Haunted Tree Halloween Cake

Name: Haunted Tree Halloween Cake Recipe | Hersheyland
Prep time: 50 min
Total time: 180 min
Yield: 1 cake
Ingredients: 2 cups sugar; 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour; 3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa; 1-1/2 tsps baking powder; 1-1/2 tsps baking soda; 1 tsp salt; 2 eggs; 1 cup milk; 1/2 cup vegetable oil; 2 tsps vanilla extract; 1 cup boiling water; 2 cans vanilla ready-to-spread frosting or your favorite homemade vanilla frosting, divided; red and yellow food coloring; 1-1/3 cups REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups Minis (8 oz pkg.), divided; 5 to 6 tsps HERSHEY'S Cocoa or HERSHEY’S SPECIAL DARK Cocoa

Details

Timing
Timing
Total:
Bake:: 34 Min.
Prep:: 50 Min.
Skill Level:: Intermediate
Yields:: 1 cake

This Haunted Tree Halloween Cake recipe will walk you through how to make a moist chocolate cake, frosted with orange-colored vanilla icing and decorated with REESE'S Minis Peanut Butter Cups. It may look complicated, but this recipe takes only a few hours and will look spectacular on your Halloween spread. And it doesn't just look festive — it's moist and delicious thanks to the addition of REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups Minis and HERSHEY'S Cocoa. Slice up and serve this chocolate Haunted Tree Halloween Cake at any costume party or monster bash.

For more recipes that are love at first bite, check out our collection of Halloween Dessert Recipes.

Ingredients & Directions

Prep Time: 50 minutes
Bake Time: 34 minutes
Cool Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups

sugar
1-3/4 cups

all-purpose flour
3/4 cup

HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1-1/2 tsps

baking powder
1-1/2 tsps

baking soda
1 tsp

salt
2

eggs
1 cup

milk
1/2 cup

vegetable oil
2 tsps

vanilla extract
1 cup

boiling water
2 cans

vanilla ready-to-spread frosting or your favorite homemade vanilla frosting, divided
red and yellow food coloring
1-1/3 cups

REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups Minis (8 oz pkg.), divided
5 to 6 tsps

HERSHEY'S Cocoa or HERSHEY’S SPECIAL DARK Cocoa

READY TO MAKE THIS?

Step-By-Step Directions

Equipment Needed 

oven

9-inch round pans

bowl

mixer

measuring cups

rubber scraper

wire rack

food storage bag

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire rack. Cool completely.

Set aside 1/2 cup frosting. Tint remaining frosting to desired shade of orange with red and yellow food color.

Coarsely chop 1 cup mini peanut butter cups; set aside. Place first cake layer on serving plate; frost top of layer with about 3/4 cup frosting. Top with chopped peanut butter cups. Add second cake layer; complete frosting cake.

Add cocoa to reserved frosting; place in heavy duty (freezer) resealable food storage bag. Cut off tip of bag about 1/4 inch from one corner. Draw leafless tree and branches onto top of cake by piping chocolate frosting in desired design. Add remaining mini peanut butter cups as few remaining leaves on tree and as leaves that have already fallen to the ground. Makes 12 servings.

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