Special Guest Post
By: Karen Braga
Twitter: @Karenbabydoll22
Throwing a Halloween party can be sometimes a lot of work; however, it can also be a lot of fun. Between playing games, dancing to music or just mingling, your guests will be hungry. I will share with you some of my favorite simple Halloween themed foods and baking goods to have at your Halloween party. These ideas are simply delicious and yet fun to do with your children. Please use your best judgment as to which of these are age appropriate for your toddler or child to participate in.
Sometimes just creating spooking Halloween names to your home cooked meals and appetizers will get your guests talking. For example, you can have a bowl of spaghetti with meat balls and call it “guts with eyeballs”. Giving an ordinary dish a spooky name can even spark interest to those that are picky eaters. Another great idea is making little sandwiches that are Halloween themed. You can find some Halloween cookie cutters at your local dollar store and make them into charterers using toppings and other edible ingredients. Nevertheless, no matter what you decide to make please keep in mind of any allergies that your guests may have.
Top five favorite easy recipes and ideas for meals/appetizers:
- Mummy is that you?
This dish is super easy to make and only requires four ingredients. Hotdogs, Pillsbury mini croissants, ketchup and mustered. First cut your hotdogs in half and put them aside. Then unroll each mini croissant and slice them into long pieces. Once you have done that wrap each piece onto each hotdog until you achieved your mummy look. Make sure to leave some room to add the eyes after it is done baking. Once golden brown and cooled off, use ketchup for one eyeball and mustered for the other.
- Pumpkin mini pizza
All you need for this one is English muffins, pizza sauce, toppings of your choice, black olives and cheese. First slice or break apart your English muffins and put them on your baking sheets. Then add your pizza sauce and cheese. With your peperoni and other toppings cut them in shapes you need to create your pumpkin face on your mini pizzas and then bake them.
- Eye see you tacos
This recipe is super fun and delicious. Ingredients required is hard shell tacos, toppings of your choice, sauces, ground beef, taco mix and black olives. I will explain how I make this dish but please feel free to use the toppings, sauces and meat of your choice.
First cook your ground beef in a skillet and follow the instructions on the back of the taco mix package. Once cooked and browned add it to each taco shell. For toppings I use avocado, cheese, tomato and green onions. Cut up all the ingredients and add them on top of the meat; however, not the cheese. Add your sauce like salsa or sour cream on top then add your cheese. For your eyes, add some salsa or sour cream to hold down your black olives.
- Not so scary devil’s eggs
You will need eggs, mayo, paprika, salt, pepper and black olives. Boil your eggs and then let them cool off. Dry off your black olives and cut just a few into thin slices and put them aside. Once your eggs have cooled down and the shell is removed; cut your eggs in half. Scoop out the yoke and put it in a bowl leaving the white part faced up on your tray. In the bowl mash your yokes into small pieces and add the rest of the ingredients in (salt, pepper, paprika and mayo), minus the black olives and then mix it. With a pipping bag or spoon, put the mixtures into the white part of the eggs. The final touch will be the black olives for decoration. Add one whole olive on top and some of the thin slices on each side of the olive to make a spider.
- Halloween burgers
This one is SO easy that it really will only take you a couple of minutes to prepare. All you need is hamburgers, buns, condiments and sliced cheese. While your burgers are cooking, cut a pumpkin face out of the sliced cheese. Be sure to create different faces as your guests will have fun picking one out for their burger.
For more meal ideas for your Halloween party be sure to check out Google or even my favorite app Pinterest. Now that your guests are full they will still look forward to dessert because no one is ever too full to have that. If you do not have any recipes to use or looking to make something new, be sure to check out one of my favorite websites: http://allrecipes.com/.
Top Five Favorite Halloween Themed Desserts
- Halloween cookies
Grab your favorite chocolate chip or sugar cookie recipe. Once your cookies are baked you and your child can decorate them with cookie icing, candies and chocolate chips. For my chocolate chip cookies, I like to have some chocolate chips show on top of the cookie. Then I add some melted chocolate to each side creating legs to create little spiders.
- Halloween cupcakes
First make your cupcakes and let them cool off. Once they are all iced and ready for decorations grab your toppings. Have your child sprinkle some Halloween themed edible decorations on the cupcakes. For a more advance design you can make witch hats to add on top. All you need for that is a chocolate covered cookie as your base. Then with icing attach a Hershey kiss on top, and then to complete the look add some details with icing.
- Witch brooms
This one is very simply to do but it does require mini peanut butter cups so please make sure no one at your party has a peanut allergy. To cut costs I went to my local Bulk Barn and bought my ingredients there. You will need mini Reese’s peanut butter cups and straight pretzels. Unwrap your mini Reese’s peanut butter cups and face them upside down. With a knife make a small hole in the middle of the upside down peanut butter cup. Have your child insert the pretzel stick inside and there you have your witch’s broom.
- Mud pie
Kids love the name, they have fun making it and the taste of this desert. You will need clear plastic Jell-O or drinking cups. Ingredients needed is chocolate pudding, chocolate chip cookie crumbs and gummy worms. First have your child crush the cookies until there is nothing but crumbs left. Then make your chocolate pudding. You can choose to get the Jell-O pudding boxes and follow the instructions or if you do not have time you can buy the already made chocolate pudding and scoop it out as you assemble this dessert. Have your child add some cookie crumbs at the bottom of each cup. Then they can add about two tablespoons of chocolate pudding, followed by a gummy worm. Continue the process until the cup is filled but be sure to have the top covered with little cookie crumbs and gummy worm.
- Scary fruit
Be creative and use your imagination with this one. You can cut out a piece of an orange and get fake vampire teeth from your local dollar store to insert as its teeth. Another great idea is making fruit shish kabobs, it’s super easy to have your child assemble it while you cut up the fruit. You can display these shish kabobs in your pumpkin.
Overall, your imagination has no limits; however if you’re stuck be sure to explore the internet for ideas but always try to add a personal touch. Remember that cooking and baking with your child is an amazing learning experience and they are never too young to learn. Even toddlers learn a lot just by observing, so have them watch you and have them do simple things like putting the cupcake papers in the pan.
Until next time…. Happy Spooking!
About the Author
Karen Braga graduated from Sheridan College with an Early Childhood Education Diploma. She worked with children for about five years before expanding her skills in Administration. Karen is a loving Godmother/Auntie to one. Karen is passionate and knowledgeable about Halloween. Combined with her ECE background and passion on Halloween, she has recently become an expert writer on the topic for mom blogger, Momma Braga. Karen hopes by sharing her knowledge, tips and tricks, she can help families enjoy this holiday.
