For the Red Velvet Cake:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Butter an 8-inch round cake pan (sides and bottom), and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Sift the dry ingredients together into a small bowl.

Cream the butter and sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixer using a paddle attachment on low speed until smooth and well combined.

Add egg, beating to combine.

Add vegetable oil, vinegar, vanilla, buttermilk, and red food coloring.

Beat until smooth.

Add dry ingredients and beat until the flour mixture and wet ingredients are well combined.

Pour cake batter into prepared pan and bake 30-35 minutes until the a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let rest in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and allow to cool fully.

Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze to make the cutting and frosting easier.

Preheat oven to 225 F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on medium-high speed until broken up. Add the cream of tartar. Increase speed to medium and beat until frothy.

Gradually add the sugars and continue beating until the egg whites are stiff peaks.Transfer meringue to a piping bag with a large round tip.

Pipe the meringue onto the prepared baking sheet by piping a large circle, lifting slightly and piping a slightly smaller circle, then lifting slightly again and piping another smaller circle.

Bake for an hour and twenty minutes until the outsides are hard.

Let cool completely, then decorate with black frosting for the mouth and candy eyeballs.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese to soften.

Sift in the powdered sugar and continue beating on slow speed until smooth.

Beat in the heavy cream and almond extract until just combined, scraping down the bowl to ensure that all of the cream cheese is incorporated.

Switch to the whisk attachment and whip on medium speed until medium peaks form.

For Assembly:

Remove the cake from the freezer and even out the top, if needed. Slice in half, forming two cake layers.

Place one of the cake layers on a cake stand.

Put the frosting in a piping bag with a large round tip. Pipe a spiral of frosting over the first half of the cake, then top with the second cake half.

Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to set.

Smooth a thin layer ("crumb coat") over the cake and let set for at least an hour.

Pipe a layer of white frosting at the bottom of the cake, then add a few drops of black gel food coloring to the remaining frosting. Pipe a layer of slightly grey frosting above the white layer.

Repeat, adding more black, and adding layers of frosting, until you have covered the sides of the cake. Cover the top of the cake with a spiral of frosting.

Smooth using a cake smoother or offset spatula.

Top with ghosts, and enjoy sharing with the all of the ghouls (large and small) in your life!