Hallow’een Treats That Don’t Make Your Skin Crawl!

   

 

PETRIFYING PUMPKINS! The clock is ticking and Hallow’een is slowly creeping closer. So too are those sweet/candy treats …. STEP AWAY! 

 

I don’t want to be a fun-stripper, party-pooper or worse, but trust me … once the sampling begins it’s hard to stop. From now until Christmas there will be a whole host of these occasions from Bonfire Night and Thanksgiving to pre-Christmas parties and they will all pose their own challenges but being prepared (to say NO) is often the best course of action. 

 

I’m only advocating saying NO to the worst of the excesses and for me and

most of us sweets/candy are the worst. But it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the occasion, just learn to celebrate in a different fashion. I’ve covered this before and it’s worth repeating so click the link below for the basic guidelines ….

 

Basic Guidelines to Avoid the Sweets/Candy (see here)

 

Then take a look at the non-food treats you can reward others with that are just as enjoyable ….

 

  

Non-Food Treats (see here)

 

And finally look at some food-based treats and spooktacular party fare dishes that are bariatric-friendly … with a couple of new ones to add to your repertoire.

 

        

Spooktacular Recipe Ideas (see here)

 

CREEPY CHEESY EYEBALLS

These make great Hallow’een party bites and are simple to make in about 10 minutes. To make 8 – place a slice of black/ripe olive in the middle of each mini Babybel light cheese rounds (you’ll need 8). Fill the hole of the olive with reduced sugar tomato ketchup (or red food colouring diluted in water if you prefer). Use a paintbrush to paint on ketchup or colouring to produce bloodshot lines. 

Each EyeBall has about 54 calories; 6g Protein; 0.2g Carbohydrate; 3.3g Fat

 

GHOULISH PEARS:

Poach your own pears (or use canned ones in fruit juice) – peel pears if poaching your own but leave the stalk intact. Place in a pan with water or apple juice and a cinnamon stick. Poach by simmering gently for about 20 minutes until tender but not fallen. Remove from the liquid and allow to cool. Boil the liquid to reduce to a syrup consistency to serve with the pears if liked. When cool cut a thin layer from the base of each pear so that they stand. Place each on a plate and spoon over a little of the syrup if liked. Give each ghost pear two eyes with dried blueberries or currants (make a small hole with a skewer first to make sure the eyes stay in). Push sunflower seeds into the pears to make a small circle for a scary ghost mouth. Drizzle a little dark coloured honey or dark food colouring into the mouth for a scary blood-curdling look.

Each Ghoulish Pear has about 95 calories; 1.1g protein; 19.5g carbohydrate; 1.4g fat

 

And for no other reason than they’re cute here’s my Hallow’een treat and best wishes to you for a great time … CAROL X