Healthy Halloween School Treats

[SharpMomOfTwo]

I was talking to my DDs pre-school teacher yesterday about bringing in some cupcakes or something for halloween, and she said that the principal is really strict about holiday treats being healthy. Ok... makes it a little harder for me, but I really want to to try and make a fun halloween-y like treat for the kids.

I was thinking of making a cup out of baby carrots (making them go in a circle and "glueing" them with royal icing), but I can't think of a fun halloween-y idea for what to put inside. Any ideas? Food or toys maybe?? Any other ideas for healthy halloween treats? I want it to be really fun!



TIA

 

[imthatgirl]

i dont sent food in anymore. it rarely gets eaten anyway. so now i send in little goodie bags. i put pencils, erasers, eye balls, wax teeth, and anything else i can find.

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

Our school too has a heathy food only policy, however, we also have to send in only food packaged and sealed at a factory. I assume you don't have this policy. Before the no homemade foods policy, I would make carrot cake with applesauce cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and the teachers seemed to really appreciate that. Now, of course, we can't do that anymore, but it was fun back when we could. Maybe that would be someting fun you could do.

 

[AwaitingMagic]

You could make spider crackers. You take two Ritz crackers, spread peanut butter in between them. Take pretzel sticks and poke them in to make the legs and then you put little drops of peanut butter on top and 'glue' M&M's on for eyes. Course, you have to make sure you can do peanut butter in the class - but maybe you could use cream cheese or something instead if you can't? These were a huge hit when my kids were in preschool.

The other idea we used was to take plastic surgical gloves and stick a candy corn in each finger and then stuff the rest of the glove with popcorn and then just tie a bright ribbon at the bottom to hold it in.

 

[Deffenm]

I have seen eyeballs made out of grapes, I am not sure how exactly. You could also do "ants on a log" (celery sticks with Peanut Butter and then raisins on top). The peanut butter might be a problem if kids are allergic so you could use cream cheese. I like the popcorn hand idea. You could pop the popcorn and let the kids fill their own gloves.

 

[MaryKLady]

Healthy Halloween School Treats? I've never heard of such a thing?!?! Our school is the same way...I wish they'd lighten up a bit, it Halloween! The Ritz cracker idea is really good, though.

 

[Shagley]

The Family Fun website has lots of great ideas...

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/special/specialfeature/halloween_ms_food/

The cheese stick fingers looks healthy, easy and fun
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50015

 

[cheap traveler]

My DD's school isn't so strict on healthy treats for partys, so we have a little lee-way there. What I do is get the pretzel rods - you know, the 8ish inch long ones - and dip one end (halfway) into melted chocolate, and then into orange sprinkles. You could modify it, and maybe only dip a very small portion, so it is more pretzel and less chocolate?

 

[eeyorefan74]

I saw a neat mummy idea in a magazine today. Take a stick of string cheese, wrap it in a slice of ham, then wrap the whole thing with phyllo pastry and bake. They were really cute! I also like the Ritz cracker spider idea.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Pumpkin muffins. Use a little frosting to attach raisins to make a jack-o-lantern face on them.

 

[marcyinPA]

I'm a preschool teacher, and we discourage cupcakes of any kind. The kids just don't eat them. They'll lick off the icing and the rest gets pitched into the garbage.

Beware of making the cute treats with peanut butter. Most classrooms are now peanut free (ours is...several allergies)

We have a little party, and we request 3 types of food: pretzels, some sort of cookie, and fruit. Halloween is a good time for apple slices (with or without caramel dip). Our treats aren't always festive, but we also request the festive plates and napkins, so that helps make things more fun.

Our school doesn't have a healthy treat policy per se, but I know that our parents truly appreciate their children not being loaded up on junk at school. (I'm sure they get enough of it for trick-or-treat!)

 

[SharpMomOfTwo]

Ok, what do you think of this...

I make the baby carrot cup (it will look like a castle almost) and then put a little cup in there with some carmel or something that will stay soft without having to be heated, and some apple slices for dipping. I think that sounds cool... only problem - I just got a job, and the only way I could get this there is if DH (who happens to have that day off!) brings it in.

ETA - Apple slices with oxadise (SP?) and get all brown.... maybe I'll use - OOOH yougert and grapes - that sounds tasty.. I'll keep one for myself! Now I just have to figure out how to make royal icing, and hope that it keeps the baby carrots together.

 

[lisadr]

I did a compromise-I made monster hands.

I used plastic glove-not the latex powdered ones, and put a piece of candy corn in the fingertip, then filled it with Smart pop kettle corn flavored popcorn. You can add green M&Ms, or Jelly Bellies(if it's allowed) as warts. Then close with a rubber band or twist tie and tie off with raffia.

It's not totally healthy-but it was a good enough compromise for a SUPER-health conscious principal.

Hope this helps!

 

[imthatgirl]

Ok, what do you think of this...

I make the baby carrot cup (it will look like a castle almost) and then put a little cup in there with some carmel or something that will stay soft without having to be heated, and some apple slices for dipping. I think that sounds cool... only problem - I just got a job, and the only way I could get this there is if DH (who happens to have that day off!) brings it in.

ETA - Apple slices with oxadise (SP?) and get all brown.... maybe I'll use - OOOH yougert and grapes - that sounds tasty.. I'll keep one for myself! Now I just have to figure out how to make royal icing, and hope that it keeps the baby carrots together.

its a really cute idea, but i think i would scrap the carrot part and just send the yogurt and grapes in. i dont think youre going to keep the carrots together with the icing and then transprt them and then pass them out...i think youll loose most of your hard work.
if youre set on something cut for the cup, you could try using fondant and making really small cup. the fondant can be shaped and decorated any way you want. its one peice so its less likely to fall apart.

 

[EthansMom]

Utz makes little bags of pretzels in Halloween shapes (bats and pumpkins). I just bought some... 40 bags for $5 at Walmart, in the Halloween aisle, and I didn't have to make or bake anything. Plus, they are milk and nut free.

 

[sohappy]

If peanut butter is not an issue, these are really cute-

 

[marcyinPA]

its a really cute idea, but i think i would scrap the carrot part and just send the yogurt and grapes in. i dont think youre going to keep the carrots together with the icing and then transprt them and then pass them out...i think youll loose most of your hard work.
if youre set on something cut for the cup, you could try using fondant and making really small cup. the fondant can be shaped and decorated any way you want. its one peice so its less likely to fall apart.

I have to agree with you on the carrots. My thinking is that the kids won't eat them, after they've been touching icing It might end up being a waste (of food, time and money).

 

[natnelliesmom]

For Halloween last year I bought clear plastic beverage cups and filled them with green and orange melon balls. Then I topped each fruit cup with an orange jello jiggler pumpkin that I cut with a pumpkin cookie cutter.
The kids loved them and they were easy and healthy.
-Sarah

 

[snickerboo]

Have you checked out familyfun.go.com? They have tons of healthy halloween snacks (cheese strings to look like fingers, witch brooms made of pretzels and fruit-by-the-foot, mini pizzas made to look like mummies, etc)

I will second the: do not bother to send carrots comment. Orange or not, they will go in the garbage. I help with our school's snck program once a week. Every time we do carrots and dip, the carrots come back. The kids don't eat them.

The apple mouths that were posted above can be made with cream cheese or cheese whiz instead of pb if your school is nut-free.

 

[SharpMomOfTwo]

its a really cute idea, but i think i would scrap the carrot part and just send the yogurt and grapes in. i dont think youre going to keep the carrots together with the icing and then transprt them and then pass them out...i think youll loose most of your hard work.
if youre set on something cut for the cup, you could try using fondant and making really small cup. the fondant can be shaped and decorated any way you want. its one peice so its less likely to fall apart.

I didn't really mean for the carrots to be eaten, they are just part of the decoration - to make it more halloweenie. The dip will be in a cup inside of the "carrot castle" (put together by green oozing royal icing). As far as it not making the trip.... haven't done it yet, so I don't know 100% if it will, but I don't think I will have any problems. We are less than half a mile from the school (usually walk there), and there are only 9 kids in the class, so I can make 11 or so just incase something does happen in the way there.

Anyway, thanks for all the imput - I really like the gross looking mouths! I don't even know if Ill be able to do anything - the teacher picks different moms at different times to do different holidays..... I'm just planning in advance!!