Healthier Halloween Snacks

We love celebrating holidays, but we can’t live on candy alone. Here are some ideas to make your Halloween a little healthier. Consider mixing up your candy bowl this Fall to include some non-food options:

• Colors
• Chalk
• Glow sticks or bracelets
• Stickers
• Sugar-free gum
• Temporary tattoos

These treats are also great options for party favors if you are having a Fall or Halloween party. Your friends who have kids will thank you that you gave them activities (side walk chalk for hop scotch) to burn off some of the energy from the extra treats. 
 
Speaking of parties, if you throw one, consider some of these fun treats. Here are my ideas for healthier snacks for celebrating Fall and Halloween.

Grape Worm

Thread grapes on a skewer or toothpick and glue edible eyes to make a worm. This a good activity for little cooks. Make sure to warn your family and guests about the toothpicks!

Candy-Corn Cereal Treats

Mix rice cereal with marshmallow. The recipe for these browned butter cereal treats is on the blog here!

Puddings in Costume

Cut paper to cover the top and circumference of your pudding cup. Use a white piece of paper and marker to create a ghost face. Use an orange paper and black marker to creat a jack-o-lantern. Add a green piece of paper to make the pumpkins stem on top of the pudding. Use colorful, patterned paper and edible eyes to create silly monsters.

 

Low fat string cheese Ghosts

Use a marker to add a ghost face to string cheese to make a boo-tiful ghost!

 

Mummy Turkey Dogs

Wrap bread dough or crescent rolls around turkey dogs to make a yummy mummy. Disclaimer my friend, Rachel, made these, but I did snap this picture.

Fruit Pumpkins

Peel cuties or tangerines and place a slice of celery in the middle of the orange. Disclaimer my friend, Rachel, made these, but I did snap this picture.

These are great ideas to add something sweet and something healthy for your Halloween party. They are great snacks to give your kids before Trick-or-treating. If your kids are full from a festive, healthier snack before trick-or-treating, there will be less desire to eat all the candy they are receiving.

As the parent, remember to set guidelines for health. It is a good idea to set boundaries for limiting dessert and candy intake. We want to fuel our kids in a healthy way to support adequate and appropriate growth and development.

If you end up with an abundance of candy, you might consider donating some of your Halloween candy to programs like Halloween Candy buyback program and OperationGratitude. Look for these programs in your area if you are interested in donating some of your Halloween candy.

For more of my tips for healthier Halloween and Fall activities, check out my post with four more practical tips for healthier trick-or-treating.

For more Fall and holiday recipes and tips for healthy eating, follow RDtipoftheday on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. I provide different resources, tips, and recipes on each social media platform. So, make sure to follow me to get your #RDtipoftheday.

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Healthier Hallowen

Happy Halloween! We all love to celebrate. When we are trying to eat healthier, sometimes celebrations can be challenging. Celebrations usually include rich, heavy foods, decadent sweets, sugary beverages, and an abundance of food. I want you to enjoy your celebrations, so let's set you up for success. Here's to a healthier Halloween!

1) Eat a satisfying meal or snack before trick-or-treating
If you and your children are full from a healthy, well-balanced meal, the treats are less likely to be tempting.



2) Make healthy treats for trick-or-treating.
There are a couple examples from the archives for healthy Halloween themed snacks. You can have healthy, fun treats to give away to trick-or-treaters. You can also save a few healthy snacks for your children after trick-or-treating, so there are healthy options instead of mounds of candy.



3) Set boundaries for treats.
We all need boundaries. So, make sure you set healthy boundaries with candy or treats. Before trick-or-treating, let your child know the amount and times they are able to enjoy the candy. Then, your child knows realistic expectations about the amount of candy they can consume.
You can also give your child a small bag for trick-or-treating. This limits the amount of candy you bring into the home.



4) Give treats away.
Have your child pick out their favorite candy to save. Give them a goal or number of pieces to save. Then, encourage sharing by giving the other candy away. This teaches your child the value of giving. It also limits the temptation to overeat candy since there will be less in the home.


There are several places that offer Halloween Candy Buy Back. Check the website for a location near you. These locations are often dentist's offices who offer to buy candy and prevent cavities at the same time! The candy is then donated to troops overseas. You help your kids moderate their sweets intake and send a gift to service men and women. It's a win-win situation!



For more Halloween recipes and tricks for healthy eating, follow RDtipoftheday on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. I provide different resources, tips, and recipes on each social media platform. So, make sure to follow me on all of them to get your #RDtipoftheday. Happy Halloween!



If you like this post you may also like,

Slow-Cooker  Chicken Tortilla Soup

Winter Vegetable Soup

Tips for Healthy Trick-or-Treating

Healthy Fall Treats