This Halloween dirt cake recipe is a fun, no-bake dessert perfect for your next Halloween party! Oreo cookies, gummy worms, and your favorite Halloween candies put a spooky spin on a classic dirt cake. This is one of my Halloween desserts that's great for making with kids!
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Ingredients and Variations
- Oreo Flavor Instant Pudding - I love oreo dirt cake, so I chose to use oreo flavored instant pudding, but you can use whatever flavor instant pudding mix you like! Instant chocolate pudding or vanilla pudding would be great alternatives.
- Milk - use cold, whole milk for the creamiest pudding filling.
- Cool Whip - this recipe uses cool whip for the convenience, but you can certainly use homemade whipped cream instead. See my tips below for making homemade whipped topping!
- Oreos
- Halloween Candy - candy corns, candy pumpkins, and gummy worms are my go-to's for Halloween decorations. I also love these zombie hand decorations and use them in lots of other Halloween dessert recipes, like these Monster Eye Cookies!
Candy Decorations
Some of the other decorations featured on this cake are quick, two-step decorations that are so easy to do! Here's how:
- Reese's cup monsters: use a little bit of icing to secure the candy eyes to the side of an upside down Reese's cup. I like to mix and match the size of some of the eyes to make them a little silly!
- Oreo Tombstone Cookies: Turn this into a graveyard cake with a few tombstones! Split an oreo in two and write "RIP" on the side with the filling using black gel or icing.
- Marshmallow Ghosts: Use the same black writing gel to draw two eyes and a mouth on the marshmallow to make your ghost.
Chill a large bowl (either a regular mixing bowl or that bowl of a standing mixer) and then add chilled heavy cream with a little bit of vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer or the whisk attachment to whisk the heavy cream on medium speed. Whip until it's somewhere between soft and stiff peaks.
The fastest way to crush Oreos is to put them in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until they form a fine crumb. If you don't have a food processor, place the Oreos in a ziploc bag, seal it, and then go over them with a rolling pin or gently smash them with a potato masher (or whatever you have on hand!)
👻 How to Make Halloween Oreo Dirt Cake 🎃
First, make the whipped cream and pudding filling.
Mix the milk and dry pudding together.
Then, let it thicken for about 5 minutes on the counter.
While the pudding sets, crush the Oreos into "dirt". Add Oreo cookies, filling and all, to a food processor and pulse until they're a fine crumb! Add dirt crumbs and cool whip to the thickened pudding and fold them in.
Then, layer the bottom of your baking dish with some of the crushed oreos (keep some to top the cake with!) and gently press down with your hands or the bottom of a cup to create an even layer.
Add the pudding mixture on top of the layer of dirt and smooth out with a rubber spatula.Sprinkle the reserved oreo crumbs over the pudding layer and then place the dish in the refrigerator for one hour.
Once it's chilled, decorate the top of the cake with lots of fun toppings!
Kitchen Supplies
To make this recipe you'll need:
- an 8 x 8 baking dish - I recommend one that comes with a lid for easy storage
- a food processor or ziplock bag and rolling pin for crushing the Oreos
I've been using this Ninja Food Processor set for years and it's worked great! If using a rolling pin to crush the Oreos, a heavy rolling pin, like this marble one, would be very helpful!
Storage
This dirt cake dessert is going to be best served the day it's made or the day after. You may be able to enjoy it for a third day, but by that time the candy toppings may begin to soften, depending on what you use to decorate. To keep it fresh for as long as possible, keep it covered with plastic wrap or a fitted lid so that it's an airtight container.
More Ways to Enjoy Dirt Cake
- Make this Halloween oreo dirt cake recipe as Graveyard Dirt Cups
- Try an Easter version, either Easter Dirt Cake or Easter Dirt Cups
Halloween Dirt Cake
Ingredients
- 5.8 ounces Oreo Flavor Instant Pudding
- 2 cups milk cold
- 30 Oreos
- 8 ounces Cool Whip thawed
- Halloween Candy
Instructions
- Whisk the milk and dry pudding together in a large mixing bowl until smooth. Once smooth, let it sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
- While the pudding thickens, create the “dirt” by pulsing the oreos in a food processor until they form a fine crumb.
- Fold in the cool whip and ½ cup of Oreo crumbs into the thickened pudding.
- Create a layer of dirt with the oreo crumbs on the bottom of an 8 x 8 baking dish. Make sure to leave some for the top of the cake!
- Use a rubber spatula to spread the pudding mixture on top of the bottom layer of dirt. Use the spatula to spread it into an even layer. Then, top with the remaining oreo dirt crumbs.
- Cover and refrigerate for one hour.
- Then, decorate with gummy worms, candy corn and pumpkins, and your favorite Halloween candies!
Notes
How to make candy ghosts and monsters:
- Reese's cup monsters: use a little bit of icing to secure the candy eyes to the side of an upside down reese's cup. I like to mix and match the size of some of the eyes to make them a little silly!
- Oreo Tombstone Cookies: Turn this into a graveyard cake with a few tombstones! Split an oreo in two and write "RIP" on the side with the filling using black gel or icing.
- Marshmallow Ghosts: Use the same black writing gel to draw two eyes and a mouth on the marshmallow to make your ghost.
Storage
This dirt cake dessert is going to be best served the day it's made or the day after. You may be able to enjoy it for a third day, but by that time the candy toppings may begin to soften, depending on what you use to decorate. To keep it fresh for as long as possible, keep it covered with plastic wrap or a fitted lid so that it's an airtight container.Please note, Holiday Sweets N Treats isn't a professional nutritionist. Any and all nutritional information shared is an estimate. If you're following a specific diet or counting calories, we suggest you use the nutrition calculator of your choice. Calories can vary depending on the brands and products used.
Rachel
My niece is obsessed with Halloween so I'm constantly on the lookout for new treats to surprise her with. This recipe was pretty easy and fun to make together! Thank you and keep up the good work 🙂
Emma
Thanks Rachel!
Jess
I'm always looking for festive (but easy to make) Halloween treats. This looks perfect!!