Healthy Halloween Treats
This is a fun, healthy snack your kids will enjoy so much its scary! My kids, 5, 9 and 12 ate every last bite! I’ve been asked many times “how can I get my kids to eat healthy?” This is a great question and can be a really stressful! Here are 3 things that have helped me the most.
1. Make Food Fun! Check out fun recipes that make food look cool and offer a fun way to display them. We’re not talking breakfast lunch and dinner, but here and there is good. Be sure to stay in your stress free zone too! There are so many ideas that are quick and easy. Choose the ones that suite you!
2. Invite the kids to help. I never had a clue how much my daughter loved cooking until I randomly asked to help in the kitchen. After that, all three kids wanted to get in on the help! Sometimes they crack and egg and get bored and other times its beginning to end, don’t hold any big expectations. Let it be fun and relaxed. It gives me time to spend with them and it gives them a sense of contributing. This is a huge role kids want to have in a family. They also feel that sense of “well that stinks” when they work hard to help and someone doesn’t like it lol. (Great lesson in empathy for the cook!)
3. They have to try it once. In my house, its ok to not to like a certain food. It’s not ok however, to tell me you don’t like a food if you’ve never tried it before! If you have a super picky eater, I allow my kids to mix their foods, or we cut them up small so they barely taste it. Cooked carrots, raw spinach are great additions they will hardly noticed.
Here are the ingredients & directions for the Halloween Snack Tray.
Ingredients:
- 4 Slices of American Cheddar Cheese (I grabbed a pack in the pre-sliced area bc they slice them nice and thick)
- Pretzel Sticks
- 7 Organic Strawberries
- Big Handful Organic Blueberries
- 1 Large Bunch & 8 single Organic Green Grapes
- 3 Clementine’s
- 1 Banana
- Small Piece of Thyme
- Edible Googly Eyes
- 6 Chocolate Chips
- 1/2 a Bag Vanilla Chocolate Melts
Directions:
Pumpkin Cheese – Take each slice and use a pumpkin cookie cutter to cut out the shape. My husband happily ate the “extra” which was not even a full piece worth.
Mummy Strawberries – Dip each washed and dried strawberry in the melted chocolate and set aside. (Tip – Make sure strawberries are completely dry and closer to room temperature) I prefer using the double pot method to melt chocolate. (see below) Once all are complete, go back and put remaining chocolate in a small ziplock bag. Cut a small corner piece off. Go super small, you can always cute it bigger. In a sweeping motion, go back and forth down the strawberry to create the “bandage look”. Add the googly eyes.
Monster Eye balls – Using the melted chocolate, dap a glob and stick on the eyeball. If the chocolate melts right off try letting it cool a little so it hardens faster. I used a deviled egg tray to hold the grapes in place. I only made 8 eyeballs and filled the rest of the cup with plain grapes.
Pumpkin Clementines – Peel each clementine and place 1/2 a preztle stick, broken side goes in first. Add a little piece of thyme for color. I happened to have this, but would have skipped it, had it not been in my fridge! You could really use any herb 🙂
Banana Ghost – Cut one banana in 1/2, dab on three small dots for the eyes and mouth, place chocolate chips on.
Additional snacks – I placed the blueberries and pretzels sticks around to add more snacks. You could add nut mixes, more fruits or veggies! Happy snacking!
Melting Chocolate – The Double pot method requires 2 pots, one smaller than the other.
- Place small amount of water in the bigger pot & turn heat on low
- Place smaller pot inside the pot with water. The water should just touch the bottom of the smaller one.
- Place chocolates in the pot and mix often to keep from burning.
- Once chocolate melts, pull both pots off the heat. Now you can begin dipping the strawberries!
*Tip – If chocolate begins to harden, place back over heat.