Don’t forget to save those pumpkin seeds this Halloween when you carve your Jack-O-Lantern! This easy and very tasty recipe is fun for kids and parents alike to make during this holiday season. Healthy too!

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine all ingredients; transfer to an ungreased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan.
• Bake at 250° for 45-50 minutes or until lightly browned and dry, stirring occasionally. Cool completely. Store in an airtight container.
  

Halloween is right around the corner and this is a great Halloween party recipe for kids and adults alike. Wrap up your favorite brand of hot dogs in true Halloween mummy fashion! These are cute and very fun to make and serve.

Source: Pillsbury.com

Ingredients

• 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls OR 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations® refrigerated seamless dough sheet
• 2 1/2 slices American cheese, quartered (2.5 oz)
• 10 hot dogs
• Cooking spray
• Mustard or ketchup as desired

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. If using crescent rolls: Unroll dough; separate at perforations, creating 4 rectangles. Press perforations to seal. If using dough sheet: Unroll dough; cut into 4 rectangles.
3. With knife or kitchen scissors, cut each rectangle lengthwise into 10 pieces, making a total of 40 pieces of dough. Slice cheese slices into quarters (1/2 slice cheese, cut in half).
4. Wrap 4 pieces of dough around each hot dog and 1/4 slice of cheese to look like “bandages,” stretching dough slightly to completely cover hot dog. About 1/2 inch from one end of each hot dog, separate “bandages” so hot dog shows through for “face.” On ungreased large cookie sheet, place wrapped hot dogs (cheese side down); spray dough lightly with cooking spray.
5. Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until dough is light golden brown and hot dogs are hot. With mustard, draw features on “face.”

Try a mini version with cocktail sausages.

These are easy and FUN cupcakes to make for any party for just for the pure Halloween fun of it!

Having a Halloween party at school? Whip up a tray of these and just wait for the oohs and ahhs from delighted children. And adults love them as well.

Ingredients

1. Your favorite boxed cake mix
2. Halloween themed cupcake baking liners
3. White or cream cheese frosting
4. Red and yellow food coloring
5. 1 tube black decorating gel OR melted chocolate (Hint: the tube of decorating gel is much easier to handle!)
6. Black string licorice
7. 24 large gum drops
8. Toothpicks

Instructions

• Follow the instructions on the cake mix box for cupcakes
• While the cupcakes are in the oven, start preparing the orange icing by mixing in a few drops of red and yellow orange coloring in the tub of icing. Start with just a drop of each and then add more to get the desired orange color.
• After the cupcakes are completely cooled, frost them with the orange icing
• Using the black decorating gel or melted chocolate inside a plastic bag (cut-off the corner to make it like a piping bag), make 3 or 4 concentric circles radiating out from the center of the cupcake. Then use a toothpick starting at the center of the cupcake and pulling to the edge of the cupcake about 8 times around the entire circumference to create the web-like appearance.
• Take a large gumdrop and attach 3 or 4 pieces of black string licorice to each side to make the spider legs by poking a hole in the gumdrop using a toothpick where you want to insert the licorice. Use the black decorating gel to put a couple eyes on each gumdrop and place the completed spider on top the cupcake web.

Just because it’s Halloween doesn’t mean you have to forget your family’s health. There are more nutritious ways to enjoy the night. By all means let your kids hit the neighborhood and gather a bag of goodies, but temper that with a few nutritious treats of your own. If you are planning a Halloween party for the kids, put out a mix of healthy treats alongside the not-so-healthy favorites.

Here are a few ideas for healthy ghostly treats for your kids:

Trail Mix – This is a mix of snack foods that kids will love. Pick raisins, nuts, cereals, and any other dry foods your kids like to eat. Mix it all together and place it front-and-center so they can grab a handful as they run from one game to the next.

Ingredients

• 1 cup combination diced dried fruit, such as prunes, apricots, pears and apples
• 1/2 cup raisins and/or dried cherries or cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted sunflower seeds
• 1 cup unsalted dry-roasted peanuts (or honey-roasted peanuts, chopped walnuts or unsalted almonds)

Directions

Mix all together and then place in air-tight container for storage. Makes 4 cups.

Celery and carrot skeleton – Cut thin strips of celery and carrots and arrange them to create a skeleton body on the plate. Form a low-fat cheese ball creation for the skull, carve out the eye sockets and fill with raisins. Stick the cheese knife right into the skull for more eerie fun.

Pumpkin seeds – When you carve up the pumpkins don’t forget to save the seeds. Roasted and salted pumpkin seeds are a good after-carving snack. Let kids lay them flat on a baking sheet and watch them roast in a 400 degree oven.  Click here for some fun and easy pumpkin seed recipes.

Muffins – Finger foods like muffins can be sweet tasting like cupcakes but more nutritious. Try pumpkin muffins, zucchini muffins, or banana muffins for great taste and less sugar. Decorate the muffins just like you would cupcakes.

Chocolate spoons – Make your own chocolate treats using dark chocolate. It is healthier than milk chocolate because it contains more cocoa solids. Melt dark chocolate onto black and orange plastic spoons. Freeze them until the chocolate sets. Wrap them in cellophane and place them on the party table. The kids can lick them as a treat or swish them around in a cup of hot chocolate for extra flavor.

Ingredients

• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
• Black and orange Halloween plastic spoons

Directions

1. In a microwave safe bowl, melt semisweet chocolate pieces in microwave for 2 to 3 minutes and stir until smooth. Dip spoons into chocolate. Put spoons onto wax paper and refrigerate until chocolate hardens.
2. Melt milk chocolate pieces in microwave for 2 to 3 minutes and stir until smooth. Place chocolate into plastic bag and cut off a corner. Drizzle melted chocolate over spoons. Refrigerate until chocolate hardens.
3. Wrap each spoon separately and store in a cool dry place.

Caramel apples – Slice the apples for easier eating. Put the slices in individual bowls and drizzle the caramel over the top. You can sprinkle the apples with chopped nuts if you wish. A little caramel goes a long way, and it keeps the calories and sugar at a minimum.

What will your kids eat this Halloween? It doesn’t just have to be candy. Give them candy in moderation, but let the bulk of the snacks you create be of a healthier variety.

Halloween Wormy Burgers

This is a terrific Halloween treat recipe for young children. It is easy, delicious and lots of fun, so gather the family in the kitchen and add to your Halloween traditions with this great Halloween recipe.  Make these Halloween treats for Halloween parties at school or at home. They will be an instant hit!

This fun recipe is courtesy of Disney Family Food.

Ingredients

40 Vanilla Wafers

1 container dark chocolate icing (1 – 1 and 1/2 cups if home-made)

4 Gummy Worms

Directions

1. Spread 20 Vanilla Wafers with 1 teaspoon dark chocolate icing
2. Add 2 Gummy Worms to each cookie. Press worms into the icing to make sure they stick.
3. Top each burger with the remaining Vanilla Wafer cookies.

Halloween Fun

Be sure to visit Operation Letters to Santa’s Halloween section where you will find all kinds of wonderful things to keep you busy and entertained during the month of October. Be sure to visit our Halloween desktop wallpaper section where you can download vintage FREE Halloween desktop wallpapers for your computer every day!

Halloween and Any Time Costume Resources

Ingredients

• 5 cups popped popcorn (plain or lightly buttered popcorn. Don’t use movie theatre popcorn)
• 1 cup candy corn
• 1 cup chopped salted peanuts
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine
• 3 cups miniature marshmallows
• 4 drops red food coloring
• 3 drops yellow food coloring  – or for a more vibrant orange color use 5 drops of yellow food coloring
• 4 sticks red or black licorice, cut into thirds
• 2 caramels (optional)
• Muffin pan or muffin cups

Directions

1. Grease a muffin pan and set aside.  We suggest a spray such as Pam. Place cooled popcorn, candy corn and peanuts into a large bowl and set aside. You can also add a few minature marshmellows to the mix if desired. 
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in marshmallows,  optional caramel pieces, red food coloring and yellow food coloring, adjusting color if needed to get a nice shade of orange.
3. When the marshmallows are completely melted, pour over the popcorn.  To evenly distribute the candy corn and peanuts, pour them on top of the popcorn and then pour the sauce. Use a lightly greased or buttered spoon to mix.
4. Use the same lightly greased or buttered spoon to fill the muffin cups.
5.  Insert a piece of licorice to act as the stem, and mold the popcorn around it. Let stand until firm, 10 to 15 minutes, and then pull the pumpkins out by their stems and admire your beautiful and delicious pumpkin patch!

Halloween Fun

Be sure to visit Operation Letters to Santa’s Halloween section where you will find all kinds of wonderful things to keep you busy and entertained during the month of October. Be sure to visit our Halloween desktop wallpaper section where you can download vintage FREE Halloween desktop wallpapers for your computer every day!

Halloween and Any Time Costume Resources