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After all, it’s easy to make a 30-second video look professional, easy and clean, but when put into practice, will any of these scary snacks prove devilishly difficult? Here, I put five of TikTok’s trending recipes to the test and gave them a ‘Tricky Treat’ difficulty rating. As an avid non- cooker/baker, I can assure you that anything I can do, you can most likely do better! Chocolate-dipped strawberry ghosts Strawberries dipped in white chocolate with milk chocolate faces – a cute spin on an old classic. These tasty treats are fruity, easy to make and would be fun to do as a group activity. It might be messy with kids, but they’ll have a ball trying to put a little spooky face on. I used a toothpick dipped in chocolate. I melted my chocolate in a fondue set, but placed in a bowl over hot water (with a gap between them) or even slowly in a microwave (taking it out to stir regularly) would work also. Tricky Treat rating: 4/5 Camembert skull A wheel of cheese topped with some jam – simple, right? Wrong. What I thought would be the most straightforward to make of the snacks sent me into a murderous rage. According to TikTok, all I needed to do was cut off the top section of a round of camembert, smear jam on the freshly cut base and carve a face into the top rind. Only problem was the cheese stuck to the knife and to every surface it touched. A smart person probably would have put the rind facing down, but I decided it would be better gooey cheese side down – so when I picked it up, it was stuck and then broke into pieces, which I had to mash back together. It does look terrifying – but not in the way I intended. It still tasted good though, you can’t go wrong with cheese and jam. Tricky Treat rating: 1/5 Pretzel chocolate spiderweb Place pretzel sticks in the desired shape on parchment paper, then melt the chocolate in a bowl over hot water or in short bursts in a microwave. A piping bag is ideal for this one, but if you’re like me and never bake, a sandwich bag with a corner cut will work just fine. Once again, melted chocolate is messy and piping bags can be hard to control, so get ready for clean up and having a healthy amount of melted chocolate on your hands, table and, well, everything you hold dear. Once you get the hang of piping melted chocolate, you can slowly make your cobweb. It will set at room temperature but I suggest popping it in the freezer to speed things along. My pretzel chocolate spider webs looked exactly like the TikTok I saw, and I think they would get some attention if served at a party. However, practicality wise they’re awkward to bite into, and it’s difficult to get a good bite of pretzel AND chocolate together. Tricky Treat rating: 3/5 Sushi eyeballs This sushi eyeball is a simple avocado roll with a little dried seaweed circle on top and a white dot of Kewpie mayo to add a glint to the eye. In general, sushi can be difficult to roll for beginners but if you have a bamboo rolling mat, a firm yet gentle touch and some time, this snack is achievable. (Plus you could always buy the sushi and just add the Halloween extras.) It’s a simple flavour, light and fresh. Plus it’s a departure from the usual heavy treats we crave in autumn. This was my favourite of the recipes to recreate. Tricky Treat rating: 5/5 Pumpkin pizza A perfect scary movie night snack that’s easy to put your own spin on, this is basically a spooky pizza sandwich. I used premade pizza bases and sauce, and buffalo mozzarella, but you can add any other toppings (or fillings in this case) you want. I used a pumpkin cookie cutter to speed things along, but this can be done by hand. The most difficult part was cutting out the pumpkin faces, but once you take your time, it’s not too bad. It’s simple, tasty and cheesy, all the things you could want for a cosy evening on the couch. Tricky Treat rating: 4/5
