Lately, he's been a little lonely—and dare I say—dead on his feet, since he bought the farm. So, I've asked him over...for dinner...
He's mortified at the prospect because he hit a dead-end, deciding what to bring to the fete. Silly stiff.
As you can tell, Rick is pretty down to earth. From his marzipan head to his fungus-y nails. You may think this is arcane, but I cannot wait to eat...er...I mean, meet him.
Mr. Mortis (whose only crime was being born [again] delicious), was molded from rice krispies treats.
If you make this, make sure the krispies treats mixture is cool enough to handle before shaping it into a skull. I usually wait between 8 to 10 minutes before handling the stuff.
For the head, shape the mixture into a rough oval. With your thumbs, make the impression for the eyes. And gently squeeze the head, just below the eyes, until it begins to look like a skull.
Looks a bit like Jay Leno, doesn't he? Next time, I'll ease up on the chin.
Set the skull aside to dry, by placing it on a plastic-covered bag of rice, flour or confectioner's sugar to keep the shape of the head round.
If you skip this step, his head will be flat in back. Which will only make your zombie that much creepier.
In other words, let your fearless creativity flow, and quit hanging on to my every word!
Okay then. This is optional, but, color your marzipan with a few tablespoons of baking cocoa for that freshly-dug effect. Roll out the marzipan, and drape it over the head. Quickly mold it to the shape of the head.
If it tears a bit, rejoice!
Or, you could always patch it up—but not too much—because smooth, flawless skin is hardly prevalent with today's modern zombie.
From here on out, do as you please. Add as many, or as few, wrinkles, and teeth, as you dare.
The hair is Asian rice noodles, simply inserted into the skull, while marzipan is still soft and malleable.
Btw, remember to lightly drape the areas you're not working on with plastic wrap, to keep marzipan from drying out, while you work.
The fingers were shaped freehand into sausages, again, from marzipan. Pistachio halves were used for the nails. I wanted him pushing up daisies, but all I had were Brown-Eyed Susans, which I made in sugar years ago. Somehow, the Brown-Eyed Susans seem less morbid. This suits my friend Rick just fine. After all, he's kind of an earthy, happy-go-lucky zombie. And you're jealous.
And just so you don't think I'm all about doom, gloom and despair, I present to you this benign little witch, Evilene.
Evilene consists of three Jack be Little pumpkins, supported by toothpicks. She was then tarted up with a cute, sheet music hat.
The broom was haphazardly put together with a bunch of fresh thyme, tied to an artist's paint brush with twine. Easy, right?
Well, my dear goblins, it is time for me to depart.
May you all rest in (Reese's) pieces this Halloween.
Regards,
Bad Brew Betty
