Gobble it up! Liz Zack’s sweet turkey cupcakes

Using a sharp knife, cut one of the Nutter Butters in half horizontally, right across its “waist.” Take the other cookie and use the tip of the knife to pry both halves of the cookie open, exposing the filling.

Spread extra icing across the filling, then close up the whole cookie and poke the tips of 7 pieces of candy corn around the top edge into the extra icing to make tail feathers, nestling the candy corns down into the icing and fanning them out. Stick this turkey body down into the center of the cupcake, feathers upright.

Using the tip of a knife, separate the remaining cookie halves so you now have 4 pieces. Discard one of the pieces. Take one of the remaining 3 halves and make sure the round side of the cookie is facing up. Cut the white tip off the remaining piece of candy corn and use a bit of frosting to affix the candy to the cookie to form the beak, making sure the orange part of the candy is exposed. Use the red decorating gel to pipe a long red wattle over the top of the beak down the front of the cookie.

Using a dab of frosting, stick two marshmallow pieces on either side of the beak to form the eyes. Press the Nerds into the marshmallows to make pupils (again, you may need a dab of frosting to help them stick). Push the head down into the cupcake in front of the body.

Press the remaining 2 cookie halves, cut side down, into the top of the cupcake on either side of the turkey to make wings.

Line 2 baking sheets with wax paper or parchment.

Put the butterscotch morsels in a microwave-safe bowl, and melt them in the microwave: Heat on high for 60 seconds and then stir well. If needed, continue to heat in two or three 10-second bursts, stirring well after each burst. (You can also melt the pieces, stirring frequently, in a double boiler over just-simmering water. Avoid overheating, which causes the morsels to seize into a stiff mass.)

Stir the chow mein noodles and peanuts into the melted butterscotch. Drop heaping tablespoons of the mixture onto the prepared baking sheets. While the haystacks are still warm, place a pumpkin on the top or pressed against the side of each treat. Refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.