Easy Spooky Halloween Pudding Dirt Cups Recipe

This easy spooky Halloween pudding dirt cups recipe is perfect for the holidays! Chocolate pudding, crushed Oreos, and fun candy additions. Gummy worms, Reese’s cups, candy eyes, mini pumpkins, and more make fun additions. Make these dirt cups ahead of time or let kids customize them! An easy dessert for your next Halloween party!

If you like these spooky dirt cups, try my Easy Halloween Scotcharoos, Frankenstein Rice Krispie Treats, or check out all of my Dessert Recipes for more inspiration! Dirt cups are so simple to make, especially with kids, and they can be decorated any type of way.

Use disposable clear cups if taking these to a school event or party where you don’t want to bring real glasses. Make sure to grab a bag of candy eyes to make your Halloween dirt cups even more fun!

Highlights of This Halloween Recipe

• Simple ingredients: made with just instant pudding and packaged sandwich cookies, these are such a simple dessert to make, especially for a large group. Grab fun toppings to turn your dirt cup into a spooky graveyard, my favorites are Reese’s cups with candy eyes and gummy worms!
• Customizable: this recipe can be customized as desired, by using different flavors or colors of pudding and different flavors and colors of sandwich cookies! The topping options are endless so you can create many unique dirt cups of your own.
• Make ahead: instant pudding can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator until you need to assemble your cups. Sandwich cookies can be crushed and store in an airtight bag until needed. If assembling your cups ahead of time, I wouldn’t do for more than 3 or 4 hours.
• Fun for kids: adults and kids will love these adorable cups and decorating them. Create an assembly line for kids to create their own cups and add their own toppings!

Halloween treats are so fun, especially when they can be decorated. Candy eyes can elevate basically any treat into a spooky themed dessert! Try making these dirt cups with my Cottage Cheese Chocolate Pudding for a protein packed sweet snack!

If you are gluten-free or have an allergy, these can be made with gluten-free sandwich cookies or you can make your own chocolate cookies and crushed them up in a food processor.

Ingredient List & Substitutions

This recipe is very simple to whip up and requires just a few ingredients! See below for any substitutions if available:

• Instant pudding mix: chocolate pudding is traditional for these cups but any flavor of pudding will work, homemade pudding is an option as well. You will need milk for the pudding as well.
• Chocolate sandwich cookies: any brand of cookie will work, a classic chocolate sandwich cookie is best here!
• Candy: gummy worms, peanut butter cups, candy eyes, and any other desired toppings!
• Clear plastic cups: if making these dirt cups to take to a Halloween party or school event I highly recommend using clear disposable cups to make your life easier! If serving these at home, it can be fun to supply a variety of different glasses or bowls.

How to Make the Dirt Cups

Let’s talk a little about how to make these Easy Spooky Halloween Pudding Dirt Cups Recipe (The printable instructions are in the recipe card below.)

Quick overview:

• Mix instant pudding according to package directions.
• Crush whole sandwich cookies in a food processor or blender.
• Assemble cups and add candy toppings.

1. In a large mixing bowl prepare the instant pudding according to package directions.

2. In a food processor pulse sandwich cookies until fine crumbs form.

3. Layer pudding and cookie crumbs in small glasses, finishing with cookie crumbs. Add in toppings and candies to create your spooky dirt cups!

Tools I Use for The Halloween Pudding Cups

• Rubber Spatula – a must have! Easily combine the dip mixture with a rubber spatula. I like these because they don’t come apart so I don’t have to worry about water getting inside the spatula and causing mold.
• Pyrex Mixing Bowl Set – I love this set of nesting bowls. I use them for everything, Pyrex glass does not break easily so you can trust on these bowls for years, plus they come in 3 useful sizes and they stack!
• Food Processor: this is the food processor I use and I love it. I’ve had it for years and it still works great, it is also super versatile.

Topping Ideas

The topping ideas are endless for these spooky Halloween pudding cups! Try some of the additions below for more holiday fun!

• Gummy worms or gummy bears
• Milano cookies, use black icing to make eyes and a ghost mouth.
• Candy pumpkins or candy corns
• Reese’s peanut butter cups with candy eyes.
• Cookie tombstones, made out of mini rice Krispie’s or store-bought sugar cookies.

Variations & Serving Ideas

• Alternate between vanilla pudding and chocolate pudding, or try other flavors and colors of pudding. You could also dye vanilla pudding orange or other Halloween colors.
• Serve in small mason jars for a fun to-go or individual dessert!
• Use golden Oreos or Halloween theme Oreo cookies to add some color to the cookie layer, or mix in sprinkles for additional color.
• Create a fun buffet so kids can create their own dirt cups. Prefill cups with pudding and cookies and lay them on a table with different topping ideas for kids to decorate with!

The idea of a dirt cup is to made it look like bugs (aka gummy worms) are coming out of the dirt (made with crushed cookies). The pudding adds some substances and give it a nice layered look. I like to add the peanut butter cups with eyes to create the look of a “monster” coming out of the dirt.

There are a lot of fun, creative ways to serve these! If you want to make a dirt cup cake, layer pudding and chocolate cookies in a casserole dish and top with your desired candy. Use a serving spoon to scoop out the pudding. This is a good way to make these for a crowd if you do not want to make individual cups.

Recipe FAQs

What are dirt cups made of?

Traditionally dirt cups are made of chocolate pudding, crushed Oreo’s and gummy worms. They can be made with any pudding/cookie combo and can be topped with a variety of different candies.

Can I make my pudding cups ahead of time?

Dirt cups can be made in advanced, but I don’t recommend too far in advance as the cookies can get a little soggy. You can make these the morning of a party and keep them in the fridge for 2-3 hours. Or you can pre-make the pudding and crush the sandwich cookies that way they are ready to assemble when needed.

Best way to serve Halloween dirt cups?

Dirt cups can be served in individual plastic cups, glasses, or small bowls. For kids parties I always recommend using plastic containers and plastic silverware so they don’t break and can just be tossed in the garbage.

Tips for Perfect Spooky Dirt Cups

• Serve immediately for best results, this way the crushed cookies don’t get soggy.
• Gently spoon or use a piping bag to layer the pudding, this way you get clean lines.
• If you don’t have a food processor crush Oreo’s with a rolling pin or in a large gallon bag.
• Evenly layer cookies and pudding so you get a good mix of the two.
• Top with whipped cream if desired for a more decadent treat, for a fun look add a dollop of whipped cream on top and press two candy eyes into it.
• Add Halloween candy to give your dirt cup a spooky, holiday theme.

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