Halloween here in the States is a fun spooky holiday surrounded by sweet treats.  But, for those of us trying to lose or maintain our weight, it can be a very tricky day to handle.  So, I did a little research and came up with 7 ways to tackle the candy obsession and stay on track… I even threw in a few kid-friend ideas.

1) Instead of candy, pack snack sized portions of animal crackers, 100 calorie packs, raisins, trail mix, sugar free hot cocoa or apple cider.

2) After carving the pumpkin, save the seeds and roast them in oven.  Or as  my super-efficient mother did when I was a child.  Cook them on a plate in the microwave. 



3) Make Orange or Black  Jello.  Decorate it with Plastic spiders or cut out spooky shapes.



4) Healthy Caramel Apples – Click the link for a recipe to Trim some of the calories

5)  Banana Ghost Pops – Using Bananas, coconut and Orange Juice

6) Apple Bites – These are too cute!  –  Just quarter and core an apple, cut a wedge from the skin side of each quarter, then press slivered almonds in place for teeth.  Tip: If you’re not going to serve them right away, baste the apples with orange juice to keep them from browning.

7) Easy Cheese Fingers – Ingredients – Mozzarella string cheese, Green bell pepper, Cream cheese

Instructions:

1) Wearing plastic gloves or sandwich bags over your hands to keep the cheese as smudge-free as possible, use a paring knife (parents only) to cut each string in half and then carve a shallow area for a fingernail just below the rounded end of each half.

2) Mark the joint right below the nail as well as the knuckle joint by carving out tiny horizontal wedges of cheese, as pictured.

3) For the fingernails, slice a green bell pepper into 3/8-inch-wide strips. Set the strips skin side down on your work surface and trim the pulp so that it’s about half as thick. Then cut the strips into ragged-topped nail shapes and stick them in place at the ends of the fingers with dabs of cream cheese.

2 Comments
  1. Love these ideas!!! Not only for my weight loss effort but because I’m
    The activity director at a nursing home and these are perfect! Thanks!

  2. Hey Molly, I’m glad my Spooky ideas were able to help! I hope the residents have fun.

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