My Chocolate Fantasy

If you’re a busy mom searching for simple and quirky Halloween snacks for your kids, this article will get you covered. One of the best things about this holiday is that it’s relatively easy to play up with food. It excites kids to actually eat stuffs that scare or repel them. Here are some simple Halloween snacks that kids will surely love.

Witches’ broomsticks

This type of finger food is so easy to prepare. You will need pretzel sticks, a block of cheese and a pack of chives. To prepare, slice the cheese into strips the size of matchsticks. Put a stalk of chives on the surface you’re working. Place the cheese strips along the piece of chives. Be sure to leave about an inch on every side of uncovered chive.

Then, top with the pretzel stick. Pull the chive around the pretzel stick gently as you lift the cheese as well. Next, wrap the ends of the chive together. Arrange it on a serving platter, attached side down. Chill first before serving.

Monster Pops

This quick and exciting treat will make kids crave for more.  You will need big marshmallows, lollipop sticks, sweet white chocolate, frosting, a block of floral foam and green food coloring. You can buy lollipop sticks at any of your local party store or craft shop.

To prepare, insert a lollipop stick into each marshmallow. Inside a double boiler or a pan in medium heat, melt the white chocolate and then slowly add a few drops of green food coloring. Stir constantly until it is mixed evenly with the chocolate. Remove the mixture from heat. Dip the marshmallow into the melted chocolate until it’s coated, but avoid dipping for too long to keep the marshmallow from melting.

Let it stay upright using the floral foam. Repeat the same process for the rest of the marshmallows. Once all have been coated, put in the fridge until the chocolate sets. Then you can start decorating with icing. Finally, stick the lollipops into a real or synthetic pumpkin or serve in floral foam.

Creepy fingers

The beauty of this chewy, crackly treat is that you only need four ingredients to prepare it. Now you will finally have a good reason to nibble on fingers. To create creepy fingers, you will need three eggs, 1/3 teaspoon cream of tartar, ¾ cup refined sugar and whole almonds. To prepare, preheat oven to about 200 degrees. Then, line your baking pan with parchment paper.

Separate the egg whites from the yolk, beating only the egg whites inside your mixing bowl using a whisker. Beat well until you get a nice, soft fluff. Mix the cream of tartar into the foam well. Add the sugar gradually into the bowl, beating it on high until it forms stiff peaks.

Now, put the mixture in a large, plastic bag. Cut a tiny hole at the tip of the bag and then pipe it on the baking pan shaping it like fingers. Press almond onto the tip of the finger. Bake for about two hours in the oven; until they are crispy and dry.

Eating healthy has fast become a prevalent trend. Many people would like to eat more nutritious foods but often do not have the time to prepare a well cooked meal. Additionally there are times in between meals where you may feel like getting something to munch on. Whatever your reason choosing a snack that is nutrient filled is a better way to satisfy your cravings. There are a few suggestions below that can help you to achieve your ultimate goal of being healthier.  Banana and a Yoghurt Smoothie  Eating a fruit is a wonderful way to eat nutritiously. Combining a fruit with a dairy product can result in a delightful treat. You can find a bottled yoghurt smoothie that has approximately 100 calories in any supermarket or convenience store. Do not buy smoothies that contain fructose or high fructose corn syrup as one of the primary ingredients. Because it is a refined sugar it will cause your blood sugar to go up rapidly and then return to lower levels making you hungry soon after eating it. You can eat one banana and drink one smoothie which should have a total of 170 calories.  Wheat Thins and String Cheese You can take a serving of crackers and a bit of string cheese and make a fantastic and healthy snack to stop your hunger. Wheat thins contain fibre and whole-grain carbs while the string cheese has enough protein to satisfy your growing appetite. You can eat one single-serve bag of Wheat Thins and one string cheese which has a total of 250 calories.  Bag of Chocolate-Covered Pretzels Chocolate-covered pretzels are ideal for days when you are under a lot of stress and need some comfort food. These chocolate-covered pretzels are in no way nutritious, so they are not recommended for everyday snacking. However, they will fill you up temporarily because of their fairly adequate fat content. You can eat 1 single serving of chocolate-covered pretzels which should give you 130 calories.  Half a Wheat Bagel with Cream Cheese For a snack that has the potential to make you feel full, you can try a wheat bagel. It has a high amount of fibre and it should satisfy your hunger for a couple hours. Don’t eat more than one half of a bagel. You can add some reduced-fat cream cheese to make it more filling. You can eat one half of a bagel and add 1 tbsp of cream cheese which should be about 200 calories.  A Fresh Apple and Skim Milk An apple and a carton of skim milk is a fantastic on the go snack. Apple and skim milk both have necessary nutrients. Skim milk has calcium and vitamin D while apples are packed with fibre and beneficial antioxidants. You can drink one eight ounce carton of skim milk and one medium sized apple which should have just about 170 calories.

If you are concerned about your health and want to be able to eat better while still snacking occasionally, or maybe you’re a vegan or you have celiac disease, in any case, you want cookies. Well here are some healthy gluten free cookies recipes that will surely allow you to feel like you’re being good while still tasting deliciousness.

1. Flourless Chocolate Chewies: A great alternative that is healthy and tasty is nuts. They are one of the few foods that are really really good for you, like eat them every day and you will be better off for it. This is because of the healthy fats, the numerous nutrients and vitamins and their ability to remove plaque from arteries. Here’s what you need for these tasty treats:

Confectioner’s Sugar: 2 lbs.

Cocoa Powder: 6 oz.

Egg whites: 12 whites/oz.

Salt: 1 tsp

Vanilla extract: 1 tsp

Walnuts (or other nut): 1 lb chopped coarsely

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and place parchment paper on the cookie sheets

Combine all the ingredients working in the nuts last, folding them over

Drop the mixture into tablespoon size bites about 3 inches from each other

Bake them for about 12 minutes or until they’re slightly firm to the touch

When they’re done you should have about two dozen. Enjoy and if you can’t eat them all at once, store them in an airtight container – they’ll be good for about a week.

2. Chocolate and nuts are not for everyone, so here’s another light and delicious gluten free snack: macaroons. Here’s what you will need:

Almond Flour: 4oz

Brown Sugar: 1 oz

Cocoa Powder: 1 ½ Tbsp

Egg whites: 3 large

Confectioner’s Sugar: 2 oz

Red food coloring 1 drop

Preheat the oven to 450 and place parchment paper on the cookie sheets

Combine the almond flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder

In a different bowl, whip those egg whites until soft peaks form

Slowly add the confectioner’s sugar to the first mix with a drop of red food coloring to bring out the chocolatey color of the cocoa powder.

Continue whipping the egg whites until the peaks harden

Fold in the first mixture

Fill a piping bag with a ½ inch tip and squeeze out 1 inch tips onto the cookie sheet

Bake for 1 minute and remove to double pan

Turn down the oven to 375 and put them back in for about 8- 10 minutes or until they’re dry

Remove the cookies and pour ¼ cup of water onto the cookie sheet under the parchment paper

Let the water rest for a few minutes and then pour it off

Remove with spatula

If you want to add a hint of chocolate, you can make spread a ganache by following these steps:

Simmer 6 oz of heavy cream

Pour it over 4 oz of semi sweet chocolate and mix

Spread over the cookies

These two gluten free cookies recipes will be sure to amaze even those friends and family members who don’t watch what they eat. Try them both! I bet you didn’t know gluten free cookies could be so good.