• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Hungry Happenings
  • RECIPES
    • All Recipes
    • Dessert Recipes
    • Decorated Cookies
    • Decorated Cakes
    • Cheesecake Recipes
    • Everyday Desserts
    • Homemade Candy
    • Everyday Meals
    • Readers’ Gallery
    • Hungry Happenings Blog Posts
  • HOW TO
    • Chocolate Making Tips
    • Chocolate Making Course (video lessons)
    • Make Modeling Chocolate
      • Modeling Chocolate Recipe and Tutorial
      • How to Color Modeling Chocolate
      • How to Store and Work with Modeling Chocolate
      • How to Fix Greasy Modeling Chocolate
      • How to Fix Dry Modeling Chocolate
      • Use Colored Candy Melts to Make Candy Clay
    • Candy Clay Creations
    • How To Color White Chocolate and Candy Melts and Paint Candy Molds
    • How to Use Food Coloring Markers
  • HOLIDAYS
    • ALL HOLIDAY RECIPES
    • Valentine's Day
    • St. Patrick's Day
    • Easter
    • 4th of July
    • Halloween
      • Hungry Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • New Year's Eve
    • MORE HOLIDAYS
      • Mother's Day
      • Father's Day
      • April Fools
      • Chinese New Year
      • Cinco de Mayo
      • Day of the Dead
      • Earth Day
      • Mardi Gras
  • PARTY FOOD
    • Super Bowl
    • Graduation
    • Birthday Party
    • March Madness
    • Summer Fun
    • Baby Shower
    • Wedding Shower
    • School/Teacher
    • Movie and T.V. Characters
    • Kid's Treats
    • Fun Party Recipes
  • MY COOKBOOKS
  • ABOUT
  • MY BLOGS
    • HowToMakeCerealTreats.com
    • HowToMakeEasyCookies.com
    • HowToMakeEasyFudge.com
    • TheSugarAcademy.com
menu icon
go to homepage
  • recipes
  • chocolate
  • about
  • cookbooks
  • subscribe
  • major holiday recipes
  • other holiday recipes
  • party food
  • dessert recipes
  • homemade candy
  • chocolates
  • fudge
  • cheesecake recipes
  • decorated cakes
  • cookie recipes
  • popcorn
  • rice krispie treats
  • cute food for kids
  • everyday meals
  • recipe roundups
  • see all the recipes
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • recipes
    • chocolate
    • about
    • cookbooks
    • subscribe
    • major holiday recipes
    • other holiday recipes
    • party food
    • dessert recipes
    • homemade candy
    • chocolates
    • fudge
    • cheesecake recipes
    • decorated cakes
    • cookie recipes
    • popcorn
    • rice krispie treats
    • cute food for kids
    • everyday meals
    • recipe roundups
    • see all the recipes
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Day of the Dead

    Day of the Dead Appetizer - Decorated Sugar Skull made out of Cheese

    Published: Oct 22, '13 · Modified: May 20, '18 · By: Beth · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe

    Create a festive appetizer for your Dia de los Muertos Party. Turn a cheese ball into a really cool Day of the Dead Appetizer that looks like a sugar skull.

    Our Day of the Dead themed Halloween party is coming up soon, and you'll notice my blog posts will be getting shorter and shorter, as I'm running out of time to decorate and cook for our big bash.

    We have decided to go the easy route this year in preparing and serving food to our 100+ guests, and are going to have a big taco bar featuring crock pots full of beef, chicken and pork, as well as, all the toppings. Our dessert buffet will be over the top, but I don't want the food table to look too plain. I have to add a few dishes that are festive and fun, so I used Velveeta Queso Blanco to create this very colorful Dia de los Muertos Sugar Skull. It is going to look amazing on our Mexican buffet.

    Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) Cheese Skull

    Print
    Day of the Dead Appetizer - Decorated Sugar Skull made out of Cheese
    Prep Time
    45 mins
    Total Time
    45 mins
     
    Cheese ball decorated to look like a Day of the Dead skull
    Course: Appetizer
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: cheese ball appetizer, cheese ball skull, day of the dead food
    Servings: 1 skull
    Author: Beth Jackson Klosterboer
    Ingredients
    • Velveeta Queso Blanco
    • Large sugar skull mold or chocolate mold
    • neon food coloring
    • non-stick baking mat like a Silpat or some large zip top bags
    • optional: rolling pin
    • black food coloring
    • food use only paint brushes 1 fine tip, 1 medium tip
    • small metal fondant cutters and/or plunger cutters
    Instructions
    1. Cut Velveeta Con Queso into small chunks.
    2. Melt in the microwave, stirring often.
    3. Pour melted cheese into sugar skull mold.
    4. Tap the mold down several times to remove air bubbles.
    5. Place mold in freezer for about 30 minutes.
    6. Use your left over melted cheese or melt more to make the colorful decorations.
    7. Divide the cheese into small bowls.
    8. Color with various food colorings.
    9. Set the cheese in between two non-stick mats and rolled it out using a rolling pin.
    10. Freeze your colored cheese for about 10 minutes until it's still flexible but not sticky.
    11. Remove your sugar skull mold from freezer, turn it upside down over your work surface, press down on the plastic mold, releasing the cheese and allowing it to gently fall onto the counter.
    12. Paint black food coloring into the eye and nose sockets.
    13. Use small metal cutters and plunger cutters to cut decorations out of the colored cheese.
    14. Press the decorations onto the cheese skull.
    15. Cut blue stars, pink hearts, green dots, and blue and purple petals out of cheese to decorate your cheese skull.
    16. Use black food coloring to put some finishing touches on your cheese sugar skull.
    17. Serve with crackers.

     

    Instructions:

    Cut Velveeta Con Queso into small chunks. Melt in the microwave, stirring often. You want the cheese completely melted and smooth.

    Pour melted cheese into sugar skull mold. If you want a full skull, fill both the front and back cavity. Tap the mold down several times to remove air bubbles. Being I only filled the front of my mold, it wouldn't sit level, so I placed a bowl under the skull to hold it flat.

    Carefully lift the filled skull mold up over your head, keeping it perfectly level, to see if there are any big air bubbles. If there are, poke the back end of a skewer or knife into the mold and pop the air bubbles. You can't fix these once the cheese sets.

    Place mold in freezer for about 30 minutes.

    Meanwhile, use your left over melted cheese or melt more to make the colorful decorations. I melted way more cheese than I needed for one skull. You'll probably only need about a tablespoon of cheese per color, depending on how many colors you want to use. I ended up with pink, blue, green, and purple.

    Divide the cheese into small bowls. Color with various food colorings. If your cheese is liquid enough, spread it on a non-stick baking mat. If not, just roll it into a ball and flatten it out.

    I set the cheese in between two non-stick mats and rolled it out using a rolling pin. You can also just fold the mat over the cheese and roll it out. A zip top bag would work in place of the non-stick mat.

    Freeze your colored cheese for about 10 minutes until it's still flexible but not sticky. If it gets too hard, just let it sit at room temperature for a minute or two and it will soften up.

    Remove your sugar skull mold from freezer, turn it upside down over your work surface, press down on the plastic mold, releasing the cheese and allowing it to gently fall onto the counter. If it wont come out, you can pull away around the edges of the mold to see if that helps. If not, freeze for another 10 minutes and try again.

    Paint black food coloring into the eye and nose sockets.

    Use small metal cutters and plunger cutters to cut decorations out of the colored cheese. Press the decorations onto the cheese skull. They will stay in place without any "glue."

    If you've not ever used a plunger cutter, go out and get some, now! They are the best tool for making small decorations out of fondant, modeling chocolate, or cheese.

    I cut blue stars, pink hearts, green dots, and blue and purple petals out of cheese to decorate my cheese skull.

    I had decorated another cheese skull using green petals over the eyes and similar decorations. I ended up ruining it, by adding black around the mouth. Just as I was taking this picture I pressed the marker up against the cheese and it bled. I tried to cover it up and made an even bigger mess. In the end I like the new design better, but you can see there are unlimited options for decorating these skulls.

    Use black food coloring to put some finishing touches on your cheese sugar skull.

    Something really cool will happen as the black food coloring seeps into the cheese. The edges will begin to turn pink. I had wrapped up my skull and stored it in the refrigerator overnight. When I pulled it out to show my friend, I noticed the pink glow around the black. I love it.

    I've wrapped the skull in plastic wrap and stored it in the freezer for our party. I'll thaw it in the refrigerator a day before our event. If you don't need to freeze it, just store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about a week. Serve with crackers.

    Items used to create this project that are available on Amazon.com (commission earned for sales)

    If you are looking for more festive Halloween food ideas, be sure to check out my Halloween category page. You'll find over 100 fun and festive recipes for the holiday.

    More Halloween Snacks made using Cheese

    Full Moon Cheese and Crackers

    Baybel Cheese Moons

    Mini Monster Cheese Balls

    Laughing Cow Candy Corn Cheese Wedges

    Skull shaped pizza topped with bacon, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and goat cheese
    or simply pepperoni.

    Skull and Crossbones Cheese

    Cheese Slice Owl

    Black Cat Cheese Ball

    Cappello di Strega - Witch Hat Cheese-ball

    Count Pizzala (vampire pizza)

    SaveSave

    • Author
    • Recent Posts
    Beth
    Beth
    Hi, I'm Beth Jackson Klosterboer, a professional chocolatier & baker, cookbook author, and event planner. I love sharing recipes for happy occasions here on Hungry Happenings. I also create easy fudge recipes to share at HowToMakeEasyFudge.com, rice krispie treat recipes at HowToMakeCerealTreats.com, and easy cookie recipes at HowToMakeEasyCookies.com
    Beth
    Latest posts by Beth (see all)
    • Homemade Chocolate Easter Bunnies - April 3, 2023
    • Mini Basketball Cheeseburgers - February 15, 2023
    • Snowman Popcorn Bucket - December 24, 2022

    More Day of the Dead Recipes

    • four sugar skulls decorated with colorful royal icing flowers, hearts, spider webs and more on a black background
      Sugar Skull Video Tutorial
    • Cakesicle Skulls - skull shaped cake pops created using a silicone popsicle mold.
      Cakesicle Skulls
    • Burrito Skulls Halloween and Day of the Dead Recipes
      Burrito Skulls...creepy Halloween dinner or appetizer!
    • no-bake cheesecake served in skull shaped wine glasses displayed on a black watercolor background
      Cheesecake Mousse Skulls

    About Beth

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Please leave a comment. Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Karen

      October 23, 2017 at 3:02 pm

      This is a great idea! Thanks so much for posting this!

      Reply
    2. thedunhamz

      February 28, 2014 at 5:38 am

      Did you freeze this already decorated? How long can it be frozen?

      Reply
      • beth

        February 28, 2014 at 4:18 pm

        I did actually freeze this after I had decorated it. I defrosted it in the refrigerator the day before our party and then served it. It was in the freezer for 2 weeks, but I think you could freeze it up to a month.

        Reply
    3. Michelle | Creative Food

      October 30, 2013 at 5:54 pm

      This really is brilliant. The skull looks amazing!

      Reply
    4. The Partiologist

      October 24, 2013 at 11:26 am

      Wow, Beth - I really love how this turned out. Now I Want to have a PARTY featuring this SKULL!

      Reply
    5. Heather - Chickabug

      October 23, 2013 at 3:25 pm

      I'd agree that it is beautiful - but a little spooky too. Either way, I really love it! : )

      Reply
    6. Sarah

      October 23, 2013 at 2:51 pm

      This is SO great! How creative, too. And you can't go wrong with crockpots full of delicious food. I need to find some occasion to give this cool cheese mold a try!

      Reply
    7. Lynn@Happier Than a Pig in Mud

      October 22, 2013 at 1:56 pm

      Is it ok to say this is beautiful??? You know, in a spooky way:@) Have fun at the party!

      Reply
      • beth

        October 23, 2013 at 1:05 am

        I think it's quite beautiful too! Thanks, I'm hoping our party is a lot of fun this year.

        Reply
    8. Anonymous

      October 22, 2013 at 1:55 pm

      Wow, that is so great! I wish we had that kind of cheese where I'm from

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Beth Jackson Klosterboer

    Welcome to Hungry Happenings!

    I'm Beth. I've been a professional chocolatier & baker for over 30 years, have written 5 cookbooks, and love creating fun food for holidays and special occasions.

    Read more about me →

    Popular

    • Mini cheesecakes served plain, topped with sauces, and decorated with edible flowers on a marble board
      Mini Cheesecakes
    • Cakesicles with red and green drizzle, rainbow sprinkles, and chocolate drizzle
      How to make Cakesicles (cake pop popsicles)
    • shamrock cracker crisps topped with chopped parsley set on a white plate on a St. Patrick's Day kitchen towel
      Shamrock Shaped Snack Crisps
    • Leprchaun hat cupcake cake decorated with green frosting stars, a black and gold hat band
      Leprechaun Hat Cupcake Cake
    • Fill Crescent Roll Carrots with your favorite egg salad or ham salad and serve for Easter brunch or lunch.
      Crescent Roll Carrots Filled with Egg or Ham Salad
    • Bunny Butt Cupcakes in Silicone Flower Pots
      Bunny Butt Cupcakes in Silicone Flower Pots
    • Chocolate peanut butter fudge buckeyes candy recipe image.
      Buckeyes Recipe - Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Candies
    • homemade candy bars including dark chocolate bars, milk chocolate cashew bars, white chocolate cookies and cream candy bars, and more
      The Best Step-by-Step Chocolate Bar Recipes

    Buy my cookbooks

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    use policies

    • privacy policy
    • photo-use policy
    • terms of service

    join us

    • Subscribe (newsletter)
    • our online courses

    contact

    • contact
    • about Beth
    • FAQ

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Hungry Happenings