Blog With Friends: The Boo Crew

Last month a group of friends and I collaborated to publish Tailgating posts. We all featured pictures and links to each others’ projects, making it easy for our readers to jump the links from one of our projects to another.

What I loved about the partnership is that it was not bloggers with similar interests or strengths but a diverse group, coming up with a variety of projects. We had a recipe and a canning recipe, sewing and crafts projects, a book review and a technology post, all related to the theme of tailgating.

I’m happy to announce that this collaboration was so successful that we’ve decided to continue it monthly. Again, a number of different types of projects, all associated with a theme. 

 

This month our theme is Halloween. You’re shocked, I know. Here’s a compilation of what we have to offer. Individual pictures of each project and links to them all are at the end of my post.

I’ve come up with a Halloween recipe. And before you start laughing, let me just admit the truth. Although these guys were not meant to be scary, they weren’t supposed to look like Mr. Potato Head either. Often I have these projects in my head and they just don’t seem to come out looking the same when I actually execute them. I have to admit, Mr. Potato Head lookalikes or not, I think they’re great for a kids’ party. AND they were yummy. So I’m going with it and calling it a win. Introducing my Bloody Buddies:

Halloween Bloody Buddies

Please be careful when making these, you’ll be working with very hot caramel.

This project works best if you get all of your ingredients ready and together before you start:

all of the ingredients together and ready to go

After giving these buddies a hot caramel bath, the only humane thing to do would be to let them chillax a bit in the fridge:

Bloody Buddies chillaxing in the fridge

And once they’re all set, take them to a party:

Bloody Buddies

As promised, here are links to some other really fun Halloween projects:

Robin of Someone Else’s Genius demonstrates how to make a Nevermore Wreath, a wreath based on Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven.

Stacy of Stacy Sews and Schools shows us a sewing tutorial for a Halloween costume, Anna's Cape (from Frozen).

 Shellybean of Follow me home shows us how to make Mini Halloween Gates, an eerie art project you can do with kids.

Lydia of Cluttered Genius shares how to decorate on the cheap in her Spooky Kooky Halloween post.

Melissa of Home on Deranged shares a fun (but not too scary) Halloween for little ones in her post Not So Spooky Halloween for Little Ghouls and Boos!

 

Happy Haunting!

 

Bloody Buddies (Caramel Pears for Halloween)

                                                                            ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
5 pears
1 pkg (11 ounces) soft caramels, unwrapped
2 TBSP water
¼ cup finely chopped pistachios
¼ cup red hots candies
OPT: red food coloring
10 Mike and Ike candies threaded onto the ends of toothpicks
10 mini nonpareils
OPT: licorice strips cut into small pieces or white chocolate covered raisins for the mouth
 
Directions:
*Wash and completely dry the pears. Spray a sheet of parchment paper with non-stick spray. Place the pistachios onto a piece of wax paper.
*Place the caramels and water in a pot and cook over medium low until the caramels are completely melted. Remove from heat.
*One at a time, put a pear into the pot and use a spoon to pour caramel all over the pear except the stem. Lift by the stem, allow some of the excess caramel to drip off, then scrape the bottom of the pear with a spoon. Immediately dip the bottom into the pistachios and place on the parchment paper. Repeat with all of the pears.
*Place the red hots into the pan with the rest of the caramel and return to medium low heat. Heat and stir until the red hots melt. If you want the “blood” a deeper color, add some red food coloring.
*Using a spoon, drizzle the melted red hots onto the very top of the pear and allow to drip down the sides.
*Press the toothpicks into the sides.
*Move to the fridge and allow to just start to harden. After about ½ hour, while the caramel is still “gummy”, press 2 nonpareils onto the pear as eyes. 
OPT: If you want a mouth, press either a piece of licorice strip or a white chocolate covered raisin onto the pear below the “eyes”.   Check a few times as the caramel is hardening, if the “eyes” and/or “mouth” drop, you can gently push them back up before the caramel fully hardens.