Introduction
Halloween is one of those celebratory days that often include lots of sweet treats and carbohydrate-heavy meals; well, it is now, Fall after all!
While Halloween hasn’t always been about the sugar-heavy content of trick or treating or the hot celebratory meals that consist of very starch-heavy elements, we now find Halloween a celebration of everything sweet and sickly!
It is so important these days to be mindful of the amount of sugar and fats we consume in general, but even more so on an occasion that is synonymously laced with sugar and indulgence; it can be hard to resist!
10 Tips for Healthy Halloween
So how do you still feel part of the celebrations but avoid all of the naughtiness of the sugar-laden treat bowls and overly salty savory snacks?
Here are ten quickfire tips to make easy Halloween healthy treats be part of everyone’s fun on the day!
- Prepare your foods from scratch – you can be sure to know what’s in them that way!
- Use other forms of sweetness rather than sugar – Agave syrup and honey are great substitutes.
- Focus on protein-filled snacks to keep you feeling satiated for longer, such as chicken goujons, egg fillings, and shrimp dip.
- Keep water with you! Drinking water in small sips can curb your cravings for sugar-filled treats, so always keep a bottle beside you.
- Bake with vegetables – Baking cakes with a base of vegetables such as carrot, zucchini, and pumpkin can make a naughty treat much healthier.
- Switch to dark chocolate – Any high-grade chocolate with more than 85% cocoa solids is far healthier than confectionary chocolate, which is full of sugar.
- Have a home-baked Halloween! Kids will love this idea as it gets them making everything they can have for healthier Halloween Food Recipes, such as granola sticks, cereal squares, and home-baked cheese and tomato pinwheels.
- Crudites are amazing! Don’t forget to serve those little vegetable sticks with a ghoulish dip to make sure there is a healthy option in view!
- Use spice! Using spices in your healthy snacks, such as mixed nuts and potato chips, will make the foods tastier and gain added benefits from the spices you are using.
- Cauldron Soups! Soups are a fantastic addition to a Halloween party, especially if it’s cold and dark, but they can be healthy too!
Top 10 Best Healthy Foods and Drinks to try this Halloween
So what are the best Healthy Halloween Foods and Drinks to try for Halloween 2021?
The focus is heavily on ingredients that have been homegrown and home-cooked to offer Healthy food for Halloween. While we cannot avoid the candy and sweet treats that may enter our houses via the children’s trick-or-treating, we can undoubtedly manage the food that is being served as snacks, a buffet, or a party.
Here’s are some easy Halloween healthy treats to try this Halloween to make sure you feel you are not missing out on anything to do with the celebrations.
1. Honey-Nut Granola Bars
Using honey instead of sugar is a great and natural substitute for sugar and is also an excellent binder for the nuts and oats in a granola bar; way better than chocolate!
2. Vegetable-Based Cake Treats
We understand that some people will expect cake as a feature of any celebration, so we propose getting these treats done but healthily, baking the base of the cakes with veg!
Zucchini, carrot, and pumpkin all have natural sugars and make the most amazing cakes and muffins. They also have an exceptionally high-water content, meaning that your cakes, or indeed muffins or cupcakes, stay moist throughout for excellent Healthy food for Halloween.
3. Cauldron Soups
Soups are a classic healthy choice when it comes to pre-winter warmers, and soups are a perfect option that can be varied for Healthy Halloween. As a treat, you can make a cauldron cold soup that is an ideal alternative to hot and savory by using fresh fruit juice, sugar-free lemonade, and lots of fresh fruit.
4. Dark Choc’ N’ Nut Bowl Snacks
We all love a bit of chocolate indulgence as a treat, but changing from confectioners chocolate to dark chocolate[1] will give you some great antioxidant benefits and is much better for the health-conscious!
5. Vegetable Crisps
Vegetable crisps are such great easy Halloween healthy treats and far better for you than regular potato chips. Simply slice thinly and place in an oven to dry and get crispy and serve with a sprinkling of sea salt flakes.
6. Crudites and Dips
These can be made to look ghoulish and are perfect for the ultimate healthy treat! Slice vegetables into sticks and display them as bones with healthy dips such as Tzatziki, seafood sauce, and a BBQ honey dip so people can dig into the healthy options!
7. Protein Platter
There is no denying protein is the element that fills you up[2], so make sure that you have a healthy selection of cooked meats, seafood selections, and various cheeses on display for a healthy and filling edge!
8. Fresh Fruit
Of course, one of the healthiest ways to impart so many vitamins and minerals[3] in any Halloween celebration is to display fresh fruit! People will snack on the grapes, pineapple, and apple chunks as they pass!
9. Devilled Eggs
Halloween is the perfect occasion to have devilled eggs! These are easy Halloween healthy treats, tasty, and will fill you up! These are full of protein, which means they will keep you feeling fuller for longer.
10. Blood Punch
We are focusing on food here, but we also need to be mindful of healthy drinks too, and our favorite is blood punch! This is simply sparkling water with a few drops of grenadine, topped with frozen fruit, specifically berries. So refreshing and super healthy too!
Conclusion
While it has not always been this way, the developing tradition of Halloween has evolved into a celebratory day that involves a lot -things we do not usually have day to day, including sweets, cakes, and sugary drinks.
There are so many ways you can turn this around, and introducing some alternative, but equally, as yummy treats into the Halloween tradition can help to keep the food and drink you have on offer as healthy as it can be!
We don’t feel like we are missing out on all the fun by having something wildly different to eat and drink like everyone else, so creating some tasty, but Healthy food for Halloween means that everyone can enjoy the celebration without noticing that they are healthy options!
If you are mindful of your weight or, indeed, your overall health, an occasion that involves a high-sugar content may well set your nerves on fire! But you don’t have to miss out!
We are creating some alternative Healthy Halloween Recipes simply by looking at more healthy core ingredients and switching them out for the high-sugar elements. You can make some really special recipes where nobody will notice that they are more nutritious than the original versions!
The same goes with savory options, there is generally always an alternative to make your favorite savory treats, and these often come in the form of vegetables as a base.
Overall, we can make Halloween 2021 the healthiest celebration yet!