(Family Features) Brew up a witch’s cauldron of fun this Halloween with special spooky treats. The Haunted House Cake looks almost too spooky to eat, but this masterpiece will disappear as if by magic. Invite guests to tread through the graveyard of creative chocolatey treats you’ve conjured up with some of your favorite candies.

Haunted House Cake

Prep time: 20 minutes
Decoration time: 40 minutes
Makes: 1 cake

2          cans (16 ounces each) vanilla frosting
orange food coloring
2          frozen pound cakes (16 ounces each), thawed
1          box thin chocolate wafer cookies
1          tube (.68 ounces) black decorating gel
1          bag Twix Fun Size Bars
1          bag M&M’S Milk Chocolate Candies Pumpkin Patch Mix
1          bag M&M’S Peanut Chocolate Candies Pumpkin Patch Mix

In bowl, tint frosting orange using food coloring; set aside.

Spread 1/2 cup frosting on bottom of both pound cakes; press together. Stand cakes vertically on serving plate.

Create pitch of roof by trimming top of one cake at slight angle. Trim other cake at steeper angle to make roof look tipsy.

Completely cover cake with remaining frosting. For roof tiles, break chocolate wafers in half and arrange, overlapping slightly.

Pipe black decorating gel for windows. Add candy bars for door and chimney. Use broken wafer cookies for shutters. Use chocolate candies to outline top of roof and sides of house.

In food processor, grind remaining cookies along with a few candy bars. Spread mixture around base of house for “dirt” and scatter chocolate candies on top.

(Family Features) Summertime means plenty of grilling, giving you an opportunity to try this Grilled Banana Pound Cake Kabobs dessert recipe alongside your favorite entrees.

Find more grilling recipes at Culinary.net.

Watch video to see how to make this recipe!

Grilled Banana Pound Cake Kabobs

• 1          loaf (10 3/4 ounces) frozen pound cake, thawed and cubed
• 2          large bananas, cut into 1-inch slices
• metal or soaked wooden skewers
• 1/4       cup butter, melted
• 2          tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2       teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8       teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ice cream
• desired toppings

1. Heat grill to medium heat.
2. Alternately thread cake and bananas on skewers.
3. In small bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract and cinnamon. Brush mixture over kabobs.
4. Place kabobs on greased rack and grill for up to 1 minute, turning once.
5. Serve with ice cream and desired toppings.

Source: Culinary.net

(Family Features) Holiday gatherings provide perfect opportunities to get creative in the kitchen. Spending quality time with family and friends over an unforgettably delicious meal is what the holiday season is all about, after all. Make sure to be the one everyone is raving about because you've brought something new and delicious to your event by transforming ordinary seasonal recipes with a clever, bold twist.

At first, changing a classic family recipe or whipping up a new, taste-tempting holiday dish may seem daunting. However, balancing taste and complexity doesn't need to be stressful. Simplify recipe planning with one versatile ingredient that provides a bold boost and creates real crowd pleasers: cooking wines.

Now is the time to make cooking wine a must-have in your kitchen essentials. Using a wine specially made for cook­ing provides consistent, momentous flavor, as it withstands high cooking temperatures and has a long shelf life. One option to try this season is Holland House Cooking Wines, with a long and delicious history of adding rich, robust flavor to a wide variety of culinary applications.

These cooking wines are perfect for plenty of recipes and come in savory and flavor-boosting varieties including: Marsala, imparting a sweet-wine flavor with hints of hazelnut; Red, offering a smooth, medium-bodied finish; White, featuring a slightly dry but distinct profile; and Sherry, offering a mild flavor with hints of nut and caramel.

If you're looking for recipe inspiration for your holiday feast, you can experience the bold flavors of Holland House with these soon-to-be holiday favorites. Serve Garlic and Herb Lamb Chops with Marsala Mushroom Sauce as your entree alongside Asiago and Bacon Orzo Medley. For a dessert no one can say no to, try scrumptious Buttered Pound Cake with Sherry Mascarpone and Soaked Berries.

Visit hollandhouseflavors.com for more taste-tempting holiday recipes.

Garlic and Herb Lamb Chops with Marsala Mushroom Sauce

Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes plus marinating
Servings: 7 (about 2 lamb chops per serving)

• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
• 4 teaspoons fresh garlic,minced, divided
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest, grated
• 3/4 cup Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine, divided
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 racks of lamb (approximately 3-4 pounds), trimmed and cleaned

Marsala Mushroom Sauce:

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 pound fresh baby bella or cremini mushrooms, cleaned
• 2 tablespoons fresh shallots, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup beef stock
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

1. In large bowl, combine rosemary, 3 teaspoons garlic, lemon zest, 1/4 cup cooking wine and olive oil. Add racks of lamb, meat-side up, and cover bowl. Marinate 6-24 hours. After marinating, heat oven to 400° F. Transfer racks of lamb to heated, oven-proof saute pan on stovetop and sear each side 2 minutes until golden brown.
2. Transfer oven-proof saute pan with lamb to heated oven and cook approximately 10 minutes, or until lamb reaches 135° F in center. Remove pan from oven and take lamb out of pan to rest.
3. To make Marsala Mushroom Sauce: In same pan, melt butter over medium heat; add mushrooms and saute. Add shallots and remaining garlic, cooking until fragrant. Deglaze with remaining cooking wine. Add beef stock and whisk in Dijon mustard. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and cook 2 minutes to reduce and thicken.
4. Carve racks of lamb by cutting between ribs. Serve drizzled with Marsala Mushroom Sauce. Garnish with parsley.

Asiago and Bacon Orzo Medley

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Servings: 11 (about 1/2 cup per serving)

• 4 ounces bacon, chopped
• 4 ounces white onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 2 cups fresh asparagus tips
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup Holland House White Cooking Wine
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 3 cups orzo, cooked according to package directions
• 1/2 cup shaved Asiago cheese
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste

1. In large saucepan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Add onions and garlic to pan with bacon and saute until fragrant and soft. Cook onions until translucent.
2. Add asparagus tips, cherry tomatoes, chicken stock and cooking wine to saucepan and deglaze.
3. Add cooked orzo and Asiago cheese, stirring to combine. Cook 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Buttered Pound Cake with Sherry Mascarpone and Soaked Berries

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes plus marinating
Servings: 10 (2 pieces per serving)

• 3/4 cup fresh raspberries
• 3/4 cup fresh blueberries
• 3/4 cup fresh blackberries
• 1/2 cup Holland House Sherry Cooking Wine, divided
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest, grated
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 pound cake, cut into 20 pieces

1. In medium bowl, combine rasp-berries, blueberries, blackberries, 1/3 cup cooking wine, lemon juice, lemon zest and honey. Cover bowl and marinate at room temperature 30 minutes.
2. In mixer, whip mascarpone by slowly adding heavy whipping cream, sugar and remaining cooking wine. Once thoroughly mixed, whip to stiff peaks.
3. Butter both sides of each piece of pound cake and add to saute pan. Over medium heat, brown both sides of cake until golden. Place two pieces of toasted pound cake in individual serving dishes and let cool.
4. Place dollop of whipped mascarpone on pound cake pieces. Garnish with marinated berries.

Source: Holland House Cooking Wines

(Family Features) Creating one-of-a-kind desserts doesn’t have to take hours in the kitchen or even exceptional baking skills. With a little imagination and the right tools, you can whip up surprisingly delicious sweets that will surprise and delight your friends and family.

Focus on flavor
If your baking repertoire typically consists of white cake and chocolate frosting, spice things up a bit by experimenting with new fillings and flavor combinations. Opt for complementary or contrasting tastes for a truly delectable dessert. For example, pair fudgy chocolate cake with tangy berries, or see how a bold flavor like lemon adds a new dimension to a mild vanilla.

Add a special touch
Infusing new flavors into your favorite cake or brownie recipe is surprisingly easy when you use bakeware made for the purpose. Baker’s Advantage Fillables Bakeware helps home bakers easily create “treat-filled” desserts. Each bakeware set comes with two pans: One pan creates the bottom half of the cake and forms indentations in the cake you can fill with fruit, puddings, candy and more, while the second pan creates the top half of the cake, which hides the surprise fillings.

Shape it up
Artfully applied frosting and other decorations can instantly dress up a basic cake, but another option is upgrading the shape of the cake itself. In addition to traditional square, round and sheet cake pans, the Baker’s Advantage Fillables Bakeware collection includes mini heart cakes, fluted cakes, mini loaf cakes and a cake cones pan. These special shapes make it easy to create enviable desserts out of classic recipes.

Bake In the Fun
Making a cake with a treat hidden inside is as easy as 1-2-3 with Fillables Bakeware from Baker’s Advantage. Because the bakeware does all of the work for you, there are no special baking skills required; just pour in the batter and bake. Then, fill the pockets in the cake with any treat you like and spread icing to cover the surprise. Next, add the top cake layer, ice the whole cake, slice and serve.

Find more surprisingly easy dessert ideas at FillablesbyBakersAdvantage.com.

Brownie Cake Cones

Recipe courtesy of Baker’s Advantage/Alissa Wallers

• 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
• 2 sticks butter
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• nonstick cooking spray
• Vanilla Frosting (recipe below) or ice cream

1. Heat oven to 350° F.
2. In double boiler, melt chocolate and butter.
   When melted, place in large bowl and whisk in cocoa powder until smooth. Add sugar and mix.
3. Combine eggs and vanilla; gently mix with fork or whisk to break up eggs. Add eggs and vanilla to batter.
4. Sift together flour, salt and baking powder. Fold in flour until just combined.
5. Spray Fillables 8 Cup Cake Cone Pan with nonstick cooking spray. Fill bottom pan with batter to line in middle of pan then place insert on top and snap together.
6. Place on middle of rack in oven and bake 15-18 minutes. Allow to cool before removing from pan.

Filling suggestions:
• Graham crackers, chocolate chips and marshmallows
• Whipped cream and berries
• Ice cream or pudding

1. Add fillings inside cone, top with Vanilla Frosting or ice cream, and serve.

Vanilla Frosting

Recipe courtesy of Baker’s Advantage/Alissa Wallers

• 3 sticks butter, unsalted and at room temperature
• 6 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

1. Using handheld or stand mixer, cream butter on high, about 3 minutes.
2. Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, mixing on medium between each addition.
3. Scrape bowl well. Add remaining ingredients; mix on low until incorporated.
4. Turn mixer to high and beat frosting until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
5. Use immediately or store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Note: Frosting must be at room temperature prior to using.

Berries and Cream Fluted Pound Cake

Recipe courtesy of Baker’s Advantage/Alissa Wallers

• 4 sticks butter, room temperature
• 3 cups sugar
• 6 eggs
• 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk, at room temperature
• nonstick cooking spray

1. Heat oven to 350° F.
2. With stand or handheld mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, scraping between each egg. Add vanilla extract.
3. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Add flour mixture to mixing bowl and slowly add milk while mixing. Mix until just combined.
4. Spray Fillables Fluted Cake Pan with nonstick cooking spray. Fill bottom of both pans with batter to three-quarters full.
5. Bake on middle rack in oven 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool before removing from pan.

Filling suggestions:
• Blueberries, plus additional for topping
• Raspberries, plus additional for topping
• Strawberries, stem removed and cut into small pieces, plus additional for topping
• Vanilla Frosting (recipe below)

1. Fill pockets in bottom layer of pound cake with different berries.
2. Carefully spread Vanilla Frosting over top of berries and cake.
3. Place top layer of cake on top of frosting.
4. Drizzle warmed up Vanilla Frosting over top of cake.
5. Decorate top with berries.

Vanilla Frosting

Recipe courtesy of Baker’s Advantage/Alissa Wallers

• 3 sticks butter, unsalted and at room temperature
• 6 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

1. Using handheld or stand mixer, cream butter on high, about 3 minutes.
2. Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, mixing on medium between each addition.
3. Scrape bowl well. Add remaining ingredients; mix on low until incorporated.
4. Turn mixer to high and beat frosting until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
5. Use immediately or store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Note: Frosting must be at room temperature prior to using.

Source: Lifetime Brands

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