Cooking Games and Health(ier) Halloween Treats

Let’s admit right now that Halloween treats stop being treats when they are totally healthy. Nobody wants to eat a handful of celery for Halloween after all! It’s about the candy, the sweets and the stomach-ache that comes later. That being said, there are some cooking games that give you a bit more flexibility when it comes to sweets on Halloween – you can make them sweet, but perhaps just a wee bit healthier as well.

Popcorn Balls – Make your own popcorn balls using butter, caramel and other natural ingredients. They will be loaded with sugar and fat, of course, but at least your homemade popcorn balls won’t be full of preservatives.

Candy Apples – These cooking games give you lots of choices for how to make things healthier. You’re going to have to use a bit of caramel on the apple, of course, but you can also use other ingredients to add some additional flavor and fun. Roll the apple in coconut or perhaps nuts. Then, enjoy the apple cooking games knowing you’re eating some good things along with that sticky caramel.

Cooking Games: Caramel Apples

If you’re having friends over for Halloween, why not make one of the oldest Halloween recipes in the book? Caramel, or candy, apples. To make caramel apples, you’ll only need a few things. Making them with friends is the best choice as it can be a bit of work wielding apples on a stick – plus you’ll have someone to enjoy eating the apples with when you’re done.

Melt Caramel
Grab a bag of caramel candies and dump them into a microwave safe bowl. Heat the bowl in the microwave for a minute until the candy starts the melt. Stir the melting mixture and continue to microwave the candy until it is all melted and smooth – but not scorched.

Prepare Apples
While one person is getting the caramel ready, another can be dealing with the apples. You should have small apples from the store. Clean then thoroughly and then stick a craft stick into the top of each. Spread a sheet of wax paper out on the counter and you’re ready to begin.

Roll each apple through the caramel to cover it completely. Try not to drip much caramel as you place the apple (stick side up) on the paper to cool. When your apples are dipped and then cooled off completely – enjoy!

Cooking Games: Chocolate Spiders

A great Halloween cooking game to play this year as you prepare for the season of ghouls and ghosts is to make chocolate spiders. Here’s how to play:

Gather Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons of Peanut Butter
• 200 grams of Baking Chocolate
• 1 Package of Chow Mein Noodles
• Chocolate chips

Get Started!
Break the noodles into smaller sized pieces and put them aside. Take the peanut butter and baking chocolate and place it in a microwaveable bowl. Microwave the two on high for 30 seconds. Continue microwaving in 5 second increments until the chocolate is melted.

Stir the melted mixture well and then stir in the chow mein noodles. Gently stir the noodles into the mix until they are well coated with chocolate.

Scoop out a spoonful of “spider” and place it on a sheet of waxed paper or parchment paper. On each spider, use two chocolate chips to create eyes.

Place the spiders in the fridge to set. When the chocolate has hardened, your spiders are complete. Put them in a special Halloween bowl or on a tray for your guests to enjoy.

Cooking Games – Baking Pumpkin Seeds

When you make a jack-o-lantern this Halloween, don’t just throw all of those seeds away. You might not realize it, but pumpkin seeds can be a delicious and very healthy treat!

Gather a large group of pumpkin seeds in a bowl while you are cutting and cleaning your pumpkin. Don’t worry about the gooky orange mess that comes with the seeds, you’ll clean that off later.

Take your bowl inside and work at the sink. Grab a smaller bowl and carefully separate the seeds from the orange gunk and wash each one off. Sounds tedious, but you can really just grab a handful of seeds and hold them under running water to clean off the goo. Then throw the clean seeds in the new bowl and repeat until most of your seeds are clean and ready.

Arrange the seeds in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Place them in the oven to roast. When they are a light tan color and smell yummy, carefully remove the tray from the oven and scoop the seeds back into the bowl. Sprinkle the seeds generously with salt (or a salt substitute if you’re being especially healthy) and you have a delicious pumpkin treat!