My family loves the holidays.
It’s a time to get everyone together, celebrate each other, and of course, eat good food.
Halloween isn’t the most family style holiday, but I will take any excuse to spend more time with them.
For us, it’s time to break out our healthiest Halloween horror food!
I love making fun, Halloween themed dishes for my friends and family.
My favorites include Stuffed Jack O’ Lantern Peppers, Carrot Fingers in Hummus Brains, and Spidery Deviled Eggs.
Here are no hassle-recipes that are sure to spice up Halloween parties and make perfect afternoon snacks.
Stuffed Jack O’ Lantern Peppers
Ingredients:
3 bell peppers (orange or yellow)
2 cups cooked quinoa
½ diced onion
½ diced avocado
½ diced tomato
¼ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup almond slivers
Salt, pepper, garlic
Instructions:
1. Cut off the top of your peppers and clean them out
2. Cut faces into the front of the pepper (be creative!)
3. Make the quinoa mix
a. Cook the quinoa; 1 cup quinoa, 2 cups water
b. Mix in onion, avocado, tomato, cranberries, almond
c. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic
4. Stuff the peppers with the quinoa mix
5. After stuffing, the peppers can be eaten raw or cooked
a. To cook the peppers, place them in a shallow dish
b. Add ¼ cup of water to the bottom and wrap the peppers in foil
c. Bake for 20 minutes at 350, remove foil and bake for 7 minutes
6. Serve
Carrot Fingers in Hummus Brains
Ingredients:
Homemade or store-bought hummus
Baby carrots
Optional:
Slivered almonds
Bell pepper pieces (Red or Yellow)
For Homemade Hummus in 5 Minutes:
15 oz can of chickpeas
1 clove of garlic
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons tahini or sesame seed paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon paprika
Salt and pepper
This is probably the easiest recipe.
If you bought hummus in the store, place it in a bowl and put in the carrots standing up.
You can dab a bit of hummus onto slivered almonds or small pieces of sliced bell pepper and place them on the tips of the carrots as nails.
The homemade hummus recipe only takes 5 minutes:
1. In a food processor, puree all the ingredients except paprika
2. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water until the hummus is smooth
3. Transfer into a bowl and drizzle with olive oil and paprika
4. Stick in the carrots
5. Serve
Spidery Deviled Eggs
Ingredients:
3 eggs
6 olives (I like to use Green Olives)
½ Avocado
½ teaspoon white vinegar
½ teaspoon yellow mustard
Salt and Pepper
Paprika
Instructions:
1. Hard boil the eggs
2. Cut them in half and remove the yolks
3. Mash yokes with avocado, mustard, salt, pepper, white vinegar
4. Cut olives in 2, half for the spider’s body, half for the legs
5. Fill the egg whites with the yellow/green mixture
6. Top with paprika and olive spiders
7. Serve
All of the ingredients in these recipes are great for your heart and your health. They’re full of protein, good fats, and tons of vitamins and minerals!
• Olives are anti inflammatory and help prevent cancer and bone loss.
• Bell peppers have lots of vitamin c and antioxidants.
• Quinoa lowers blood sugar and triglyceride levels.
• Avocado supports healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
• Garlic protects your heart by expanding your blood vessels and increasing blood flow.
• Carrots prevent cancer and support your heart.
• Garbanzo beans support digestive health.
• Eggs rich in omega-3’s that support brain and heart health.
Tell me about your favorite, heart healthy Halloween recipes!
Catherine Faulkner, Princeton Nutrients Staff