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–+ servings
close up photo of healthy chocolate pudding Halloween dirt cups with a banana with a face made out of chocolate chips and gummy worms on top

Halloween Dirt Cups

Author Erin Dooner
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 5
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 2 hours
These Halloween dirt cups are easy to make with rich and creamy chocolate pudding, homemade chocolate cookie crumbs, and banana ghosts to treat kids of all ages. The recipe is vegan as written, but regular milk and butter can be used, if preferred.

Ingredients

For the pudding:

For the crumbs:

To assemble:

  • Pudding
  • Crumbs
  • 3 (or 5) bananas
  • 10 vegan chocolate chips mini + 5 regular-sized

Instructions

Prepare the pudding:

  • Combine the coconut sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch and salt in a medium saucepan until no lumps remain.
    1/2 cup (100 grams) coconut sugar, 1/4 cup (29 grams) Dutch-process cocoa powder, 1/4 cup (31 grams) cornstarch, 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Stir in the milk, turn the heat to medium, and while stirring occasionally, bring to a simmer.
    2 3/4 cups (650 ml) milk
  • Let simmer for up to about a minute or until the pudding coats the back of a spoon. Do not let it simmer too long or it'll break down later. It's important to not taste the pudding with a spoon and put it back in the pudding! It'll make the pudding break down into a runny mess.
  • Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the coconut oil and vanilla extract. Let cool to room temperature, stirring every 15 minutes or so, then place plastic wrap over the pudding to prevent a skin from forming. Let chill for about 2-3 hours. While it's chilling, prepare the crumbs.
    2 tablespoons (28 grams) refined coconut oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Store covered in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Prepare the crumbs:

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (175 °C) and line an 8"x8" pan with a piece of parchment paper. Note that this crust recipe does not work as a regular pie crust, so don't try using it in a pie pan.
  • In a large mixing bowl, mix together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Stir in the coconut oil and vanilla with a large spoon until well combined. If you have difficulties incorporating the oil, use your hands. It’ll be dry and crumbly, possibly sticky.
    1/2 cup (100 grams) coconut sugar, 1/2 cup (62 grams) flour, 1/2 cup (58 grams) Dutch-process cocoa powder, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 5 1/2 tablespoons (77 grams) refined coconut oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Press the mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan. If it's sticky and you're having issues, then wash your hands (assuming they have bits of dough on them), leave them a bit wet and pat the dough down.
  • Bake for 10 minutes. When you remove it from the oven, it might look crazy. Some parts may be bubbling, some parts may totally greasy and wet. Once it cools, it firms up.
  • Let cool completely, about 1 hour, and then use a glass to smash the crust to form the cookie crumbs.

Assemble the dirt cups:

  • Do this right before serving so that your bananas don't start to brown. If you're making them for a party, it's fine to have them sit out for a few hours.
  • Place some pudding in a clear serving cup/small glass. I used ½ cup of pudding.
  • The ghost will go from the bottom of the cup and peek out about 2-3”. Cut off a bit from the banana - however much you need in order to create a nice ghost.
  • Stick in 2 mini chocolate chips for eyes and 1 regular-sized chocolate chip for the mouth.
  • Stick the banana ghost into the pudding.
  • Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of crumbs around the ghost.
  • Repeat for the remaining 4 dirt cups.
  • Serve immediately. If you want to make them in advance, the pudding and crumbs can be made 4 days ahead of time. Then right before serving, make the ghosts and assemble the dirt cups.

Notes

  • Note that it's best to weigh coconut sugar! Some brands are light and coarse and some brands (like the one I use) are very fine and dense.
  • I used unsweetened cashew milk. If you're not vegan, you can use regular whole milk.
  • I used refined coconut oil because I didn't want any coconut flavor. If you don't mind coconut flavor, you can use unrefined coconut oil.
  • Flour - I’ve tested the crumbs with buckwheat, with King Arthur Flour Gluten-free Measure for Measure Flour and Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-free 1-to-1 Baking Mix. They all worked equally well! If you’re not gluten-free, then you can use all-purpose flour, white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour. For a paleo version, you can use 3 tablespoons (24 grams) of coconut flour instead of the aforementioned options.
  • If your coconut oil is melted at room temp, put it in the fridge for a few minutes - if yours is super firm, then put it in the microwave at half power for maybe 10 seconds.
  • If you want the best-looking ghosts, make sure to have 5 bananas so that you can choose the best end of each banana. If you don't care so much about how the ghosts look, then you can use both ends of 3 bananas.
  • The pudding recipe yields 2 1/2 cups of pudding. I used 1/2 cup per dirt cup, so I got a yield of 5 dirt cups. If you use a different pudding recipe, pay attention to how much it yields.
  • For paleo, make sure to use paleo chocolate chips and one of these pudding recipes: Chocolate Chia Pudding or Vegan Chocolate Pudding.
  • The nutrition information provided is calculated as a courtesy and is only an estimate. I am not a licensed nutritionist or dietitian. For the most accurate nutritional data, consult a professional or use your preferred calculator.

Nutrition

Calories: 537kcalCarbohydrates: 75gProtein: 9gFat: 28gSaturated Fat: 21gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 293mgPotassium: 667mgFiber: 7gSugar: 37gVitamin A: 263IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 190mgIron: 3mgNet Carbs: 68
Tried this recipe?Tag me today! Mention @texanerin or tag #texanerin! Thanks. 🖤