Halloween Can Be Healthy <i>and</i> Fun!

Happy Halloween with a healthy twist! Gooey, sticky treats -- chocolaty, chocolate bars loaded with caramel and nuts -- candied apples! How do you go healthy on Halloween? Jyl Steinback, "America's Healthiest Mom" and author of the Fat-Free Living Cookbook, says that you can keep all the fun in Halloween and take out a lot of the fat. Here are a few simple tricks for some healthy treats!

Focus On The Fun!
Start the holiday with a gathering of friends and family. Create a festive atmosphere where the focus is on fun, not food! Gather friends together for a Halloween party before you "trick or treat." Serve some healthy treats that look anything but healthy -- your guests will be pleasantly surprised!

• Have the children create their own Monster Pizzas with fat-free pita pockets or fat-free tortillas. Serve with fat-free pizza sauce, fat-free finely shredded cheese, chopped tomatoes, chopped black olives, green onions, green chilies, zucchini rounds, etc.
  


• Cut out fat-free bread with a Halloween cookie cutter; serve with trays of sliced turkey, fat-free cheese, pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, and condiments.
  


• Set out bowls of chili-spice popcorn, fat-free pretzels or fat-free Munchy Mix. Toss a few tablespoons of mini M&M's and candy corn into the mix for an extra special treat. You'll add a few extra calories and keep the mix under 1 gram of fat per serving. (Watch those serving sizes!)
  


• Serve healthy pumpkin bars; use several drops of orange food coloring to create colorful icing (combine powdered sugar with a little skim milk and mix until blended). Top each bar with one candy pumpkin or several pieces of candy corn.
  


• Apple dip: Serve whole apples on a stick or apple slices with fat-free caramel sauce instead of candied apples.
  


• Play Halloween Bingo using jelly beans for markers -- the winner gets to eat his/her row of winning beans.

Healthier Choices...Mixed with a Little Indulgence

This Halloween, let the children learn about making healthier choices. Teach them to read and understand nutrition labels on their candy treats. Which would they rather have -- 4 small squares of Hershey bar (1.4 oz.) or 20-25 jelly beans? The chocolate bar is loaded with 220 calories and 13 grams of fat; all those jelly beans have 146 calories and 0 grams of fat!