Sloppy Joe Skull Pies are a spooky, savory twist that’s perfect for Halloween dinner or a creepy party snack. Made by pressing pie crust into a skull mold and stuffing it with saucy sloppy joe filling, these handheld pies bake up golden, flaky, and just a little bit gory.
They look super realistic coming out of the oven, with meat peeking through the eye sockets and cracks. Kids love them for the novelty, and adults love them because they actually taste great. Serve them with extra sauce for dipping or as a spooky dinner before trick-or-treating.
Helpful Tips
- Use a skull cake pan to make it easy to press in the dough and release after baking.
- Let the filling cool slightly before adding it to the crust so it doesn’t get soggy.
- Seal the edges well and poke a few steam vents to keep the skulls from bursting.
Here is the cake pan I used: Skull Cake Pan
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Sloppy Joe Skulls Pies
Equipment
- 1 Skull cake pan
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/4 cup onion finely chopped
- 1/2 small green pepper finely chopped
- 1 cup ketchup
- 2 ounces tomato paste
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
- 2 packaged pie crusts
Instructions
- In an oven-safe skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef, onion, and bell pepper. Crumble the meat as it cooks. Once browned, drain any excess grease from the pan.
- Add all remaining ingredients (except for cheese) and stir well to combine. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.
- Turn off the heat. Top with the cheese. Press some of the cheese down into the meat. Place the skillet under the broiler for 3-5 minutes, until the cheese is melted and a little bubbly. Remove from heat and let cool.
- Preheat the oven to 400 °F. Grease the cake pan.
- Roll out the pie crusts to about half the thickness. Cut 6 pieces that will fit inside of each well of the cake pan. You will have to take the scraps and re-roll them to get enough pieces. Then cut 6 pieces that will fit as backs.
- Press each front piece into the wells and make sure there are no bubbles between the pan and the dough. Fill each with sloppy joe mix. Fill them less if you don’t want any sauce bubbling out and more if you want more sauce bubbling out.
- Put the backs on and press the dough together around the seams of each, so they don’t come apart while cooking.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, until the crusts are golden.
Nutrition
Laura is the founder and editor of the travel blogs Savored Sips and Savored Journeys. She is dedicated to sharing the best information about drinks found around the world.