These No Bake Boo Halloween Pudding Cups are fun and easy to make in individual cups, with layers of pudding, cake, whipped cream, ghost peeps, and bloody bone candies! This easy Halloween dessert is ideal for kids and perfect for Halloween parties and potlucks.
Popular during the Halloween season, these Halloween Boo cups are great for any age. They were inspired by my Jack o'lantern Cupcakes and pair perfectly with my Melting Witch Halloween Punch (non-alcoholic).
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🥘Ingredient Notes
You'll need a few simple ingredients for these fun Halloween dirt cups:
- Chocolate pound or loaf cake. You can use store-bought or homemade.
- Instant chocolate pudding- you can buy the box pudding powder and make it, or buy the pudding snack packs (premade).
- Whipping cream (heavy cream). Make sure you are using 33%-36% fat.
- Ghost peeps. They come 6 per box.
- Green food coloring (affiliate link). I use Wilton Kelly green icing color
- Candy bloody bones - you can find these in craft stores like Michaels Arts & Crafts or Amazon.
Top tips
*If you can't find premade chocolate loaf cakes in the bakery section of your grocery store, and don't feel like making a box mix or a cake from scratch, grab a Deep and Delicious McCains Chocolate Cake from the freezer section. You can either scrape off the frosting or keep it on (frosting is always welcome in these dessert cups! )
You will need 10 oz clear plastic cups and an edible black marker for this easy dessert. I prefer to use Americolor edible black markers because I think they are better quality. Alternatively, you can use a smaller cup.
📖Variations & Substitutions
- Cake- you can use a store-bought cake from the bakery at your local grocery store, whip up a cake mix or use any homemade chocolate cake: Old Fashioned Sour Cream Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake, or Chocolate Genoise Sponge Cake .
- Cake crumbs - you can use Oreo crumbs for the "dirt" on top of the green whipped cream, instead of cake
- Pudding- you can use vanilla pudding, make your own chocolate pudding or chocolate mousse instead of instant pudding. You can also use pudding cups (snack packs) , so you don't actually have to make the pudding.
- Whipped cream- you can use regular whipped cream, Cool Whip or use green colored frosting
- Add-ins - you can add in gummy worms, cookie tombstones, candy pumpkins or Halloween sprinkles
- Graveyard Pudding Cake. You can layer everything in a trifle bowl or 9x13 dish for a "graveyard pudding cake" effect. Simply spread layers of cake, pudding, and whipped cream, then decorate with Peeps and candies on top.
🔪How to Make Halloween Pudding Cups
Prep:
- Prepare pudding as per box directions (if using instant). If you are using pudding snack packs, skip this step.
- Prepare cake if using box mix or homemade cake
- Prepare whipped cream (if using homemade) and add green food coloring
Add broken-up cake to the bottom of all 12 cups.
Add a layer of chocolate pudding to each cup.
Add another layer of cake
Then another (final) layer of pudding
Add some green whipped cream
Draw a scary ghost (ghoul) face. *They come stamped with the eyes and mouth, like the ghost on the right.
Place Ghost Peeps in the middle, sprinkle a little crumbled cake around to look like dirt, and add some bloody bone candies.
Hint: Dig a little hole to push the ghost peep into, but don't push too far down, or it will cover the mouth
Expert Recipe Tips
- Chill the pudding and whipped cream first - Cold pudding and whipped cream set better in layers, so refrigerate them for at least 30 minutes before assembling for cleaner layers.
- Don't over-soak the cake - If your pudding is very soft, avoid pressing the cake crumbs down too firmly or they may get soggy. A light hand keeps the texture balanced.
- Make your ghosts stand tall - Dig a small hole in the pudding layer before placing the ghost Peep. This will anchor it upright without sinking too deep.
- Add "dirt" last minute - If sprinkling cake crumbs or Oreo crumbs on top, wait until just before serving so they stay fluffy and don't absorb moisture from the whipped cream.
- Stabilize whipped cream - For firmer whipped cream that won't deflate, add 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar or instant pudding mix when whipping. This helps it hold up better if making ahead.
- Customize the scares - Use different faces on the Peeps for variety-scary, funny, or surprised expressions add personality and make each cup unique.
- Plan for parties - Assemble the base layers (cake + pudding) a day ahead, then add whipped cream, ghosts, and candies a few hours before serving for the freshest look.
- Use piping bags - To make neat, even layers of pudding and whipped cream, transfer them into piping bags (or zip-top bags with the corner snipped off). This makes assembly faster and less messy.
🌡️Storage
These dirt pudding cups can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. If only storing overnight, you can simply cover them in plastic wrap.
👪 Serving Size
This Halloween pudding cups recipe makes 12 servings. However, you can half, double or triple the recipe by clicking on the serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust. If you use a smaller cup, you can get more servings.
❔ Recipe FAQs
If you don't have one, you can use melted chocolate, black gel icing, or even mini chocolate chips for the eyes and mouth.
If ghost Peeps aren't available, you can substitute with marshmallow ghosts, homemade marshmallow cutouts, or even decorate regular marshmallows with edible markers.
Yes! They hold up well overnight if covered tightly with plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container. The ghosts and candies look best if added shortly before serving, so you may want to wait to decorate until the day of your event
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So if you're looking for simple graveyard pudding cups, give this recipe a try at your next Halloween party!
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👻Boo Halloween Pudding Cups recipe
Ingredients
- 600 g chocolate cake (2 store-bought loaf cakes)
- 3 -113 g boxes of chocolate instant pudding mix
- ½ litre whipping cream
- 12 ghost peeps (they come 6 per box )
- ½ teaspoon green food coloring
- candy bloody bones
Instructions
- Add broken up cake to bottom of cup
- Add a layer of chocolate pudding
- Add another layer of cake
- Add a final layer of chocolate pudding.
- Add a little whipped cream
- Color eyes and mouth on ghost with edible marker (over peeps eyes and nose)
- Put ghost in the middle of cup, sprinkle a little more cake crumbs to look like dirt and add bloody bone candies.
- Repeat for remaining 11 cups.
Notes
- Chill the pudding and whipped cream first - Cold pudding and whipped cream set better in layers, so refrigerate them for at least 30 minutes before assembling for cleaner layers.
- Don't over-soak the cake - If your pudding is very soft, avoid pressing the cake crumbs down too firmly or they may get soggy. A light hand keeps the texture balanced.
- Make your ghosts stand tall - Dig a small hole in the pudding layer before placing the ghost Peep. This will anchor it upright without sinking too deep.
- Add "dirt" last minute - If sprinkling cake crumbs or Oreo crumbs on top, wait until just before serving so they stay fluffy and don't absorb moisture from the whipped cream.
- Stabilize whipped cream - For firmer whipped cream that won't deflate, add 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar or instant pudding mix when whipping. This helps it hold up better if making ahead.
- Customize the scares - Use different faces on the Peeps for variety-scary, funny, or surprised expressions add personality and make each cup unique.
- Plan for parties - Assemble the base layers (cake + pudding) a day ahead, then add whipped cream, ghosts, and candies a few hours before serving for the freshest look.
- Use piping bags - To make neat, even layers of pudding and whipped cream, transfer them into piping bags (or zip-top bags with the corner snipped off). This makes assembly faster and less messy.
Terri Gilson says
Took these over to my neighbors' grandkids and they thought they were really fun and LOVED them!
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