Skeleton Bars

MAKES 12

Planning Tip: Refrigerate loosely covered up to 2 days.

1 box (1 lb, 2.25 oz) devil's food cake mix
Green and/or violet paste (icing) food color
1 tub (16 oz) vanilla frosting
Head: 6 large white marshmallows and 12 miniature marshmallows
Eyes: 24 mini semisweet chocolate chips
Mouths: 12 tiny-size Chiclets gum
Skeletons: 12 to 13 dozen white Good 'n' Plenty licorice candies (from two 6-oz boxes)

1. Prepare and bake cake mix following directions for a 13 x 9-in. cake. Let cool.

2. Invert cake on a cutting board. Turn top side up. Trim rounded top (hump) off cake with a long serrated knife until flat. Brush off loose crumbs.

3. Spoon 1 Tbsp frosting into a small cup; reserve. Color remaining frosting green and/or violet.

4. Frost top of cake with colored frosting. Cut cake lengthwise in 4 equal strips, then crosswise in thirds to make 12 bars.

5. Heads: Cut large marshmallows in half with scissors. Cut a small piece off 1 end of each. For the jaws, press a mini marshmallow onto the sticky cut edge. Eyes and mouths: Dip a toothpick into reserved white frosting and use to glue on eyes and Chiclets mouths.

6. Skeletons: Press 12 or 13 licorice-candy bones into frosting on each bar.