Ghoul's Graveyard

1. Stage

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Using a serrated knife, trim 1/2 inch from each of the 4 edges of the brownie; cut trimmings into 1-inch pieces. Place on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; set aside. Wrap un-iced brownie in plastic wrap, and reserve.

2. Stage

Slice pound cake lengthwise into 3 equal pieces, about 1/2 inch thick. Using cookie cutters or a sharp paring knife, cut the slices into ghost and tombstone shapes (you'll need about 4 ghosts and 12 tombstones in varying sizes). Transfer to wire rack with brownie pieces. Bake until dried out, about 20 minutes. Cool completely.

3. Stage

Meanwhile, place 1 cup of royal icing in a small bowl. Stir in a small drop of food coloring, to color it light gray; set aside. In another small bowl, place 1/2 cup royal icing. Stir in cocoa powder until smooth and tan in color; cover with plastic wrap, and set aside.

4. Stage

Pour all but 2 tablespoons remaining white royal icing over ghosts to coat completely. Using the gray royal icing, pour over tombstones to cover. You can vary the color of the tombstones by adding a little more food coloring, if desired. To prevent the ghosts and tombstones from sticking to the wire rack, gently lift with an offset spatula occasionally. Allow icing to set completely, about 4 hours.

5. Stage

Add enough food coloring to the reserved 2 tablespoons white royal icing to color it black. Transfer to a small disposable pastry bag fitted with a No. 2 or No. 4 plain round tip. Pipe tombstones with names and dates; set aside to set. Use remaining black royal icing to outline or give faces to ghosts, if desired. Set aside to set as well.

6. Stage

Transfer un-iced brownie to a large serving tray. Using a serrated knife, trim and level the corners of the reserved brownie to make the graveyard. Cut iced brownies into 1/4-by-1-inch strips. Place strips cut side down, with icing facing outward, in the corners of the graveyard, placing strips about 3 layers high in the corners. You want it to resemble an old, slightly uneven brick wall. Transfer reserved tan icing to a pastry bag fitted with a No. 6 plain round tip. Use the brown icing for the mortar between the bricks.

7. Stage

Arrange tombstones and ghosts in graveyard as desired. Use a paring knife to form a hole in the brownie to set each ghost and tombstone in and prevent them from tipping over.

8. Stage

Using a food processor, pulse dried brownie pieces until fine and resembling dirt. Mound some of the "dirt"; in front of tombstones, and sprinkle the remaining "dirt" around the graveyard. Decorate with candy pumpkins and candy leaves, as desired.