 No Comments

2024 Halloween Shopping

September 4, 2024 No Comments

Happy Halloween shopping 2024! For over two decades now, the Halloween shopping season has been my main time for household and clothing purchases. Each year, I love to shop around

Tags Gifts, Halloween, Shopping

Food

Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi

Post author By Headless Bob
Post date June 13, 2020
No Comments on Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi

Shrimp Scampi

Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi

Today’s post will focus on the recipe for Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi. This garlic-rich recipe is simple, yet delicious. I love to make this recipe on a Friday night before watching a horror film or two. Last time I made it, the kitchen smelled like garlic for an entire day afterwards, ensuring that we were safe from creatures of the night (and any visitor, really).

As with most scampi pasta dishes, this recipe can be highly customized and you can change it up depending on the ingredients you have on-hand. For a pop of color – add sun-dried tomatoes. Mushrooms can be added for extra Vitamin D. The possibilities are limitless!

Basic Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi Recipe(Makes about 2 Servings):

Ingredients:

2 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2/3 cup onion, diced
¼ cup fresh basil
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon parsley
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
16 large shrimp, peeled & de-veined
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/3 cup white wine
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
2 servings spaghetti
Optional – ½ cup mushrooms, chopped
Optional – ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes

Step One: Prep Pasta

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and add the spaghetti. Cook until tender.

I chose to use orange and green vegetable pasta for a more Halloween-feel, but once cooked they did not have as bright colors as I had hoped. If you have a higher budget, specialty squid ink pasta has a delightful black color to make this meal very spooky.

Step Two: Brown Onion & Garlic

Heat the olive oil in a large pan on medium heat. Add the onion. Let brown. Add garlic.

It typically takes about five to eight minutes for the onion to brown, depending on your pan. You can stir occasionally and/or rotate the pan to make sure all the onion is browning mostly evenly.

Step Three: Cook Shrimp

Add the shrimp (and optional mushrooms) to the pan. Season with the basil, crushed red pepper, salt, pepper, and parsley. Flip the shrimp once the underside is a bright pink. Cook through.

Step Four: Add Scampi Sauce Ingredients

Add butter, lemon juice, white wine, and parmesan cheese. The optional sun-dried tomatoes can be added as well. Stir occasionally for 5 minutes.

The scampi sauce will reduce during this time. You should be able to smell the garlic throughout your kitchen by this time. Vampires beware!

Step Five: Combine

We have not forgotten about the pasta! Remove the cooked spaghetti from the pot using tongs and place into the pan with the shrimp scampi mixture. Use tongs instead of draining the pasta – bringing over some pasta water with the spaghetti helps the scampi sauce to stick to the noodles more.

Thoroughly coat the spaghetti with the scampi sauce.

Now, you just have to plate it. Add your favorite garlic bread for a complimentary side and you are all set! For those more vampire-friendly individuals, you can reduce or cut down on the garlic, but I love the strong garlic taste.

Enjoy!

Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi

The Horror of Being Emily

Vampire-Repelling Shrimp Scampi

Learn to make this garlic-heavy shrimp scampi, the perfect recipe to repell vampires and other creatures of the night. Easy to cook and made to impress!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Total Time 35

Servings: 2 Vampire Hunters

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients Equipment Method