Mounds of Bugs

These creepy-crawly Halloween treats are pure candy assembly, no baking or cooking required. Snack-size Mounds bars become the bug bodies, grape Pull-n-Peel licorice strands poke in as six wiggly legs, and yellow Reese’s Pieces get piped on as bulging eyes. Chocolate sprinkles pressed onto frosting dots along the back finish the look.

This is a project made for kids. The assembly is simple enough for small hands, and the results look impressively creepy on a Halloween party platter. The Mounds bar’s dark chocolate coating and rounded shape already look like a bug body before you add a single detail.

Kitchen Tips

• Use a wooden skewer to poke the leg holes. It’s the right width for the licorice strands to fit snugly without falling out.
• Pipe the frosting dots small. Too much frosting and the eyes and sprinkles slide off or look blobby.
• Snip a tiny corner off a zip-lock bag if you don’t have a pastry bag. You want a thin line of frosting for detail work.
• Make these the same day you plan to serve. The licorice legs soften overnight and droop.

Variations

• Use Almond Joy bars instead of Mounds for a slightly different bug shape with the visible almond as a head.
• Try green or orange Reese’s Pieces for the eyes to match other Halloween color schemes.
• Arrange the finished bugs on a bed of crushed Oreo “dirt” for a graveyard-themed display.