Here in Colorado it always manages to snow on Halloween. If we’re lucky we don’t get freezing rain instead. But that doesn’t mean your children won’t enjoy some pumpkin popsicles treats from Pops!: Icy Treats for Everyone by Krystina Castell.

Heck, these would be especially nice for a party. Or if your child were getting their tonsils out around Halloween. If you don’t live in warm sunny Florida, Texas or California, put away a few cans of pumpkin puree and make these next summer. Continue Reading »

Many parents are looking for healthy snacks to serve at Halloween parties. One idea is jack-o-lantern sandwiches made on wholesome bread and using low fat ingredients. There are several variations you can try using deli meat slices, spreads, and various types of bread.

Deli style jack-o-lantern sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup mustard or ketchup (or a mixture of half and half of both)
• 32 slices whole wheat bread (try rye or pumpernickel, too)
• 16 slices American cheese (try 2% milk or a lower fat version)
• 16 slices turkey or ham slices (again look for low fat versions)
• 16 lettuce leaves

Directions:

1. In a bowl, combine the mayonnaise and mustard/ketchup.
2. Spread condiments over one side of each slice of bread.
3. Top half of the slices with meat, lettuce and cheese. (Cheese should be on top.)
4. Cover with remaining slice of bread.
5. Cut sandwiches with a 4-inch pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter.
6. Remove top bread slice. Cut out eyes, nose and mouth with a small triangle mini cookie cut or use the tip of the paring knife.
7. Replace so the orange of the cheese shows through the cut out portions. If you want to get fancy, tear a piece of lettuce to give your jack-o’-latern green eyes.

Tip: supposedly it’s easier to cut the bread if it is slightly toasted.

Variations:

• Try PB&J with strawberry jam showing out of the cut eye, ears and mouth. Tired of peanut butter? Try almond or cashew butter instead.
• Use pumpkin or orange bread with a cream cheese spread.
• For a easy to make, healthy spread try combining no or low fat cream cheese with some canned pumpkin puree. Use organic honey or agave syrup to sweeten. Or combine marmalade or strawberry jam with the cream cheese. Try to find organic jams as they usually don’t have added sugar or corn syrup.

Hate that you have buckets of Halloween candy, but feel guilty about throwing it in the trash? Here’s some ideas for what to do with your Halloween stash.

1.  Last year I suggested you make Candy Bar Smoothies or Candy Bar Stuffed Baked Applies in Trick or treat – what to do with all that leftover candy.
2. Call your local food bank and see if they’ll take it. While we can all agree candy is hardly nutritious, everyone likes a treat once in awhile.
3. CDKitchen has some great ideas like Butterfinger Trifle
4. Squidoo’s ideas for leftover candy are Apple Candy Bar Salad, Butterfinger Layer Cake, Candy Bar Cookies, and Homemade Fudge. Can’t you feel your rear end getting bigger by the second?
5. Parenthood.com has 10 ideas of their own. I love the idea of freezing it and then saving it to use on gingerbread houses at Christmas.
6. Anyone you know hosting a birthday party? Donate it for goodie bags. Or save it for your child’s next holiday party at school.
7. Families.com suggests chopping up the candy and combining it with ice cream for an ice cream pie. Why not use the candy as a “mix in” like at those fancy ice cream shops. Make sure the ice cream is a little bit melted – zapping it in the microwave for 10 seconds helps – before trying it out.
8. Lela Davidson at HubPages suggest sending the candy to soldiers in Iraq. Have the kids send some homemade cards and pictures along with your gift. Another idea is contacting your local military base or VA hospital and ask if you can make wounded vets some candy goodie bags.
9. Bring it to work (or send it with your spouse to work). The office vultures will take care of it in no time.
10. The Portsmouth Herald has a list of suggestions and recipes. I really like this one for Milky Way Pain Au Chocolat.

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With two days to “H-Day” you’re probably busy with costumes and running out for a few bags of candy. In case you’re looking for last minute cookies that will impress both kids and adults, try these from Food & Wine magazine.

They’re more like small cakes than cookies, and will be a nice treat with a cup of tea after the lil’ goblins have gone to bed.

Black-and-Orange Cookies
Makes about three dozen 4″ cookies

Get the kids to help you out. I’m sure school-aged kids can help spread the black and orange icing, too.

Ingredients (cookies):

1. 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cake flour
2. 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3. 1 teaspoon baking powder
4. 1/4 teaspoon salt
5. 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6. 3/4 cup sugar
7. 2 large eggs, at room temperature
8. 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
9. 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
10. 2 teaspoons milk

Ingredients (icing):

1. 2 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
2. 1/4 cup boiling water
3. 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4. Orange food coloring, or red and yellow combined
5. 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Directions (cookies):

1. Preheat the oven to 350°; position 2 racks in the upper and middle thirds of the oven. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Sift the cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt onto a large sheet of wax paper. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and yolks one at a time, beating well between additions. Beat in the vanilla and milk. At low speed, beat in the dry ingredients until just combined.
3. Spoon rounded tablespoons of the batter onto the baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes, until the centers spring back when lightly pressed. Be careful not to let the cookies brown or overbake, or they will be dry. Transfer the cookies, flat-side up, to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Directions (icing):

1. In a medium bowl, whisk the confectioners’ sugar with the boiling water until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and a few drops of food coloring and whisk until the icing is evenly colored. Using a small offset spatula, spread the orange-colored icing over half of the flat side of each cookie.
2. In a microwave oven, melt the chocolate in a small bowl. Stir the chocolate into the remaining orange icing. Spread the chocolate icing on the other half of each cookie and let stand until set, about 15 minutes. (If the icing becomes too thick, add hot water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until smooth and shiny.)
3. The black-and-orange cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

What would Halloween be without black cats? One of my favorite literary felines is Nick Bruel’s Bad Kitty, a very naughty kitty who stars in a hilarious alphabet book. When I came across the sequel, Poor Puppy, at our recent Scholastic book fair, I had to bring the book home.

Poor Puppy features a happy-go-lucky puppy who wants to play with Bad Kitty. Bad Kitty is a smart feline, and stays out of the way while Poor Puppy destroys the house. Again, Bruel gives us a wonderful ABC book but this time includes numbers 1-26.

Kids ages three to eight will enjoy Poor Puppy and Bad Kitty‘s antics. And parents will be scared silly by the destruction these two manage to cause. Who knew an ABC book could be a cautionary tale?

C is for Cupcake

Now let’s count how many fall pumpkin cupcakes we can make…and eat!

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