It's time to get all sweet and creepy.  A crypt-kicking take on peanut butter balls (buckeyes) or peanut butter cups just takes an extra coat of white chocolate, a little food coloring and minimal artistic skills for a Halloween treat that's a "real looker!" (There's an added surprise in the middle.)

Kathy Whyte/ WNBF News
Kathy Whyte/ WNBF News
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Peanut Butter Eyeballs

1 C. powdered sugar

1/2 C. peanut butter (can use either creamy or crunchy)

3 Tbl. room temperature butter

1/4 C. or less hazelnut/chocolate spread

1, 12 ounce package white chocolate chips

2 Tbl. vegetable shortening

black food color for the pupil and whatever color you like for the iris

Combine, butter, sugar and peanut butter. You'll want to use your hands to make sure the ingredients are totally incorporated. Spoon the hazelnut spread into a plastic sandwich bag and snip off a corner or use a pastry bag.  Use a small ice cream scoop to portion out uniform-sized balls or just pinch off amounts to make a ball a little smaller than a golf ball. Roll the mix between the palms of your hands into a ball then, using the back end of a chop stick, hollow out the middle. Squeeze a little hazelnut spread into the hole and tamp down with the pointed end of the chopstick. Pinch the hole closed.  Put the balls on wax paper and chill for about a half hour.  Pour bag of white chocolate chips into a microwave safe bowl along with the vegetable shortening.  Microwave for about a minute. Stir. If not all melted and smooth, microwave another thirty seconds. Stir again until smooth.  Let the cholcolate chill a little before coating the the balls. Roll them around in the chocolate using two forks. Let excess drip off before returning balls to the wax paper. They firm up fairly quickly and can be dipped again to make sure none of the peanut butter shows through. Once dry, you can paint the food color details on the balls. Liquid food color won't stick alone. I dipped a new paint brush into the food color then into some powdered sugar and painted the eyes. You can also use some red food color to paint veins if you like.

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