Pull-Apart Graveyard Cake (The Perfect Halloween Dessert!)
An elaborate and creative ‘Pull-Apart Graveyard Cupcake’ cake, perfect as a showstopper for a Halloween party. This dessert is constructed from 24 individual vanilla and grape-flavored cupcakes arranged in a rectangle. The gaps are filled with marshmallows, and the entire surface is frosted with a ‘dirty’ cookies-and-cream buttercream to resemble a single cake. The spooky graveyard scene is then built on top using various edible decorations, including ‘tombstones’ made from decorated cookies, marzipan ‘ghosts’ and ‘pumpkins,’ and a ‘fence’ made from black licorice.
Ingredients
- For the Cupcakes:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup grape jelly
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup milk
- For the Frosting:
- 10 ounces (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 10 chocolate sandwich cookies, coarsely crushed
- For the Decorations:
- 15 large white marshmallows
- 1/4 cup finely crushed chocolate sandwich cookies
- 1 tablespoon black or dark green decorating sugar
- Black and green decorating icing with tips
- 5 oval-shaped vanilla and chocolate sandwich cookies
- One 7-ounce tube marzipan
- 3 round lollipops, wrapped
- 1/4 cup orange decorating sugar
- Seven 8-inch pieces black licorice
Instructions
- Make the Cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two 12-cup muffin tins.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat the sugar and eggs until foamy. Gradually pour in the melted butter and vanilla.
- On low speed, alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk to the egg mixture.
- Remove 2 cups of the batter and stir in the warmed grape jelly. Fill the cupcake liners about two-thirds full, alternating dollops of the plain and grape batters.
- Bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Let the cupcakes cool completely on a wire rack.
- Make the Frosting: Beat the butter and salt until fluffy. Gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar, then the milk, until the frosting is a spreadable consistency. Stir in the crushed cookies.
- Assemble and Decorate the Graveyard: Arrange the cooled cupcakes in 4 rows on a large platter. Fill the gaps between the cupcakes with marshmallows.
- Spread the frosting over the entire surface of cupcakes and marshmallows to create a single ‘cake.’ Sprinkle with the finely crushed cookie crumbs and black decorating sugar to look like dirt.
- Use black icing to write ‘RIP’ on the oval cookies and stick them into the cupcakes as ‘tombstones.’
- Roll out marzipan, cut it into circles, and drape them over the lollipops to create ‘ghosts.’ Use black icing to dot on faces.
- Roll remaining marzipan into balls, coat them in orange sugar to make ‘pumpkins,’ and place them around the graveyard.
- Use green icing to pipe ‘grass’ and black licorice to create a ‘fence’ and an arched ‘gateway.’
Notes
- This pull-apart cake is a great centerpiece for a party as it’s easy for guests to serve themselves by simply grabbing a cupcake.
- The use of marshmallows to fill the gaps between cupcakes is a clever trick to create a smooth, unified surface for frosting.
- The recipe involves many different decorating components, which can be prepared while the cupcakes are cooling.
- The article references a ‘Cook’s Note’ that is not provided in the text.
Find it online: https://www.eatswithsoul.com/pull-apart-graveyard-cake/