Halloween Graveyard Dirt Cups are an easy, fun treat to make with the kids. These chocolate cookie crumble pudding cups come together in minutes and you can customize it with your favorite candies for a spooky worms dessert on your Halloween party table.
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The best worms in dirt recipe for Halloween
Your kids will have so much fun making these spooky Halloween treats. They are easy to make and with the use of instant pudding mix, they come together quickly for an easy dessert.
These fun Halloween dirt cups are a great way to spruce up your dessert table at the next Halloween party. Layers of pudding are topped with crushed chocolate sandwich cookies, graham cracker crumbs, and worms. The tombstone cookies on the top of the dessert make for spooky fun.
If you're a busy mom, but still want to make a fun recipe these Halloween dirt pudding cups are a tasty dessert that comes together quickly for your kid's favorite holiday. If you're not in the mood to bake Halloween desserts, these are a great idea. The individual cups can sit at room temperature for a little while without worry.
Chocolate pudding dirt cup recipe ingredients
- Jello Instant Chocolate Pudding Mix - a good creamy chocolate pudding works best. You could even add cream cheese to make it even more delicious.
- Milk - stick to whole milk or 2% for the best results
- Oreos - these will need to be crumbled into oreo cookie crumbs. You can use regular oreo cookies or your favorite flavor. Stick with chocolate cookies (regardless of filling flavor) so that it will look like dirt once it's broken into small pieces.
- Graham Cracker Crumbs - these will be combined with the oreo layers, so you'll want them the same size. You can crush your own or buy the graham crack crumbs. You could also replace these with golden oreos.
- Dark Chocolate Milano Cookies - to make the tombstones, you'll need an elongated cookie
- Edible Gel Ink / Icing Writer (I use Wilton brand) - found in the baking aisle. You'll use this to write on the tombstone cookies.
- Gummy Worms - You can use any sort of gummy bugs for the edible decoration.
- Mellowcreme Pumpkins - These are often found by the candy corn.
Best Cookies to Use for Dirt Cups
The best cookies to use for the dirt topping is a combination of oreos and graham cracker crumbs. To crush them, you can either pulse them in a food processor or place them in a large ziploc bag and mash them with a rolling pin. You want them to be fine crumbs.
For the headstone, I recommend using Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies.
Spooky Halloween Toppings for Graveyard Dirt Cups
If you're looking for some ideas for the top of the dirt cup, you can try one of these:
- gummy worms
- candy pumpkins
- SweetTarts
- gummy bugs
- cool whip or whipped topping
- googly eyes
You could also melt chocolate chips and do a melted chocolate drizzle on top of the oreo dirt cups.
How to Make Dirt Cups (Halloween Edition)
Detailed instructions and measurements are listed in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
- Make your pudding by adding the pudding mix to a large mixing bowl. Add in the milk.
- Using an electric mixer, beat until the mixture begins to thicken. Set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine your crushed Oreo crumbs and graham cracker crumbs. Mix until they are evenly distributed with each other. Set aside.
- Using your edible gel ink icing writer, decorate your Milano cookies as headstones. We simply wrote "RIP" on ours. Set aside to dry.
- Spoon your pudding mixture into your clear plastic cups and smooth the top surface.
- Evenly distribute the Oreo mixture on top of the pudding.
- Stand your Milano cookies into the pudding mix like a headstone.
- Decorate with your favorite spooky candies. We went with mellow crème pumpkins and gummy worms! Serve immediately.
How to Store Dirt Cups
To store dirt cups, cover them with plastic wrap or in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. They are best stored without the candy toppings and cookies.
Tips for Halloween Dirt Cups
- Purchase the ready made graham cracker crumbs to save a step.
- In place of the graham crackers, you could do a combination of regular Oreos and golden Oreos.
- Try to find the Wilton Icing Writing Black Pen. It works really well.
- Don't put your pudding in the fridge before scooping it into your cups. Sometimes it can get too thick and then it's more difficult to get into the cups. Put it in the cups first and then refrigerate.
- If you don't want to make your pudding, don't! Buy the premade pudding and scoop it into your cups.
- Place the pudding in a piping bag to squeeze into the bottom of each cup.
Dirt Pudding Cups FAQs
Can I make these pumpkin patch dirt cups ahead of time?
If I were going to make them ahead of time, I would place the pudding in the cups and refrigerate them by themselves. You could prep the toppings but I would leave them separate so they wouldn't get soggy.
Where do I find the edible gel ink?
You can find it right in your baking aisle of your grocery store, Target, WalMart, etc. It's usually with the sprinkles and frosting.
Do I have to use Milano cookies?
No. You could also use graham crackers or any other oval/rectangle style cookie.
Alterations for picky eaters
When it comes to alterations for this, you can quite literally swap out any of the ingredients for ones your picky eaters love. Choose the candy toppings they love, choose a cookie they love, and if they don't like chocolate just use whichever flavor they like.
How to Make Dirt Cups with Fewer Calories or WW Points
- Use the sugar free version of pudding mix
- Use fat free milk
- Top with sugar free candy or the healthier alternative candies (a lot calories come from the candy)
- Use Oreo thins and low fat graham crackers
More Halloween Themed Recipes You'll Love
Halloween Dirt Cups
Ingredients
- 5.9 oz box Jell-O Instant Chocolate Pudding Mix
- 3 cups Milk
- 15 Oreos crushed or pulsed in a food processor
- ¾ cup Graham Cracker Crumbs
- 4 Dark Chocolate Milano Cookies
- Edible Gel Ink / Icing Writer I use Wilton brand - found in the baking aisle
- Gummy Worms
- Mellow Crème Pumpkins
Instructions
- Make your pudding by adding the pudding mix to a large mixing bowl. Add in the milk.
- Using an electric mixer, beat until the mixture begins to thicken. Set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine your crushed Oreo and graham cracker crumbs. Mix until they are evenly distributed with each other. Set aside.
- Using your edible gel ink icing writer, decorate your Milano cookies as headstones. We simply wrote "RIP" on ours. Set aside to dry.
- Spoon your pudding mixture into your cups and smooth the top surface.
- Evenly distribute the Oreo mixture on top of the pudding.
- Stand your Milano cookies into the pudding mix like a headstone.
- Decorate with your favorite spooky candies. We went with mellow crème pumpkins and gummy worms! Serve immediately.
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