‘Fright Night’ feasts: Fun, family-friendly ideas for Halloween
Before the trick-or-treating begins, enjoy these treats from your kitchen
Getting out the door with costumed trick-or-treaters on Halloween night is a feat in itself, not to mention feeding your hungry ghouls when you get home. My family has gotten in the routine of making Halloween a chili night; it’s a make-ahead meal that satisfies over-sugared kiddos and adults alike. It can be left covered on low heat or transferred to a slow cooker and kept warm on your countertop while you pass out candy. There couldn’t be an easier meal that can scale up or down to feed a crowd or just a few, and leftovers can easily be frozen for another meal down the road.
We start our Halloween night early, with afternoon pumpkin carving (my husband’s job, thank goodness) followed by cleaning and roasting pumpkin seeds. Roasting pumpkin seeds helps to pass the time when everyone is eagerly awaiting sunset. The seeds are simply grilled with extra-virgin olive oil and salt. I prefer to use Old Country Olive Oil, which is harvested in Lebanon by a local Houston family. If you’d like to add some spice to your seeds, try za’atar, garlic powder or a pinch of cayenne and paprika.
Pumpkin Black Bean Chili can be prepped in about 15 minutes flat, and it’s a delicious seasonal option for vegetarian or healthconscious eaters. Topped with pickled jalapeños, grated cheese, sour cream or green onions, it has all the appeal of a traditional meat-based chili. Use chipotle chili powder for a slightly smoky note, but regular chili powder works just as well if that’s what you have on hand.
For younger Halloween eaters, it’s fun to create mummy dogs to snack on while getting dressed. A thin wrapping of crescent-roll dough gets crisscrossed over a small cocktail dog to look like bandages. Dots of mustard create spooky gold eyes. Even my high schooler thinks they’re cute and, truth be told, I can’t resist swiping a couple off the counter before heading out to hunt candy.
Of course, parents may want a libation to toast the end of a long night, and nothing sets the mood better than Eyeball Punch. It’s a version of a dark and stormy with some red cherry eyeballs thrown in the mix. Bubbly with ginger beer and a little sweet from the cherries, it’s the perfect nightcap for foot weary parents.