Dark Chocolate Skull Cakelets

These dark chocolate skull cakes are a scary fun dessert to serve at a Halloween party or just to have in the kitchen to celebrate the coming holiday. 

With pomegranate arils for eyes and vanilla sprinkles for teeth, these little two-bite dark chocolate cakelets are a great way to have a decadent dessert without over indulging. Unless you are like me and secretly grab one every time you pass through the kitchen. 

Last year I couldn't resist buying this skull cakelet pan and promised myself I would use it every year to justify the purchase. Last year I made little spice cakelets and mini pizza skulls and both were tasty and fun. 

This year, I decided to go with something chocolate, specifically dark chocolate. These turned out a little more "rustic" than the spiced cakelets, but they are super moist and totally delicious. I just need to figure out how to make them a little more dense to show off the details in the pan. 

Ingredients in These Cakelets:

Sugar: Both brown sugar and granulated sugar. 

Cocoa Powder: I used both a Dutch process cocoa blend and black cocoa powder. You could also use Hershey's Special Dark, although you won't get quite the dark color you will with the black cocoa. 

Pantry Ingredients: All purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, vegetable oil, and salt. 

From the Refrigerator: Eggs, butter, and plain yogurt. 

Brewed Expresso or Strong Black Coffee: You won't taste it, but it will help deepen the chocolate flavor. 

For the Glaze: Powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. 

For Decorations: Pomegranate arils and vanilla sprinkles. 

Procedure:

First, in one bowl, whisk together the white sugar and cocoas. Add the flour, baking soda and powder, salt, and whisk. In another bowl, mix the brown sugar, oil, melted butter, eggs, and yogurt. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix. Add the coffee and mix thoroughly. 

After that, fill the greased cavities of the skull cakelet pan about 2/3 full and bake the cakes for about 15 minutes. Let the cakes cool completely in the pan. 

To decorate the skulls, mix the glaze ingredients and dip the skull cakes in the glaze. Place pomegranate arils into the eye indentations and place the sprinkles on the mouth area. Spoon a little more glaze over the eyes and mouth to help them stick. Let the glaze dry before serving. 

Recipe Variations:

For the eyes, instead of the arils, you could use candy eyes. 

Instead of the thin vanilla glaze, you could drizzle a thin chocolate ganache over the skulls. Another option would be to dust the prepared skulls with powdered sugar or cocoa powder. This works best when you are serving the cakes the same say. Otherwise the powdered sugar or cocoa will get absorbed into the cakelets. 

Storage:

Keep these cakelets in an airtight container at room temperature for two days. After that, keep them in the refrigerator. Bring them to room temperature before serving. 

This recipe makes enough for two pans of skulls. If 20 cakelets are enough, you could use the rest of the batter to make mini bundt cakes or cupcakes. Plus, they are a little less labor intensive. 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Welcome to 2025’s #HalloweenTreatsWeek event!

This is our 8th year doing #HalloweenTreatsWeek ... has it really been 8 years? Wow!

#HalloweenTreatsWeek is a Halloween blogging event that is hosted by Angie from Big Bear’s Wife every October. This event is an online, week-long event that is filled with some amazingly wicked Halloween treats and recipes from some fantastic Halloween-loving bloggers!

Make Sure to check out all of the fun Halloween recipes that we're sharing this week!

• Boo Brownie Batter Dip from Big Bear's Wife
• Halloween Deviled Eggs from Southern Halloween Queen
• Dark Chocolate Skull Cakelets from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Trick or Treat Trifles from Jolene's Recipe Journal
• Candy Corn Pizza from The Spiffy Cookie
• Halloween Pizza from Art of Natural Living
• Poisoned Apple Cream Puffs from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures

 

Dark Chocolate Skull Cakelets

Yield: 40 cakelets

Author: Karen Kerr

Prep time: 45 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 1 Hour

These dark chocolate skull cakes are a scary fun dessert to serve at a Halloween party or just to have in the kitchen to celebrate the coming holiday. 

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder, half Dutch process cocoa powder and half black cocoa powder
• 2 cups (9 ounces) all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup brewed espresso or strong brewed coffee
• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 40 pomegranate arils
• 2 teaspoons white sprinkles

Instructions

To Make the Cakelets

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the cavities of a mini skull cakelet pan and dust with cocoa powder.
2. In a large bowl, combine the granulated sugar, cocoa powders and whisk thorougly. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk thoroughly.
3. In another bowl, combine the light brown sugar, oil, butter, eggs, and yogurt. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and thoroughly mix everything together. Add the coffee or expresso and mix again.
4. Fill the cavities 2/3 full and bake the cakelet for 15 to 18 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan.

To Make the Glaze and Decorate the Cakelets

1. Mix the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Dip the cakelets in the glaze and let drain on a wire rack over a sheet pan.
2. Insert the pomegranate arils into the eye cavities and place the sprinkles on the mouth area. Drizzle more glaze over the eyes and mouth.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

124

Fat (grams)

5 g

Sat. Fat (grams)

2 g

Carbs (grams)

20 g

Fiber (grams)

1 g

Net carbs

19 g

Sugar (grams)

14 g

Protein (grams)

2 g

Cholesterol (grams)

18 mg

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2025/10/dark-chocolate-skull-cakelets.html

Karen's Kitchen Stories

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