Avert your eyes, arachnophobics: This Halloween dessert hack just may be too spooky for you.
All it takes is a bag of marshmallows and a microwave to transform any confection into a creepy-crawly, cobweb-covered edible centerpiece for your party.
For our recipe, we use a pitch-black devil’s food layer cake as the dramatic vessel for the spider infestation—but the technique works just at well if you wanted to scale it down to cupcakes, brownies, or even candy apples.
Watch the video above to see how we did it, then follow the recipe below to make it yourself at home. And if you’re hungry for more Halloween treats, we’ve got you covered.
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Marshmallow Cobweb Cake
2 boxes devil’s food cake mix, plus other ingredients needed according to package directions
Cocoa powder or all-purpose flour, for dusting pans
2 tbsp. black liquid food coloring, divided
6 cups semisweet chocolate chips
4 cups heavy cream
½ tsp. salt
2 cups mini marshmallows
Gummy spiders
1. Mix cake according to package directions and stir 1 tablespoon black food coloring into the batter. Grease 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray and dust with cocoa powder or flour. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely, then remove cakes from pans and level with a serrated knife.
2. Meanwhile, make the ganache: Place the chocolate chips in a large heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let stand for 5 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Whisk in salt and remaining 1 tablespoon black food coloring.
3. Put a spoonful of the ganache on a cake stand and top with one of the cake layers. Pour about ¾ cup of ganache on top. Repeat with the second and third layers, then top with the final layer. Put the remaining ganache in the refrigerator to set into a spreadable consistency, about 30 minutes. Spread remaining ganache all over the cake. Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes.
4. Place the marshmallows in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 25 seconds. Stir until melted. Once slightly cooled, use your hands to wrap the marshmallows around the cake in stringy patterns to create a cobweb look (This will get messy, but that’s part of the fun!). Decorate with gummy spiders.
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