Marzipan Witch, Pumpkins and Cauldron

Directions

• Directions: Cover serving board with yellow gift wrap, taping wrap on the back side of board. Cover wrapped board with cellophane in the same way. Set board aside for now.
• Prepare marzipan according to the following recipe.
• Crumble almond paste into a large bowl. Knead in corn syrup. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, kneading well after each addition until thoroughly blended.
• Tint 1/2 cup of marzipan purple, kneading in a small amount of food coloring at a time until desired color is achieved.
• In the same way, tint 1/4 cup of marzipan orange, 2 tablespoons green and 1 tablespoon each yellow, brown and red. Leave 1 tablespoon plain. Discard remaining marzipan or set aside for another use.
• Shaping Marzipan: Refer to the photo as a guide while shaping marzipan as directed in the instructions that follow. Gently press the shaped pieces together and position as shown on the covered serving board.
• Witch: With 4-1/4 teaspoons of purple marzipan, shape the witches hat, dress and shoes.
• With 1-1/4 teaspoons of green marzipan, shape the head, nose, hands and two 1-in. long ropes.
• With 1/4 teaspoon of orange marzipan, shape two 1-in.-long ropes. Twist one orange and one green 1-in. rope together, forming one of the witch's legs. Repeat with the remaining 1-inch ropes for the other leg.
• Press 1/2 teaspoon of orange marzipan through a garlic press. Attach the pieces to the head for hair.
• With plain marzipan, shape the white area of each eye.
• With brown marzipan, add a pupil to each eye.
• With red marzipan, roll a thin rope for the mouth.
• Pumpkin With 1-1/2 teaspoons of orange marzipan, shape a 1-1/2-in. ball. Slightly flatten the top and bottom. Using a sharp knife, make shallow ridges around the sides of the pumpkin from center top to bottom.
• Measure 1/4 teaspoon of green marzipan for the stem, leaves and vine tendril. Shape a small diamond shape for the stem.
• For the leaves, flatten a small amount of green marzipan to an 1/8-in. thickness between two sheets of waxed paper. Remove the top sheet. Using a sharp knife, cut out two leaf shapes and make veins on each.
• Roll a small piece of green marzipan into a thin rope and spiral it slightly for the vine tendril.
• Cauldron: With 1-1/2 teaspoons of purple marzipan, shape a 1-1/2 inch ball. Slightly flatten the top and bottom. With purple marzipan, shape a 3-1/2-in.-long x 1/8 in.-thick rope and four 1/4-in. balls. Place the rope around the top edge of the cauldron for the rim. Evenly space the balls around the bottom of the cauldron for the legs.
• With orange, yellow and plain marzipan, shape five candy corns. Place inside the cauldron.