6 healthier Halloween treats because sugar-hyped kids are scary.

I don’t want to shock anyone but it seems that Halloween is once again just around the corner. For many parents that means sugared-up kids and a side of guilt for parents. We all know that Halloween is typically filled with lollies and chocolate (and trips to the dentist to deal with the aftermath). As parents we want to do the best by our children. Of course we don’t want them to miss out on the fun with their friends but we also want to do the best for their health.

The good news is that Halloween doesn’t have to mean endless sugar and cavities. There are heaps of really cute Halloween themed treat ideas that you can make for the kids which will satisfy them, and your parental guilt. These ones are from Susie Burrell who comes up with the greatest ideas for fun kids’ food (and I’ve added a couple of my own favourites at the bottom).

Mummy Pizzas.

What you’ll need:

Packet of 8 mini wholemeal pita pockets
140g tub of Leggo’s pizza sauce (1.5g sugar per tablespoon)
3 tomatoes, thinly sliced
8 button mushrooms, thinly sliced
16 thin slices of unprocessed ham
8 slices of light tasty cheese
1 jar of sliced Kalamata olives

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
3. Distribute the pita pockets on the baking trays. Top each with 1 tbsp of pizza sauce and smear out with the back of a spoon. Then top each pizza with 2-3 slices of tomato, sliced mushroom and 1-2 slices of ham so it covers the whole pizza.
4. Slice cheese slices long ways in half centimetre strips to make the mummy bandages.
5. Place the cheese strips along the pita pockets to look like wrapped bandages. Tuck two pieces of sliced olives into the cheese bandages as eyes.
6. Bake in the oven for around 10 minutes or until the cheese has begun to melt and the edges are beginning to brown and crisp.

Spooky and delicious. Image: Philips Sonicare/damianshaw.com

Banana Ghosts.

Makes 12 ghosts.

What you’ll need:

2 x 170g tubs of Chobani Greek or Coconut Yoghurt
24 dark chocolate bits
6 small bananas cut in halves

Method:

1. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Dip each banana in yoghurt and add 2 eyes using dark chocolate bits.
3. Place in the freezer to set for around 1 hour.

Easy-peasy. Image: Philips Sonicare/damianshaw.com

Mini Pumpkin Cupcakes.

Makes 24 mini cupcakes.

What you’ll need:

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
1⁄4 cup milk
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1⁄2 tsp ground ginger
1⁄4 tsp nutmeg
1⁄4 tsp allspice
Salt
2 cups whole meal plain flour

Icing:

60g light cream cheese
20g butter, softened
Orange food colouring
12 pretzel twigs

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Grease a 24 mini muffin tray with butter.
2. In a medium bowl, beat together the olive oil and maple syrup with a whisk then beat in the eggs. Mix in the pumpkin puree, milk, baking soda, vanilla extract, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and a pinch of salt. Add the flour and stir through until just mixed, don’t over mix.
3.Distribute the mixture between 24 mini muffin holes. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top is golden and when a bamboo skewer inserted into a cupcake comes out clean.
4.Remove the cupcakes to a wire rack and cool completely.
5. To make the icing, beat together creamed cheese, butter.
6. Add a few drops of food colour and mix. Continue to add drops of colour and mixing until you have a pumpkin orange colour.
7. Smear a heaped tablespoon of icing onto cooled cupcake with a butter knife and smooth out. Use the back edge of the knife to create six grooves from the middle of the cupcake to make the pumpkin look.
8. Stick a pretzel twig into the middle of each cupcake to make the stalk of the pumpkin.

Yum! Image: Philips Sonicare/damianshaw.com

Eyeballs.

Serves 12.

What you'll need:

12 Light Baby Bel Cheese rounds
4 black olives, sliced into thin pieces,
1 tbsp. tomato sauce
1 tsp. natural red food colouring

Method:

1. Place piece of black olive in the centre of the cheese
2. Fill middle with a little tomato sauce.
3. Use red food colouring to draw blood vessels onto eye using a thin paint brush or eye line pen.

Spooky. Image: Philips Sonicare/damianshaw.com

Witches’ broomsticks.

What you’ll need:

Mozzarella cheese sticks - firm
Pretzel sticks
Chives

Method:

Start by cutting the cheese sticks into three pieces. Using a sharp knife to make small cuts lengthways, finishing a small way from the top. Take a pretzel stick and insert it into the top of the cheese stick where you have not cut. Take a small chive and wrap it around the top of the cheese stick. Using your fingers, fan out the ‘bristles’ of the broom.

Halloween Spiders.

Makes 16 spiders.

Ingredients
1 cup roasted almonds
1 cup macadamias
3/4 cup 100 per cent nut spread (peanut butter or mixed nut spread as preferred)
1 cup chopped dated
2 tablespoons cacao
Coconut for coating

Method:

1. In a food processor, place macadamias, almonds, nut spread and cacao powder and process. Add dates and process until the mixture comes together. If the mixture is too dry, you can add a few drops of water and process again.
2. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of cacao onto a plate. Roll the mixture into 16 balls, then roll into the cacao powder.
3. Press 2 white chocolate buttons into the spiders as eyes. Use the dark chocolate icing pen to dot eyeballs in the middle of the white chocolate buttons.
4. Break pretzels to make curved spider legs. Press 3 pretzel legs into the side of every spider so they curve downwards.
5. Allow the spiders to set in the fridge for an hour.

Allow to sit in fridge for one hour then eat, eat, eat! Image: Philips Sonicare/damianshaw.com

What Halloween snacks do you like to make?