Melt the chocolate melting wafers. Pour them into a plastic bag and snip a very small hole in the corner, or use a parchment paper cone. Draw simple pumpkin faces on the side of your candy cups. (Alternately, you can use food markers specifically designed for candy–they are commonly available at craft stores like Michaels.)
Fill the candy cups with a mix of your favorite Halloween candy, and enjoy! The melting wafers have a long shelf life, so you can get a jump on your Halloween planning and make these several weeks in advance. Store them in an airtight container at cool room temperature, and they should last for a month or more! As always, the full recipe and an easily pin-able image are below. Happy Halloween!
Pumpkin Candy Cups for Halloween
yield: 8-10 candy cups
Ingredients
12 oz orange melting chocolate wafers
Small round water balloons
1/4 cup milk melting chocolate wafers
5 cups assorted Halloween candy, like Pumpkin Spice Malted Milk Balls,Candy Corn, Monster Mash Mix Jelly Beans, Mellocreme Pumpkins, and Halloween Jordan Almonds.
Directions
Place the orange melting wafers in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave them in 30-second increments, stirring after every 30 seconds, until melted and smooth. The texture should be on the thinner side–it should flow nicely from a spoon. If it seems thick or clumpy, stir in a spoonful or two of shortening, until it flows freely. Set aside to cool until it is barely warm. If you try to make these candy cups when the melted wafers are hot, the balloons will explode and it will be a huge mess!
While you wait for the wafers to cool, blow up the balloons until they’re the size you want your candy cups to be, and tie them off. This recipe yields 8-10 candy cups (depending on how large you make them) but you should blow up a few extra balloons just in case.
When the coating is still melted but no longer very warm to the touch, hold a balloon by the knot and dip it in the melted coating until it comes halfway up the sides of the balloon. Rotate it around so that the sides are evenly coated. Remove the balloon from the coating and let the excess drip back into the bowl.
Place the dipped balloon on a baking sheet covered in parchment or waxed paper. Repeat with the remaining coating and balloons.
Once all the balloons are dipped, refrigerate the tray to set the coating, for about 20 minutes.
To remove the balloons from the candy shell, hold the balloon tightly right below the knot. Cut a small hole above your fingers, and carefully loosen your grip so that a small amount of air can escape. Gently let the air out of the balloon slowly and steadily. Use your other hand to help pull the balloon away from the side of the candy as it deflates. When most of the air has left the balloon, very gently peel it away from the bottom of the candy. Repeat until all of the balloons are removed.
If you’d like, you can use a paring knife to level the tops of the cups and remove any uneven edges. You can also just run your finger along the top to smooth any ridges down.
Melt the chocolate melting wafers. Pour them into a plastic bag and snip a very small hole in the corner, or use a parchment paper cone. Draw simple pumpkin faces on the side of your candy cups. (Alternately, you can use food markers specifically designed for candy–they are commonly available at craft stores like Michaels.)
Fill the candy cups with a mix of your favorite Halloween candy. Enjoy! Cups can be stored at cool room temperature for several months–the candy coating has a long shelf life.
