It’s the middle of October and Halloween candy displays are in just about every store I walk into.  It makes my inner child want candy corn and black and orange jelly beans, and licorice mustaches and chocolate treats, lots of chocolate treats.  Not going to work for me if I want to stay where I am or improve my weight and health.  I can’t be alone in my thinking so I today I am sharing a few ideas and suggestions I have seen or have had myself around Halloween treats:

• There is absolutely NO NEED to have candy out and around just because it’s Halloween- you can create the mood with decorations, witches, goblins, spiders, pumpkins and the like whether in your home, your office, your schoolroom if you teach, the teacher’s/nurses/doctor’s lawyers/engineers (you get the idea) lounge.
• If you have to bring a treat somewhere, or want to have a treat on your table as a centerpiece of sorts, or on your desk for your co-workers think about getting a box of Clementines (you know those incredibly sweet mandarin oranges/tangerines) and decorating them with cute jack-o-lantern faces done in permanent marker.  This can be a great crafts project for anyone from 3-99.  Display them in a shallow basket, bowl or witches hat and you have something that is healthy, in the spirit of the season and only about 40 calories.
• If you don’t want it to be edible but still want cute get some of those little mini pumpkins and decorate them the same way and place them in groupings all over the house or office or…..
• Need a sweet treat for a Halloween party - take 1 cup of cubed cantaloupe, 1 cup blackberries and 1 cup of blueberries and thread them on wooden skewers…This makes a plate of about 8 skewers, each one with around 18 calories.
• How about a savory treat for a Halloween party- take 4 ounces of low fat cheddar cheese, cubed and 32 black olives and thread them onto 8 skewers alternating orange cheese, black olive; well you get it..  Each of these has about 52 calories and 4 grams protein.
• Then there is always the round tray of baby carrots and black olives with a green stem(dip) that looks like a jack-o-lantern
• The piece de resistance are the Hot and Spooky eyeballs - unwrap 8 Babybel Lite cheese rounds, slice 4 olives in half and get out that sriracha sauce and a small paintbrush.  Place an olive half on each of the cheese rounds, dab some sauce in the center and paint some bloodshot eyes from the center to the edge of the cheese.  Each of these disgustingly delicious treats are about 54 calories and 6 grams of protein.

So you see you can celebrate Halloween, decorate as you like and have healthy themed snacks around for all to share.

Who has some other ideas for healthy Halloween treats?  Please share them with us.  Inquiring minds want to know.