Skeleton Cupcakes Recipe

Heat oven to 350°F. You'll need 24 regular-size muffin cups lined with paper, foil or Halloween-themed liners.

Beat cake mix, buttermilk, eggs and oil in large bowl with mixer on medium speed 2 minutes or until just blended. Divide batter between muffin cups (1/4 cup batter per cup).

Bake 24 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 15 minutes before removing cupcakes to rack to cool completely.

Tint chocolate frosting black with food color; frost cupcakes.

To decorate: Slightly flatten marshmallows with palm of your hand. Insert a broken length of breadstick or lollipop stick into each marshmallow. Place some black frosting in a microwave-safe custard cup and microwave about 5 seconds, until thin and runny. Paint skeleton faces onto marshmallows with a fine paintbrush.

Using the photo as a guide, cut fruit leather into bat wings with scissors; press in decorating sugar to coat. Roll fruit leather scraps into small balls, then shape into bat heads with ears; coat heads in sugar. Attach 2 nonpareil candies for eyes with a dab of frosting.

To assemble: Using photo as guide, stand bat wings upright in frosting on top of cupcakes. Insert a skeleton head behind wings into middle of cupcake. Attach a bat head in middle of wings with frosting.

Plan Ahead: You can bake cupcakes 2 weeks ahead and freeze. Frost and decorate up to 1 day ahead, cover and keep at room temperature.