We're Watching You!

Two tasty eyeball recipes for this weekend's Hallowe'en parties: one sweet, one savory.

Eerie Eyeballs

Yields approximately 9 dozen bite-sized eyeballs

3 oz lemon gelatin (can be sugar-free)
1 cup hot water
1/2 cup miniature marshmallows
1 cup pineapple juice
8 oz cream cheese (can be lowfat/Neufchatel)
1 cup mayonnaise (can be fat-free)

Dissolve lemon gelatin in 1 cup water in double boiler, add marshmallows and stir to melt. Remove from heat. Add pineapple juice and cream cheese. Beat until well blended. Cool slightly. Fold in mayo. If you have a truffle candy mold or round ice cube trays, pour the mixture in the molds and leave to set in the fridge. Otherwise pour into a deep ceramic dish and chill until thickened or firm enough for scooping into eyeballs. Using a melonballer, scoop full balls of the mixture and set aside for decoration. To decorate, use liquid food coloring and an old detail paintbrush and get creative. You will need black food coloring for the pupils. Also, if you are in a hurry, instead of painting the colored irises, you can carefully dip the ball in a small pool of food coloring to approximate the iris, but still paint on the pupils. Alternatively, you can use a drop of melted chocolate or black gel frosting for the pupils.

Devil's Eyes
Yields two eyes for each egg you boil.

hardboiled eggs
mustard (can be dijon or other flavored mustards if you like)
mayonnaise
green food coloring
sliced black olives
paprika

To hardboil the eggs, put the eggs in a large saucepan, and fill with water until the eggs are fully covered. Put the full pan on the stove and bring to a boil over meduim heat. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, remove from heat, still covered, and let stand covered for 20 minutes. As soon as the 20 minutes is up, run cool water over the eggs so they stop cooking. Once cool, refrigerate until ready to use.

Peel the hardboiled eggs and slice in half lengthwise. Gently pop out the yolks into a separate bowl. Once all the yolks are in the same bowl, add some mustard and a little mayonnaise to taste just so the mixture sticks together when mixed. Add food coloring 1-2 drops at a time, mixing in until you've reached the color you want. Blend with a fork, then scoop the yolk mixture back in the hollows of the egg halves. Sprinkle each half with paprika (gives a bloody appearance) and lay one olive slice in the middle or each half as a pupil. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Happy Hallowe'en!