Holidays

21 Ideas and Recipes for Healthy Halloween Food

Cauldrons full of candy are one of the first things that spring to mind when thinking of Halloween. It is super fun to indulge a bit during these festive times. However, it is vital to strike a balance. Here is a list of delicious and healthy Halloween dishes and snacks so that you don’t have to stint on the festiveness while eating well.

Healthy Halloween food

Balance out all the sweets and treats with a few healthy Halloween-inspired dishes. Whether you are cooking for your family or friends, everyone will appreciate Halloween-themed food that is tasty and healthy:

1. Vegetable soup

Spicy squash soup in ceramic pot.

Vegetable soup works well as a dinner party starter or a weeknight meal. For a Halloween twist, use sour cream to pipe a cobweb onto the surface of the soup just before serving! Stock up on ready-made soups for a quick fix when you don’t have time for major meal prep.

2. Yam pumpkin faces

Slice yams into ½ inch slices. Using a small sharp knife, cut out pumpkin faces in the slices. Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and drizzle with olive oil—Bake at 400 °F for 40 minutes.

3. Pumpkin cauldron chili

Serve up your best chili con carne recipe in a whole pumpkin!

4. Squash ravioli

For the little ones, this ready-made squash ravioli is a perfect healthy Halloween food for quick and easy weeknight dinners.

5. Pumpkin Cheerios

Start your day the Halloween way with a bowl of pumpkin spice Cheerios.

Healthy Halloween recipes

There is no need to be skimp on the fun factor for the sake of healthy eating. Here are a few healthy Halloween recipes to add to your arsenal:

1. Pumpkin fries

Homemade Organic Pumpkin French Fries with Ketchup

For a healthier and Halloween-inspired alternative to potato fries, substitute the potatoes for pumpkin or other squash. Cut strips of your favorite squash and place them on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Pop them in an oven preheated to 400 °F for 40 minutes. Serve with ketchup or a spicy sriracha sauce.

2. Jack o’ lantern stuffed peppers

Start by cutting the top off the bell peppers. Then scoop out the insides. Use a small sharp knife to cut out the eyes and mouth for your jack o’ lantern. You can stuff the peppers with just about anything! For kids, perhaps something simple like pasta and sauce. You can be a bit more adventurous for adults. Make a salad of chopped tomatoes, olives, sundried tomatoes, and roast butternut. Add to that cooked grains like couscous and/or quinoa. Season with salt, pepper, and freshly chopped herbs. Mix all these and spoon into your empty peppers.

3. Halloween hummus

For a tasty Halloween-inspired dip, pop the contents of a tub of hummus and half a can of cooked pumpkin into your blender or food processor. Blend it and serve with crackers or pita bread wedges.

4. Pumpkin risotto

pumpkin risotto works well for a meat-free Monday or a delicious side dish for a dinner party.

Healthy Halloween snacks

There is a lot more to Halloween than candy and sugar highs. Focus on the fun element of the different costumes, enjoy going door-to-door, and plan some freaky surprises for your friends and family! To keep the energy levels up, here are a few ideas for healthy Halloween snacks:

1. Banana ghosts

Treat-filled snack board

For a Halloween spin on your kids’ fruit snacks, dress up a peeled banana to look like a ghost. Just pop three chocolate drops or raisins onto the banana to form the eyes and mouth.

2. Clementine pumpkins

Turn your citrus into Halloween pumpkins. Peel a clementine and place a sliver of celery in the top center to make the citrus fruit look like a pumpkin!

3. Jack o’ lantern fruit salad bowl

Cut the top off an orange. Scoop out the flesh. Use a small knife to carve the orange to look like a jack o’ lantern. Then fill it with fruit salad for a Halloween-inspired healthy snack or dessert!

4. Cheeseboard

Cheeseboards always go down well at a social gathering. It is a nice healthy option too. Pair the cheeses with fresh fruit such as grapes, pears, and berries instead of sugary fruit preserves. To bring in a Halloween feel, you can cut some of the cheese slices in the shapes of ghosts. And cut out nori to look like bats.

5. Pumpkin muffins

Muffins are a super snack for grown-ups and children alike. Stock up on pumpkin muffins to keep with the Halloween theme!

6. Apple spice muffins

muffin baking tray containing homemade apple muffins, with streusel crumble topping.

Apple spice muffins also work nicely for fall.

7. Mummy toasts

Spread a slice of toast with strawberry jelly. Cut cheese into strips and layer them over the jelly to look like the swathes of an unraveling mummy! Add raisins or cranberries for the eyes.

8. Ghoulish pretzels

Stick two raisins into the gaps of these yogurt pretzels for a ghostly snack!

9. Carrot mummies

Wrap cooked carrots in strips of cheese to look like mummies. Pop in the oven for a few minutes for the cheese to melt onto the carrots.

Healthy Halloween treats

There are a bunch of ways to celebrate Halloween without consuming copious amounts of candy. These healthy Halloween treats are sure to keep the sweet tooth happy:

1. Healthy Halloween toffee apples

Festive caramel apples on sticks.

Soak one pound of pitted dates in a cup of water overnight. Pop the mixture into a food processor and blend until a smooth paste. Use this paste to coat your apples. Roll the date-dipped apples in flaked coconut, chopped nuts, or chopped cranberries for an extra kick of flavor.

2. Batty snack balls

Pick up some snack balls or protein balls and dress them up to look like bats. Cut bat wings out of fruit leather strips and stick them to the snack balls. Add a pair of candy eyes for extra effect!

3. Chocolate pumpkin pots

For a nutritious and decadent dessert, these chocolate, avocado, and pumpkin pots are easy to make. Place two ripe avocadoes, ½ a cup of pumpkin puree, ½ cup of cocoa powder, eight pitted dates (softened in warm water), and ½ a cup of milk in a blender. To keep it plant-based, you can use almond milk or coconut milk instead. Blitz it all up to a smooth consistency. For a bit of fall festiveness, you can add two teaspoons of pumpkin spice. Sweeten to your taste with maple syrup or honey, then pour the mixture into portion-sized ramekins and refrigerate for at least 60 minutes to set. Top with a dollop of whipped cream and a sprinkle of pumpkin spice just before serving.

Healthy Halloween food delivered to your door

A little bit of planning and preparation makes it a lot easier to maintain healthy eating habits. An Instacart shopper will put your order together for you. Choose between convenient contactless delivery or pick-up within 2 hours of placing your order!

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