These spiders taste great!

I wouldn't last more than 15 minutes on a show like Survivor. I think I could handle some of the challenges. I'm great at making fires, too. But, and this is a big but, there's no way I could stomach the bugs and other gross mixtures that contestants have to eat.

The only bugs I'm willing to pop in my mouth are these fun Halloween spider lollipops. They're made from Belgian chocolate wafers, icing, shoestring liquorice and there are a few candies as well. They're a very fun treat to make at Halloween parties.

These lollipops are meant to be a treat. If you'd like to make healthier versions, that's easy. Substitute the chocolate wafers with a thin cookie or multigrain cracker. Use peanut butter, other nut butters, cheese spread or cream cheese instead of the icing and make the spiders legs with pretzel or thinly cut carrot sticks. Baby carrots can be cut to make the eyes or use red pepper. There are always options.

The chocolate versions make nice Halloween gifts when bagged and wrapped with a bit of Halloween ribbon.

What you need
-- Belgian chocolate wafers (2 large wafers per lollipop)
-- Icing
-- Shoestring liquorice
-- Small candies
-- Scissors
-- Snack sized resealable bag
-- Lollipop sticks
-- Halloween ribbon (optional) 
-- Lollipop bags (optional)

Halloween spider lollipops

Collecting your materials: Pretty much everything I needed for this project was picked up at a bulk foods store. I found large chocolate wafers, ready-made icing (use your favourite recipe or cheat a bit like I did), shoestring liquorice, mini M&Ms, lollipop sticks and bags there. I had Halloween ribbon, scissors, and resealable bags at home.

Step One: Spread icing on the inside of one wafer with a knife. You'll need enough icing to make the lollipop stick stay put. Cut shoestring liquorice into four 6-inch (approximately) lengths and position them in a horizontal line on the icing.

Step Two: Spread more icing on the second wafer. Put this on top of the other wafer. The shoestring liquorice should stick out at the sides like spiders' legs.

Step Three: Put a small amount of icing into a resealable bag. Zip it closed and snip one corner with scissors. Now you've got a piping bag. Pipe two small dots of icing where the spider's eyes should go. Put a candy on top of each icing dot. Now pipe two fangs.

Step Four: Tie a short length of Halloween themed ribbon on the stick. If the lollipop isn't going to be eaten right away, slip it into a lollipop bag and tie the bag closed with the ribbon.