Cheesy Snake Witch
This Halloween, we are going all out with our decorations. We are even having a Halloween birthday costume party for my son. As part of the appetizer table, a creepy snake witch centerpiece will be displayed to amuse the guests. The snake is made out of Cacique Four Quesos Blend and shredded Queso Cotija in a thick cream cheese mixture. The spread is delicious if eaten as is with crostini or crackers. But when spread on the bread used in this recipe, it becomes the perfect canvas to create a detailed snake skin. This snake witch is made completely out of edible materials, just make sure the toothpicks used to shape the bread are removed before consuming. Also, dried kidney beans decorate the surface of the snake, you can always replace those with a different kind of edible seed or remove them before cutting into the snake witch. Enjoy making this with your kids. It’s an excellent family project to get them in the mood for Halloween.
WHAT YOU NEED
- 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese
- 1 (7-ounce) package Cacique Four Quesos Blend
- 1 (7-ounce) package Cacique Queso Cotija shreds
- 5 hot dog buns
- 3-4 cactus paddles, sliced in half
- dry kidney beans
- 1 poblano pepper
- 4 tamarind pods
- red apple piece
- 1 ½ cups pepita seeds
- toothpicks
- For snake surrounding:
- rambutan fruit
- fresh thyme
- fresh marjoram
- tamarind pods
- chives
HOW TO MAKE IT
- Combine cream cheese, Four Quesos Blend and shredded Queso Cotija in a stand mixer. Mix until combined; about 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Using the bottom of a large baking sheet as your work space, coil hot buns using toothpicks into your desired snake shape. Tear buns in large pieces if necessary.
- Using the back of a spoon, spread cheese mixture on shaped hot dog buns. Smooth out with a knife.
- Carefully, using tongs, place cactus halves under your snake. Lifting with a large spatula and smoothing over any breakage with a butter knife.
- Cut the end of a poblano pepper for the top of the witch hat. Make the rim by cutting out a circle with the remainder of the poblano pepper. Secure with toothpicks.
- Decorate the snake face with dry kidney beans, black olives and pimento. Insert tamarind pod veins under the rim to make the hair. Working from the snake’s back end, decorate with red beans and pepita seeds.
- Decorate around snake with herbs, rambutan and tamarind pods.
