With Halloween just around the corner, a spooky dessert is essential to any party. These “glass” cupcakes are just as delicious as they are scary and will be the star of any spread!

Sugar glass:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups white granulated sugar
• 1 cup of light corn syrup
• 1/2 to 1 cup water
• pinch of cream of tartar (optional)
• 1 – 2 tbsp food coloring (use as much as you want to get the desired color)
• 1 – 2 tsp flavored extracts (optional)

Instructions:

• Prepare a sheet pan with a silicone mat or spray lightly with cooking spray.
• Add the water, sugar, corn syrup, and cream of tartar into your pot. Set the heat to medium-low and heat up the mixture.
• Stir until the sugar mixture starts to boil. After it boils you can stop stirring.
•   Allow the sugar syrup to reach 290 to 300 F (hard crack stage). If you aren’t using a candy thermometer, right when it starts to turn yellow it is finished. You can also check it by dropping a spoonful into a bowl with ice-cold water. It will harden up instantly and then you can check how brittle it is. If it breaks easily it’s ready.
• Pour the hot sugar syrup onto your prepared pan. You will need to work quickly because it thickens and hardens up fairly fast.
• Allow the sugar to cool for an hour or two. Then relieve some stress by smashing it! (I used a wooden spoon, but you can also drop the pan a few times)
  

Cupcakes:

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups flour
• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• ½ cup milk
• red food coloring
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for five minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla.
• Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Make sure to not overwork the batter.
• Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
• Bake 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcake comes out clean.
• Cool in pans on a wire rack for five minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. Frost with cream cheese frosting.

Cream cheese frosting:

Ingredients: 

• ½ cup (1 stick) softened unsalted butter
• 8 oz (1 package) of softened cream cheese 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 4 cups powdered sugar

Instructions:

• Combine butter and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer (or you may use an electric mixer) and beat until creamy, well-combined, and lump-free.
• Add vanilla extract and salt and stir well to combine.
• With the mixer on low, gradually add powdered sugar until completely combined.
• Use to frost completely cooled cupcakes and top with your edible glass.

These cupcakes require a little work, but the payoff is more than worth it! This devilish dessert is bound to make mouths water and turn heads, but not 360 degrees.