Vintage Eats Recipe: 1971 Jack-O’-Lantern Teacakes

I debated whether to feature these little gems because my efforts at decorating them were not great.

But then I thought that maybe other people feel that way about their cooking/ baking efforts and we should not put ourselves down for less-than-perfect results.

After all, these brightly-frosted petite cookies tasted fine. I just may have been a little too generous with the frosting.

Oh well, there are worse things in life than too much frosting, right?

I found the recipe in a 16-page pamphlet that I purchased at an online auction along with cookbooks.

I am interested in anything published by Betty Crocker, but especially something that is vintage. The pamphlet, which is staple-bound, is in great condition considering it is 54 years old.

It interested me because the front cover mentioned holidays that were represented inside. In addition to Thanksgiving and Christmas (the two biggest for sharing recipes), it included Valentine’s Day, Presidents’ Day (I didn’t know there was Presidents’ Day in 1971!), St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Fourth of July, and Halloween.

I’ll have to say, having been alive in 1971 and actively participated in Trick-or-Treating at that time, I don’t recall Mom ever making treats to hand out or have us prepare for company.

But Halloween was so different back then. It was not uncommon to find handmade treats in your treat bag upon returning home and doing inventory. With a mother that baked most Saturdays, my two sisters and I may not have shown as much interest in homemade goodies as Snickers bars, taffy apples, and popcorn balls.

As our family lived in the country, we didn’t get Trick-or-Treaters at our door, nor did we go Trick-or-Treating, except to our grandparent’s home.

Boy, was that a cache to be drooled over! Grandma must have purchased every kind of candy in the store and given some to each of us. She was known for making terrific sugar cookies, but for Halloween she put away her flour sifter and turned off her oven for store-bought goodies that she knew we would enjoy.

We’d go home, secure in the knowledge that our sweet tooths (sweet teeth?) would be satiated for months.

These itty-bitty pumpkins – the kind you would want to eat at a spooky party – were cut out with tiny Pampered Chef cookie cutters. It’s the first time I’ve used them and I’m pleased. I used the pumpkin and the leaf cutters, but the leaf didn’t show much of its shape with the frosting.

Maybe if I had piped frosting, instead of using the back of a spoon, it would have more definition.

Again, that’s not something I’m going to stress over. This is not that kind of a blog. I’m more free and easy and just want to encourage people to get into baking – or maybe back to baking.

I didn’t have to alter this recipe as all of the ingredients were on my shelves. The only thing I did differently was to cover the cookies with frosting and lightly sprinkle edible glitter (found at Dollar Tree) on tops.

Give this recipe a whirl and, if no Trick-or-Treaters come to your home – or you choose to leave off your lights – eat them while watching old somewhat scary movies like The Snoop Sisters or Clue. You can find them on streaming services. Have a Happy Halloween!

Jack-O’-Lantern Teacakes

2-1/3 cups Bisquick baking mix

3 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons butter, melted

½ cup milk

Orange frosting (see below)

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Stir baking mix, sugar, butter, and milk to a soft dough. Gently smooth dough into a ball on floured cloth-covered board. Knead 8-10 times.
3. Roll dough ¼-inch thick. Cut with floured 2-inch cutter. Form rounds into pumpkin shapes, using extra dough for stems.
4. Bake on ungreased baking sheet about 8 minutes. Cool and frost with Orange Frosting.
5. Orange Frosting:
6. Blend 1-1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, 1-2 tablespoons milk and ½ teaspoon orange extract until of spreading consistency. Reserve 1 tablespoon frosting; color with green food color for stems. Color remainder with red and yellow food color. Decorate with licorice and candies to resemble jack-o’-lanterns. (Or just smooth on the frosting and decorate with edible glitter as I did)

Yield: 2 dozen or more depending on size of cutter.