Pillow cases and shopping bags bulging with junk food. Children buzzing through the streets with blood sugar levels so high you need the help of air traffic control to bring them down. Sound familiar? Although Halloween is an incredibly fun time of year for kids of all ages….it’s not necessarily the healthiest time of year. And for many parents interested in maintaining a nutritious lifestyle, having hundreds of pieces of extra sugar in the house may be counterproductive to this goal.
So what’s the solution? Say no to trick or treating? Eh… not if you want to avoid earning the Meanest Parent of the Year Award. Instead, try creating a little balance! Did you know that there are a ton of creative, visually delightful and delicious Halloween recipes out there that actually incorporate fruits and veggies? They are super easy to make and will not only help to keep your kids healthy during Halloween, but will really get them in the spirit too!
Check out some of these imaginative ideas:
Halloween Fruit Apple Teeth Treats
Prep: 15 min
Ready in: 15 min
Ingredients
4 honeycrisp apples – cored and quartered
1 cup natural peanut butter
1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional)
1 (2.25 ounce) package blanched slivered almonds
- With a small, sharp paring knife, cut a lengthwise wedge from the skin side of each apple quarter, leaving the peel around the wedge for lips. If desired, rub the cut portions of the apple quarters with lemon juice to prevent browning.
- Fill with peanut butter
- Poke 5 or 6 slivered almonds into the top and bottom of the cut-out area to make snaggly teeth.
Tangerine Pumpkins & Banana Ghosts Preparation Directions
Prep Time: 10 min
Ingredients
4 bananas
24 chocolate chips, regular sized and/or mini
4 tangerines
1 stalk celery
Preparation Directions
- Peel the bananas and cut them in half. Place the cut side down so the banana halves stand up.
- Use small chocolate chips to make ghost eyes and large chocolate chips to make ghost mouths.
- Peel the tangerines.
- Cut the celery lengthwise into thirds and then across into 1/2 inch pieces. Insert the celery pieces the tops of the peeled tangerines to resemble pumpkins.
Snack-o-Lantern Fruit Cups
Ingredients
Navel Oranges
Assorted fruit, diced
Preparation Directions
1. Slice the top off of the navel orange. Run a knife around its interior to hollow it out. Scoop out the orange segments and reserve for filling.
2. Carve a Jack-o’-Lantern face on one side of the orange. Use a paper towel to gently soak up any remaining juice inside the oranges.
3. Fill each orange with the diced fruit, including the remaining orange segments and set the lid back on top.
Jack-o-Lantern Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
Large sweet potatoes
Large or medium Halloween cookie cutters
Preparation Directions
1. Peel the skin off of the potatoes and slice horizontally 1/8-inch thick.
2. Press out shapes by pushing down hard and using a paring knife, carefully carving eyes, noses, and mouths.
3. Place your shapes into a large bowl of ice water and save the scraps in another bowl (you can cook and eat these, too).
4. Heat a large, non-stick skillet with 1/8 inch of olive oil. Remove the potatoes from the water and dry.
5. On medium-high heat, cook several potatoes at a time for approximately 2-3 minutes per side until golden. Drain on a paper towel-lined plate and sprinkle with kosher salt.
6. If you plan to freeze these, lay on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and freeze uncovered until hardened. Transfer to freezer bags and seal out any excess air. Re-heat the day of your party in pre-heated oven at 400 degrees for approximately 8 minutes and display on a platter.
Tip: The potatoes can also be baked, but sweet potatoes work best fried unless you have a convection oven.
Mummy Veggie Dip
Ingredients
2 (8-oz) packages cream cheese
3 (4 oz) packages goat cheese, softened
3/4 cup green olives with pimientos, drained and chopped
1 (4.25 oz) can chopped black olives
1 (3.5 oz) jar capers, drained, rinsed, and chopped
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Assorted fresh green veggies
Preparation Directions
1. In a medium bowl, beat 1 package cream cheese and goat cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add olives, capers, garlic, and pepper, beating until combined. Refrigerate mixture for a least 1 hour. Place mixture on a serving platter and form into a mummy design.
2. Beat remaining cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Place cream cheese in a pastry bag fitted with a flat leaf tip. Pipe desired mummy design onto mummy figure. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve with assorted fresh green vegetables.
Halloween Very Veggie Skeleton
Ingredients
1 jicama, peeled
1 head of cauliflower florets
1 red pepper, sliced
1 orange pepper, sliced
1 yellow pepper, sliced
24 green beans
2 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 zucchini, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
5 broccoli florets
1 mushroom, sliced
2 black olives, 1 sliced, 1 diced
1/4 cup arugula
1 cup hummus (for dipping)
1 medium pumpkin (optional)
Preparation Directions
Skull
Pick a platter for the background. Cut peeled jicama in half. Using the peeler, peel the sides of the jicama until it is pear shaped. The wider end will be the top of the skull. It should be full and rounded. Start narrowing the sides about half way down and round off the bottom. This will be the jaw. The narrow end is the jaw of the skull. Carve a flat spot near the bottom for the mouth. Carve two flat spots near the top for eyes. Place the skull at the top of the platter.
Spine
For the spine, arrange cauliflower florets in a row under the skull. Pile red, orange, and yellow pepper slices on either side of the cauliflower for ribs.
Arms and hands
Stack 3 beans on each side for upper arms. Stack 3 more on each side for lower arms. Put a cherry tomato half on each side between the upper and lower stacks for elbows. Add zucchini slices for palms. Make fingers out of carrot slices.
The rest of the body
Arrange 5 broccoli florets at the bottom of the spine for hips. Make upper legs by stacking 3 green beans on each side of the broccoli. Make lower legs by stacking 3 green beans on each side below the upper legs. For knees place half a cherry tomato between the stacks on each side. For feet cut a mushroom slice in half.
Face and hair
Put round slices of olive on jicama for eyes. Add diced olive for the nose and teeth. Arrange arugula under the jicama for spooky hair.
Serving Suggestions
Hollow out a pumpkin and put a bowl full of hummus inside as a tasty dip. Arrange leftover veggies in a dish on the side. Hollow out a pumpkin and put a bowl full of hummus inside as a tasty dip. Arrange leftover veggies in a dish on the side. Tip Use some of the hummus to keep veggies in place on the platter!
What are some of your favorite healthy Halloween recipes?
Tell us about them! And don’t forget to include pictures!
