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Taco Pumpkins: A cute and easy Halloween meal idea!


When my son was younger, I loved making special meals for Halloween.  Mummy dogs, breadstick bones, and forked eyeballs were some favorites. These Taco Pumpkins were a huge hit as well. I first saw the idea from Taste of Home in 2009.  The ingredients were not something that he'd eat back then, so I adapted it to his tastes.

It really doesn't get any more simple. I used leftover taco meat and Fiesta blend cheese. Roll refrigerated biscuits out slightly to flatten them.  Place one biscuit on the baking sheet, add 2 to 3 tablespoons taco meat and then sprinkle with cheese.  How much? I don't know, life's just too short to measure cheese, don't you think?

Top with another biscuit.  You can go two ways now.  You can get artistic and cut out jack o'lantern faces, or just score lines to make it resemble a pumpkin. Cut out stem shapes from one of the biscuits, and I like to do the little curlycues too.  Press them onto the pumpkin to seal them together.

Another way to get creative is in the egg wash.  Just beaten egg works fine, but you can tint the wash with food coloring and paint it on too.   Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes.  The jack o'lanterns may ooze slightly, but don't worry, that just makes them more spooky!

No luck on getting the teenager to pose for a "then and now" shot with these, so I'll just share the "then."   Jake, October 2009



Taco Pumpkins


Yield: 7
Author:

ingredients:

  • 2 8 count cans biscuits, I use Pillsbury Grands
  • 1lb lean ground beef
  • 1 package taco seasoning + water needed per directions.
  • approximately 1 cup Mexican blend cheese
  • 1 to 2 eggs, beaten
  • Orange, green and brown food coloring, if desired

instructions:

How to cook Taco Pumpkins

  1. Brown ground beef in a skillet over medium heat, drain grease. Add taco seasoning and water. Simmer over medium low heat until the water is absorbed.
  2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out 14 biscuits to flatten them to 1/2" and place on a cooking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray. Place two to three tablespoons of taco meat onto 7 biscuits. Top with 7 biscuits and score to resemble pumpkins, or "carve" jack o'lantern faces into them. Press to seal the edges.
  3. With the remaining two biscuits, cut to make stems and curlicues. Press onto pumpkin bases. . If desired, separate the egg wash into 3 bowls and add green, brown and orange food coloring to them and "paint" it on. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the biscuits are completely cooked through.
Adapted from Trick or Treat Turnovers
Taco, Halloween,
Snacks, Dinner, appetizers
American
Created using The Recipes Generator



This post was originally published on October 1, 2013.  It has been updated with new text, photos, and a printable recipe card.

Labels:

Comments

  1. CarleeOctober 28, 2018 at 8:08 AM

    These are super cute. I am sure my little dude would love some and too bad about the then and now pics. Dang kids ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JoleneOctober 28, 2018 at 8:26 AM

      Right? Why do they have to turn into teenagers? LOL

      Delete
  2. Colleen - Faith, Hope, Love, & LuckOctober 28, 2018 at 8:33 AM

    These are just so adorable, and I bet they taste even better than they.look!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Family Around the TableOctober 28, 2018 at 9:28 AM

    So much fun! It's tough when kids get minds of their own. I also love how easy they are.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AmyOctober 28, 2018 at 3:14 PM

    So cute. Yep, they all turn into teenagers at some point, but they usually come back around eventually. (Sometimes it isn't until they get their own children)!!! Thank you for sharing at Happiness is Homemade.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Books n' CooksOctober 28, 2018 at 3:56 PM

    Such a cute idea! I totally need to get my kids to eat tacos so that I can make this for them. Or maybe this will make them eat tacos? :-)

    ReplyDelete
  6. KarenOctober 28, 2018 at 6:51 PM

    Oh how cute! I would love to see the then and now, but I do know about teenagers!

    ReplyDelete
  7. CarolineOctober 28, 2018 at 8:08 PM

    This is such a fun and cute idea!

    ReplyDelete
  8. A Day in the Life on the FarmOctober 31, 2018 at 8:17 AM

    Hi Jolene, I made these with the girls yesterday. It was a fun night. Thanks for the inspiration. I posted on it today with a link back to this post.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JoleneNovember 1, 2018 at 6:57 AM

      I love how they both got involved! So glad they were a hit for your family too :)

      Delete
  9. Sue LauNovember 3, 2018 at 8:16 PM

    This is a really great idea for the kids!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Susan BicktaOctober 5, 2020 at 11:53 AM

    I LOVE this!!!!!! Have to give it a try ...... thanks for sharing this creative idea!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Doreen MatthewOctober 4, 2021 at 9:45 PM

    Super cute!

    ReplyDelete

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