Trick this Treat: Cereal Box Haunted House
There’s something eerie about this chocolatey house… almost like someone is watching. Always watching. No matter where you try and hide, these eyes are always watching. All you need to create a spooky scene for your Halloween table are some monster cereals and a few supermarket and craft store supplies.
Don’t you wonder who lurks within? Is it Franken Berry? Count Chocula? The Fruity Yummy Mummy? I guess we’ll never know.
How to make a cereal box haunted house:
You will need:*
2 cereal boxes
Monster Cereals (Franken Berry, Count Chocula, Boo Berry, Fruit Brute and/or Fruity Yummy Mummy)
Pencil
Ruler
Scissors
X-acto knife
Scotch tape
Fruit by the foot (Color by the Foot)
Betty Crocker Chocolate frosting
Black food coloring pen
Gum drops
Toothpicks
Construction paper
Black marker
Zip-top bags
Rolling pin, hammer or mallet
4-inch lollipop stick (optional)
Hole punch (optional)
Battery-operated candle or votive (optional)
*I used cereal boxes 7 ½ by 10 by 2 inches in size, but you can adjust for any size box. Find the lollipop sticks and the black food coloring pen in the craft store. If you are not planning on eating any part of the house, you may use a regular black marker instead.
Open a cereal box at the seams and lay flat.
With a pencil, draw a line across the box at the middle, shown here at the 5-inch mark. On the front and back box panels, draw a triangle for the roof: Measure and mark a dot half way across the line you drew across the box (here, the 3 ¼ inch mark) and two inches above. Then, use a ruler to draw lines connecting the dots to the edges.
Use a marker to draw the final lines to cut, including windows.
Cut the windows and door no more than ¾-inch across. Here, only the front of the house has windows and a door, but you may also add them to the back. Cut out the house at the black marker lines and use an X-acto knife or scissors to cut out the door and windows. From the 2nd box, cut out a piece 5 inches by 10 inches and set aside. (Or, if using a different size box, this piece should be the same height as the box. The width is three inches longer than the side of the box.) These are the two pieces you will have to assemble your house:
Cut yellow and orange pieces of Fruit by the Foot and press over the windows and door. The fruit should stick to the cardboard on its own, but if not, add a dab of water.
Reassemble the cereal box and tape to secure. For extra stability, punch holes near the apex of the roof and slide a 4-inch lollipop stick through, securing with tape.
Fold the 10 by 5 inch rectangle piece of the box in half to create a seam in the center. Unfold. Spread a thin layer of chocolate frosting on the rectangle, just thick enough so the box beneath is not visible through the frosting. Sprinkle handfuls of any of the monster cereals, or a combination, and press the cereal pieces into the frosting to cover the rectangle completely. Set aside to set well.
Spread chocolate frosting on each side of the house, taking care not to cover the windows. Don’t worry about smoothing your frosting. This house is supposed to be scary!
If desired, place a battery-operated candle or votive in the house before adding the roof. When set, carefully place the roof on the house, and decorate.
To make creepy eyes, separate some marshmallows from the monster cereals and use the black food coloring pen to draw dots for eyes. Stick onto the house, using additional dabs of frosting as needed to adhere. For the ground, place BooBerry cereal in a ziptop bag and crush with a rolling pin, hammer or mallet. Sprinkle in front of the house. The walkway is made from crushed Fruity Yummy Mummy cereal. For the signs, write on squares of construction paper, tape to a toothpick and insert into a gumdrop.
