Spooktacular Tricks and Treats for Halloween
Are you ready for Halloween?
Today is the DAY! Little ghosts and goblins will soon roam the neighborhood, filling up their buckets with candy and treats.
My kiddos are beyond the age of trick-or-treating, and I actually miss it.
Never thought I’d say that!
Especially since trick or treating in the PNW usually means slogging around in the rain, balancing an umbrella, and trying NOT to lose kids down dimly light streets.
Our first house was in the most PERFECT neighborhood because of all the trick or treaters. Literally, our front door never closed, and we would easily go through 6 Costco bags of candy.
Yep, 6.
And because of the magic of a small town, we knew everyone who came to the door. Kids would bound into the house, spreading out their loot on the floor, trading Almond Joys for Snickers and slurping down huge mugs of warm hot chocolate.
Their parents would stand around in the doorway, and I’d refill their tumblers with mulled wine or “grownup” hot chocolate. And my husband and I would flip a coin on whose turn it would be to take the kids out for another round of trick or treating.
That was how we did Halloween.
Nowadays, with my kiddos LONG over trick or treating, we spend Halloween watching scary movies, and handing out candy to the few groups that come by.
BUT, if you are still deeply entrenched in this holiday, I’ve got some fun tricks and a favorite treat for you.
First off, one of my absolute favorite treats.
It’s not sweet (there’s lots of candy already, so I like a little savory for balance), but there are 2 types of cheese AND salsa AND the outside is covered in crushed Doritos.
Ummmm….yeah….this is ahhhhmazing!
Basically, it’s my dream snack on Halloween.
And it also makes a delicious appetizer to snack on for Thanksgiving…..but we’ll talk allllllll about Thanksgiving later!
Pumpkin Cheese Ball
and now for The Tricks………
Looking for an easier way to clean out your pumpkin?
Because, I don’t know about you, but scooping out stringy, gooey, slimy pumpkin guts has NEVER been my favorite thing to do.
Ever.
BUT…..with this trick, you can scoop them a whole lot easier!
Use an ice cream scooper.
So much easier than a spoon!
Speaking of guts, here’s a fun (and creepy) use for them.
If you’re hosting a haunted house, need an idea for your child’s classroom Halloween party, or want an extra decoration for your house, put the guts in a large witch’s cauldron. Cover the cauldron with some “cobwebs” for a spooky mystery box that is guaranteed to be a hit at the party.
OR, take an old shoe box, fill it with the pumpkin guts, put the lid back on and cover with fun Halloween paper, orange gift wrap or kraft paper.
Decorate the paper with scary stickers, googly eyes or other fun Halloween decorations. Cut a slit in the top, big enough for someone to put their hand. You can either label the box “zombie guts” or “brains” OR have kids guess what’s inside.
Before you throw away the pumpkin seeds…….don’t!
If you’ve never had fresh-from-a-pumpkin toasted pumpkin seeds now is the time to sort through the guts (I know this part isn’t fun, but get your kids to help and I promise it will be worth it!), pick out the seeds, rinse them, bake them and see what you’ve been missing.
The key is to spread them thinly across a sheet pan, drizzle with melted butter and salt.
Bake them in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes, until lightly golden brown. Let them cool and I pinky swear they are so good you won’t want to share them. Toss them on top of soup, in a salad, or eat them by the handful.
Hope you enjoy these treats (and tricks!) and don’t forget to tag your photos #amenuforyou.
Leave a comment below and let me know YOUR favorite treat OR trick! I’m partial to Reese’s and I ALWAYS toss out the candy corn…..always.
