Love Halloween but hate the focus on candy and sugar-filled snacks? Make easy tangerine pumpkins with your kids this fall (or try one of the other healthy Halloween treats below) for a magical, healthy, and happy Halloween!
I love celebrating the seasons and holidays with my kids. A special treat or simple activity can help to create a memory that will last their entire lives. Some of my favorite childhood memories include afternoons spent making Christmas candy with my Mom or running onto porches to deliver May Day baskets to neighborhood friends.
School Treats = Sugar
Today, there is much more focus on unhealthy food and sugar-filled treats than there was when I was a kid. School can mean a sugar overload for kids, including:
- Candy rewards and prizes from teachers.
- Classmates' birthday sweets.
- Class parties full of processed foods and treats.
I’m amazed at how the amount of sugar and unhealthy ingredients in our diet escalates rapidly from Halloween through the Christmas season. I love all the fun the kids are having, but I get a little disgruntled when I have to be the healthy-eating police for three straight months.
Give a mom a break!
I want to be able to prepare treats that thrill and delight my kiddos without contributing to the sugar shock! The good news is, with a little creativity, you can be the parent who provides healthy Halloween treats that are cute AND nutritious.
Healthy Halloween Treats
My favorite healthy Halloween treat is Pumpkin Tangerines… my kids call them Orange Pumpkins and then chuckle because all pumpkins are orange (kid jokes, gotta love ’em!).
The tasty treats are easy to assemble and could not be any cuter! (Save the peels to make Orange Vinegar for Cleaning). They are perfect for a school party, a lunch box, or even a side dish at your Halloween dinner.
Tangerine Pumpkins & 8 Other Healthy Halloween Snacks
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Snack
- Cuisine: Kids
Description
Healthy and adorable Halloween snacks for kids made with tangerines and celery.
Ingredients
- Tangerines (mandarin oranges or clementines, seedless)
- Celery stalks and leaves
- Orange peeler
Instructions
- Peel tangerines. Use an orange peeler, your fingernail, or a small paring knife to scrape off as much white pith membrane as possible. (Save the peels to make Orange Vinegar for Cleaning)
- Wash, dry, and slice celery.
- Cut 1-2-inch-wide pieces from the tops of the celery and insert them into the peeled tangerines.
- Cut the leaves from the celery tops and arrange them to resemble pumpkin leaves.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tangerine
- Calories: 52
- Fat: 0.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.1 g
More Healthy Snack Ideas
Kids can’t live on tangerines alone! Here are some more healthy Halloween treat ideas that will thrill and delight:
Edible Carrot Eyeballs
These veggie snacks are ghoulishly delicious! Made from carrot slices, cream cheese, and black olives, you can feel great about serving them to your kids. Dislike cream cheese? Try subbing Greek yogurt or ranch dip.
Candy Corn Fruit Cups from Nellie Bellie
Turn candy corn into a healthy fruit treat. The recipe uses oranges, pineapple & whipped topping to mimic the look of the Halloween staple. Use Greek yogurt or whipped coconut milk instead of whipped topping to maximize this treat’s nutritional value.
Frozen Banana Pops from Super Healthy Kids
Frozen bananas, yogurt, coconut, and chocolate chips make these healthy spooks. Use raisins in place of chocolate chips to avoid sweets altogether. Make an easy after-school snack version by simply putting fresh, peeled bananas on sticks and adding raisin eyes or mini chocolate chips.
Apple Witches Teeth
What terrible teeth you have! Apples and slivered almonds form this healthy snack. Have a nut allergy? Use pretzel sticks or even rice crispies to get the same look without nuts.
String Cheese Witches Brooms from Cocinando Con Catman
These string cheese, pretzels, and chives brooms will transport your little witches and warlocks across the moon. These adorable treats would also be perfect for a Harry Potter party.
Jack-o-Lantern Fruit Cups from Bren Did
Some schools require all snacks to be pre-wrapped. What’s a healthy mom to do? Buy mandarin orange cups packed in juice and tape-on simple jack-o-lantern faces. (Free printable pattern.)
Zombie Finger Cheese Sticks from A Little Lunch
Zombies are all the rage (have you seen my all-natural Zombie brain cupcakes?). Kids love eating these healthy snacks made from mozzarella string cheese, cream cheese, and sliced bell peppers. Want to go vegetarian? Slice peeled cucumbers into “fingers” and attach the pepper fingernails with dip.
Granola Cluster with Chocolate Eyeballs from Bren Did
Homemade granola is more fun when the tasty clusters are decked out with edible chocolate eyeballs. Get my easy granola clusters recipe and learn to make easy edible eyeballs.
Candy Corn Fruit Pops from Kitchen Fun with My 3 Sons
Another healthy take on classic Halloween candy corn. These adorable fresh fruit skewers are made from fruit slices and lollipop sticks. Easy peasy!
Free Printable Halloween Treats
Add these funny Halloween Joke Tellers to any party for more non-candy fun.
Make any healthy Halloween treats more fun with my free printable Halloween treat bag toppers. They have silly jokes on the back!
More Healthy Holiday Treat Ideas for Kids
Make sure to check out my Healthy Christmas Treats for Kids and Healthy Valentine Treats for Kids, too!
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Joy says
What a cute and easy seasonal idea! I was room mom for the first time this year (one in Kinder!), and the class was very on board for not-so-junky parties the whole year. (Popcorn, cheese chucks, veggies, pretzel sticks…and some sugar cookies and M&Ms to keep it a touch festive…but nothing really creative). This would go over very well. Keep the ideas coming!
Bren says
Thanks, Joy! I love class parties but agree with the no-so-much junk!
Allison says
I saw this post for the first time this year and I decided to make it for my kids for snack the other day. I used a grapefruit spoon to scrape the membranes off the oranges and it worked so well I thought I had to tell you! Thanks for posting such great, healthy seasonal snacks – my kids love them and I love that I can “play with their food”!
Tale says
The mandarins are so nice! Really cute 🙂
Bren says
Thank you! 🙂
Topfivemum says
You’re so right that sugar is in everything! How lovely to come across a healthy alternative that also looks beautiful for kids. Thanks for sharing!
Bren says
Thank you!
Lisa says
I love these cute, healthy and delicious ideas ????
Bren says
Thanks Lisa!
Meghan | PlaygroundParkbench says
These are ADORABLE! And love that they aren’t candy, and are allergy friendly for school parties too.
Bren says
Thanks, Meghan!
dtalipsky says
You are so talented! I remember being young once…..LOL! Thank you for your creative juices that stimulate the rest of us. God Bless You!
Bren says
Thanks Donna!
Tiffany says
These are so cute! What a great idea 🙂