Spooky Stuffed Spider Buns

Ooooooh! Spoooooooky!

Well, maybe not terribly spooky...more like super de duper cute. 

Sue and I made these pizza stuffed spiders for our Halloween Dinner 2013. They are a little fiddly to make but really do make a big impact on the table. 

We have provided the recipe for our bread but you can use pretty much any recipe you like....even store bought. 

These would make a great lunch for the kids.

Spooky Stuffed Spider Buns

Ingredients

Bread Dough

4 1/2 tsp active dry yeast 

1/2 cup very warm water (110 degrees)

1/2 cup very warm milk (110 degrees)

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp poppy seeds

4 - 5 cups flour

Filling

1/2 cup pizza sauce

1 cup Mozza cheese, shredded

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, cheese

Olive slices for eyes.

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, mix together yeast and warm water. Let stand 5 minutes to proof.

In a separate bowl, place warm milk and butter. Let stand so butter melts (it's okay if butter does not melt completely, you just want it mostly melted.)

Mix together yeast, milk, sugar, salt, and poppy seeds. Whisk vigorously for a minute. 

Add in 1 cup of flour at a time, stirring well in between, until you have a soft dough. 

Place on a well floured work surface and knead for 1 - 2 minutes. 

Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover.

Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 375. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, set aside. Tear tinfoil into strips about 6 inches long and 3 inches wide. Fold the strips in half horizontally and then in half horizontally again until you have a long, thin strip. You will need 2 of these strips for each spider you plan to make. 

Punch down the dough and dived into 12 equal sized balls.

Instructions for each of the 12 balls.- Cut the ball in half. Then cut one of the halves in half again. 

Take the largest piece and flatten it into a circle about the size of the palm of your hand. Place a small spoonful of pizza sauce and a sprinkle of both cheeses in the middle. Pinch the edges of the dough together and then shape into an egg shape. (This is the body of the spider)

Take one of the smaller balls and roll it into a ball. (This is the head.)

Take the other small ball and cut it into 8 pieces. Roll each piece between your hands until you have 8 long pieces. (These are the legs.)

To assemble the spider - place 2 of the tinfoil strips you had folded up on the cookie sheet about 2 - 3 inches apart. Lay the legs over the strips to leave a little bump. Place the body and head of the spider on top of the legs in between the two tinfoil strips. (Please see photo below for clarification)

Repeat with the rest of the dough. (I got 6 per cookie sheet)

Bake at 375 until tops are golden brown and bread is cooked, about 15 - 20 minutes. 

Let cool on sheet for about 5 - 10 minutes before gently wiggling the tinfoil strips loose. Serve warm or let cool on wire racks. You can serve them without eyes....

Or place 2 olive slices on the head...

A couple of notes about this recipe -- 

1. You can use pretty much any bread recipe for this. Just remember you don't have to do a second rising.

2. You can fill these with pretty much anything you like - pizza, ham & cheese, BBQ chicken, etc.

3. If you find the legs are too small - only make 10 or 11 spiders and use the 1 or 2 extra dough balls to add extra dough for the legs. 

4. The tinfoil strips are not totally necessary - you can make these and just place the legs flat - but I really think the legs looks like they have more "movement" with the bends in them. 

 

Be sure to check out Kitchen Fun With My 3 Sons and My Turn (for us) and Horrific Knits for tons of fun and crafty links!