Using your favorite two-layer cake recipe and dark chocolate icing, you can create a party sensation--a creepy spider with eight furry legs.

Cake mix:

4 cups spreadable dark chocolate icing
1 square (1 oz.) of unsweetened chocolate, grated
3 squares (2 oz. each) of Nestle's Premier White baking bars
Small gumdrops and bright candies
Black licorice string
1/2 cup shredded coconut (optional)

Directions:

In a preheated 350-degree oven, bake the batter in lightly greased and floured pans: use a 4-quart ovenproof bowl for the spider's body, a 3-cup ovenproof bowl for the head, and a 12 1/4-by-8 1/4-inch oblong pan for the legs and fangs. Watch baking times carefully. The body will take from 30 to 40 minutes, the head about 25 minutes, and the rest about 20 minutes, depending on your oven. When a knife inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean, it's ready. Cool thoroughly on a rack before removing the pans.

Cover a sturdy piece of cardboard with aluminum foil. Arrange the spider's torso and head in the middle, and frost. On a cutting board, use a sharp knife to cut eight curved legs and two fangs. Frost them and transfer the pieces to the body. Dust the legs and torso with chocolate powder, and if desired, add stripes of shredded coconut. Wipe away excess icing and chocolate from the foil surface.

For the web, melt the white chocolate in a double boiler. Transfer the cooled mixture to a plastic zip-top bag. Make a tiny cut in one corner of the bag and run the lines unevenly around and between the legs and over the edge of the covered cardboard. Serves 8.

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• Halloween |
• Theme Cakes

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• Halloween Desserts |
• Themed Cakes