Easy, festive recipes to devour this Halloween

If people plan to stay in this Halloween, why not whip up some festive foods to make the evening hauntingly delicious?

Kelly Senyei of Just a Taste shared some recipes that are a treat for both savory and sweet fans looking for a break from Halloween candy.

Easy, festive Halloween recipes

"Celebrating Halloween at home can still be festive, fun, and most importantly, flavor-packed. I’m all about utilizing store-bought shortcuts to create easy but impressive recipes, whether that’s pre-made pizza dough transforming into breadstick bones or refrigerated pie crust becoming (literal) hand pies," Senyei told "GMA."

She continued, "just because you’re skipping trick-or-treating doesn’t mean candy can’t still be the star of the spooky show! Grab your favorites and turn them into the ultimate candy-studded skillet cookie topped with ice cream."

Check out her full recipes below.

Cheesy Halloween Breadstick Bones

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 22 mins

Yield: 10 breadsticks

Ingredients

All-purpose flour, for dusting work surface

1 pound homemade or store-bought pizza dough

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Homemade or store-bought marinara sauce, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats. Lightly flour your work surface.

Divide the dough into 10 equal balls. Roll each ball into an 8-inch rope slightly larger on the ends. Arrange five breadsticks on each baking sheet, spacing them at least 2 inches apart. Using scissors, cut a 1-inch slit on the ends of each breadstick and gently stretch each of the cut pieces apart to form the ends of the bones.

Brush the breadsticks with the melted butter then sprinkle on the grated Parmesan cheese.

Bake the breadsticks for about 15 minutes then remove them from the oven and top them with the mozzarella cheese. Return the breadsticks to the oven for an additional 5 to 7 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Remove the breadsticks from the oven and serve them warm with marinara sauce for dipping.

Easy Halloween Hand Pies

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Yield: 8 (4-inch) hand pies

Ingredients
All-purpose flour, for rolling out dough
1 (14.1-oz) packages store-bought pie crust (2 crusts total)
1/3 cup raspberry or strawberry jam, plus more for decorating
1 large egg, whisked with 1 tablespoon water
Sliced almonds

Directions Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Lightly flour your work surface then unroll the pie crusts. Using a sharp knife, trace around a hand cut-out (or use a hand cookie cutter). Arrange half of the hands on the baking sheets, spacing them at least 2 inches apart. (The scraps can be re-rolled to 1/4-inch-thick so that additional hands can be cut out.)

Add a portion of the jam to the centers of each hand on the baking sheets.

Place a second hand atop each of the hands on the baking sheets, pressing lightly to seal them around the edges. Using a fork, crimp together the edges around the palms of the hands to seal in the filling. (There is no filling in the fingers so there’s no need to crimp them, but rather lightly press them together.)

Using a paring knife, make small slits on the fingers where the knuckles would be.

Brush the hand pies all over with the egg wash then bake them until they are golden brown and cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes depending on the size of your pies.

Remove the hand pies from the oven. Add a small dollop of jam to the tip of each finger then press on the almonds to form the nails.

Serve the hand pies immediately or store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

The Ultimate Candy Skillet Cookie

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 35 mins
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp, plus more for greasing skillet
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temp
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups chopped candy1 teaspoon sea salt
Ice cream, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 12-inch cast-iron skillet with butter.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set the bowl aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter with the sugar and light brown sugar.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until combined, then beat in the vanilla extract.

Add the flour mixture into the stand mixer and mix just until the dough comes together. Beat in the chopped candy until combined.

Scrape the dough into the skillet, then sprinkle it with the sea salt.

Bake the cookie until it's almost fully baked but still slightly underdone in the center, 30 to 35 minutes.

Remove the cookie from the oven and allow it to cool for 10 minutes before serving topped with ice cream.

Note: Any variety of candy will work, but M&Ms, Reese's Cups, Snickers, Kit Kats and Rolos are a few of my favorites.

An earlier version of this recipe was originally published Oct. 27, 2021.