I LOVE LOVE LOVE it when a good plan comes together.
Whenever Gia and I start pinning ideas on to my Pinterest boards for themed dessert tables, we get so excited for all of the fun things that we can do together.
Truth is, Gia and I LOVE to be in the kitchen together…it doesn’t quite matter much if we are baking or cooking or dancing or listening to music. We really challenged ourselves this Halloween to come up with some nothing short of fantastic for the SoKids and their Mommas.
SoMom Kris of OC Mom in Manila had asked me if I could make some Oreo pops for our out of town “Trips and Treats” activity. Seeing this as an opportunity to have some fun, Gia and I started coming up with desserts that were easy, would look great on the table and that provided a variety of tastes and textures for everyone who would be attending our Halloween party.
Because we knew there would be a huge age range of participants enjoying the dessert buffet, we knew we had to keep the theme of the table playful and not too scary. I also had to stay within the prescribed budget (as we know DIY is always on a budget) as well as work as many OREO treats into our buffet as possible.
We also considered that the desserts we chose to make needed to be easy enough for us to prepare up to two days in advance, and that could keep that long as well. We considered the weather. If it turned out to be really hot, we might run into a problem with the chocolate covered desserts. After all, a dessert table isn’t a dessert table unless it’s overflowing with treats for everyone!
Here are some close ups of the treats that were inspired by this Pinterest board, which Gia and I were able to put together. Some of the pics that I took during the event, weren’t so clear so I was able to “borrow” some of my fellow SoMoms’ photos with permission of course.
Oreo Push Pops were made with Devil’s Food Cake, 7 Minute Icing, and Crushed Oreos. I was able to pick up the little candy pumpkins at our local bake supply shop. Previously, I had ordered a big box of 100 pcs. of the Push Pop containers from Amazon and my mom shipped it to me via Balikbayan Box. (Photo Credit: Tina Ong)
Cake Pops were made with our Cake Pop Maker. We used a vanilla recipe to make the balls, trimmed the excess and then dipped in Tulip Chocolate Compound that we got from our local bake shop supply as well as our Halloween themed paper straws that we used in place of sticks.
Rice Krispy Treats are super easy to make. However, Gia said she would like to change the recipe the next time we make them so that they are a little more chewy. We dipped these treats in Tulip White Chocolate Compound and then decorated with colored sprinkles.
Our friend Didi made a colorful contribution to our table by bringing sugar cookies. They were really so cute and perfectly matched our theme.
I LOVED this idea when I saw it on Pinterest. It’s a nice snack for those who are looking to munch on something but without all that extra sugar. Look at the cello bag topper and the tent card that Tina designed! SUPER cute…
Since the star of the show was OREO. I thought it would be cute to include OREO inside the cupcake as well as part of the decoration on top. I was super excited to find the Brach’s Candy Pumpkins at our local Rustan’s Fresh too! The cupcake is a simple Vanilla cake (where I cut back on the sugar) and added OREO bits mixed into the batter. The chocolate buttercream icing brings enough sweetness to the cupcake without it being overly sweet. Plus, I was able to find this Oreo Crumb at the local bake shop too! It made doing the topping so much easier!!
This is definitely a great find. Now that I know where to get it (Carla’s Bakery Supply on Sucat Road) I can go back for it anytime.
I knew I wasn’t going to be able to make Caramel Apples for the buffet. So I enlisted Althea over at The Bad Apple to make some Ube flavored Caramel Covered Apples for me. I wish I got to taste one!! The apples were P160 a piece. (Photo Credit: Michelle Lim)
It’s been two years since Gia and I made our last fondant cake. This was so super hard!! I was even texting my teacher over at Cuppy Puppy because I didn’t know what to do! Of course, we are very hard on ourselves because it didn’t quite turn out the way we wanted, but I know that working with fondant is NOT easy…They are like pieces of art. I don’t think my teacher would be very happy with the job that we did here…but I’m sure she would forgive me given the time constraints and lack of practice that we had.
See the cockroaches and ants munching on the OREO? Cai made a platform for the cake so that it would be a little bit higher than everything else. It was perfect to give the cake a little bit more height. Check out the cake stand…It’s two melamine bowls that I glued together with my handy dandy hot glue gun. It doesn’t look perfect…but I’m not sure anyone really noticed…
I also forgot to take a pic of the cake once we sliced it. Gia wanted to make a polka dot cake that would be orange and black when you sliced it. It worked, although, I think the next time we do it, we will add more cake balls…
Adding desserts to the table that would be cute, fit our theme, and not take up too much time to put together are a must. What’s easier than throwing some vampire teeth on the inside of a Krispy Kreme doughnut? (Photo Credit: Michelle Lim)
The tricky thing with dusting a pumpkin cake bite with confectioner’s sugar is that by the end of the day, the cake sucks up all the sugar! Here is a shot that I snapped as soon as I put the treats on the table. You can clearly see the jack-o-lantern stenciled confectioner’s sugar. You can find the recipe for the pumpkin cake here.
These treats can be made days in advance if you have the time. All you have to do is make sure you store them in a cool place. Best not to put them in the fridge because chocolate always sweats after it’s been in the ref. We just kept our chocolate lollipops in a room where the aircon was running.
I love the attention to detail that Gia has. She made this tombstone like display out of styro that she shaped with a bread knife. Then she covered it in board paper, painted it, and added the lettering details. Then we asked Nino to put the holes for the lollipops so that they would be as straight as possible. It then, became a clever way to bring height to the table in a different way.
Lemon Tart made by Gia. She used Ina Garten’s recipe.
Gia and I thought that the adults might want something different. I suggested she make a lemon tart. Truth is, we usually serve this lemon tart COLD. We realized since it had been left out of the fridge since earlier that morning that it was really sweet. Maybe next time, we can try making mini versions of this and cutting back a little bit on the sugar.
Not everyone wants sweets. This little Spider Kit gives someone the opportunity to put together a protein rich snack with crackers and peanut butter. Instructions were carefully placed on the back of this cello bag topper by Tina. (Photo Credit: Tina Ong)
We can’t have all these treats without MILK! NOTHING goes BETTER TOGETHER with OREOS, than MILK!!!
How cute are these milk bottles decorated to look like playful mummies done by Cai?
Cai did a great job of pulling together mummies in a clever way while incorporating our colors too.
See those little witch shoes? I picked those up at Uniwide for P15 each! I love it when I can work bargain finds into out themes!!!
When it comes to designing the printables that go on the table, I am at a complete loss. I only now learned how to use Lightroom and Photoshop to edit my photos…so you can imagine what kind of pickle I’m in when I try and create printables for a table. Asking a printer to design these tent cards, focal centerpiece and details in the shapes of stickers and tags can easily bring up the cost of a dessert table, so I enlisted fellow SoMom Tina Ong from The Phenomenal Mama to come up with designs in our color scheme.
Screen shot of Tina’s FREE Printables available on her blog. Click the photo to be directed to Tina’s post for the free printables.
She knocked it out of the park! The designs she came up with in between her own busy life and playing coach, driver, and cook to her three big kids were nothing short of fabulous. You can check out her designs on her blog. She even put together the files so if you would like to download them for FREE!!!
Paper Bats, Plastic Ghosts, and Garlands all downplay the scary spider… P.S. Gelli hates that spider. (Photo Credit: Michelle Lim)
The decorations and other things were a facet of the table that I knew Cai over at Apples and Dumplings could totally handle. We discussed the colors, the possibilities of her working some of the straws and other things she carries over at The Paper Chic Studio to coordinate with our theme. She was even able to find some plastic mice and cockroaches that weren’t too scary…in fact they almost looked cute eating their own OREOS. (almost) She came up with the punched color garland, some bat cut outs, and incorporated OREOS into our BOO sign.
I super love the BOO sign made from OREOS!!! It totally brings it back to where all the inspiration from this whole table come from…. (Photo Credit: Michelle Lim)
Putting this table together would have been impossible if it weren’t for all my friends who helped me BEFORE the actual set up on the day of the Halloween celebration in Hotel Kimberly in Tagaytay.
Here is what we came up with…What do you think?
Thank you Oreo for supporting the SoMoms and our desire to become better people through our #BetterMe sessions. The Trips and Treats bonding session with our families was the perfect way to kick off our Semestral Break. Thank you Hotel Kimberly Tagaytay for having us and an all our crazy kiddos for such a fun celebration! Thank you YBS for organizing the entire thing, and thank you to Stan Ong, aka Photographer Extraordinaire for documenting it all. I can’t wait to see the shots you were able to get of the table…
The SoMoms #BetterMe sessions are not just a gift for me. They are a gift for my whole family. If I improve upon myself and my character it just doesn’t benefit me. It benefits everyone I love. Thanks Stan Ong for this incredible family shot!
Thank you Maricel from A Sweet Cottage for lending me your backdrop so that we could make our buffet spooky black with spider webs. Thank you Rowena for lending me all the fun paper punches, rollers, and dies in case I needed them. Thanks also for the banderitas that took center stage on the table and helped with bringing more color to our very orange table. Thank you Vangie for always being so generous with whatever supplies and advice you have in bringing a table and a party together. You are my DIY inspiration. Thank you Nenette from My Little Attic for always heeding my requests of paper and where to find and do things that I am not familiar with. You are a stylist that always comes up with classy tables and parties that I admire you and look to your creative tablescapes for inspiration as well.
Thank you Tina and Cai, for helping execute what we envisioned together so that everyone on our OREO Trips and Treats #BetterMe could enjoy the fun and excitement that Halloween brings.
I think we should do this again…but maybe not on such a grande scale? Thanks again Cai and Tina! MWAH!
And LAST BUT NOT LEAST…
Thank you to my darling daughter for being so smart, resourceful, and helpful in pulling together a fantastic TREAT table that we could share with our friends. Thank you for continuing to bake even when you were tired and when Dad and I had to leave for a little bit on Sunday for our inspirational talk. You are so much more than I imagined you would be. I LOVE YOU.
We are definitely BETTER TOGETHER when we work on projects like these. Great job Babe!
The Pastry Studio supplied the sugar cookies. You can reach them by text or phone (0917-5339275 and 633-0949) Their cookies are also sold in S&R.
The Bad Apple supplied the Ube flavored Caramel Apples. Check out their Facebook Page
Stan Ong Photography was our official photographer for the day.
Hotel Kimberly was our venue sponsor for the day filled with fun. I will write a separate post about all the fun things to do there! We will definitely go back. It was quite affordable AND a perfect place to stay with the kids because they will NOT get bored. Promise.
I love, love, love all the details! I know how much work you guys put into this! Can’t believe you made the whole buffet! Galing!
Thanks Kaye…You saw the ins and outs of the entire buffet when you came the night before set up!!!
Great job, Michelle!
Thanks Mayo.XOXO
Thank you for letting me be a part of creating this dessert buffet. The design enthusiast in me had so much fun creating in Photoshop!
Just to share with you, this is also my first ever Halloween celebration. Hahaha! So I want to thank you and all the SoMoms for making it truly memorable!
I am so glad that we got to celebrate your first Halloween with all the SoMoms! It really was a great time together not just bonding with the SoMoms but also with each of our own families and of course, because we are SoMoms, the entire get together was well documented 🙂 Thank you for being so accommodating and creating all the artwork that brought the entire table together…so-when will you teach me??? hahahahaha!!!
Ah.MA.ZING! That’s all I can say!
It was the perfect centerpiece for our party. You ladies did a fine job, so creative! 🙂
Aw. Thanks Michelle!!!
That means so much coming from you! It really was a great time!
It’s two melamine bowls that I glued together with my handy dandy hot glue gun. It doesn’t look perfect…but I’m not sure anyone really noticed…—> No I did not notice!!! Galing!!!! 🙂
Ha ha ha ha ha!
Thanks for stopping by Rina 🙂 I wish we got to spend a little more time together!
I love these little DIY tips that I can share with everyone. It makes things so much more cost effective.
I actually meant to put a ribbon to cover the seam where the two bowls were glued but I ran outta time!
It really shows when you put so much love in what you do. So amazing! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by Chrissy!
I really do love Halloween. And I really love collaborations that require me getting busy in the kitchen with my best girl 🙂