50 Spooktacular Halloween Snack Ideas and How to Make Them
Cauldron not included.
To throw a spooktacular Halloween party, you need a few key ingredients: candy (obviously!), good Halloween cocktails, some Halloween party games to keep guests on their toes, and, of course, good Halloween party food. But here's the thing: a party is only one night, and spooky season lasts at least four weeks (depending on who you ask), and you'll need sustenance to keep your spooky spirit up until November 1. So, if you save all the Halloween food for the party, what’re you going to eat those other 30 days of the month? Sure, you could do that by eating regular food (lol), but why would you do that when you could simply try your hand at these Halloween snack ideas?
There are two kinds of Halloween snacks: monster snacks and fall snacks. Sometimes, a little squash or pumpkin flair is all you need to make something on theme, but other spooky snacks might require a little extra effort. And while a witch would normally never reveal her secrets, in the spirit of the holiday, I’ve decided to be generous and provide you with a whole smorgasbord of Halloween snack recipes. Just FYI, you may wanna hit up your local craft store for some festive cookie cutters (and some food coloring) before you start.
Vampire Cookies
Turn basic chocolate chip cookies into festive mouthpieces with these vampire cookies, designed to look like vampire dentures. Just don't forget to take a bite out of this sweet treat before it takes a bite out of you.
Pretzel Spiders
These no-bake creepy crawlers are a healthy alternative for the holiday—the recipe is filled with yummy ingredients like oats, peanut butter and dates.
Witch Finger Cookies
Ding dong, the witch is dead... and we're eating her fingers! This dark but undeniably Halloween-ready recipe turns shortbread cookies into creepy witchy body parts. All you need is some dough, food coloring, almond slices, and jam.
Dirt Cake Trifle
Halloween has the unique ability to turn the phrase "eat dirt" into a special treat thanks to the strategic use of Oreos, gummy worms, and chocolate, which come together to create the most delicious dirt possible.
Skeleton Veggie Tray
Veggies are not the food group that comes to mind when I think of Halloween, but a skeleton made entirely out of vegetables with dip as the head is really making me rethink what I consider holiday-appropriate.
Aperol Spritz Trifle
Admittedly, Aperol Spritz isn't the first thing you think of when you think of Halloween, but you can't deny the fact that this cocktail-inspired desert looks like an elevated, adult-friendly version of candy corn.
Peanut Butter Nutella Candy Bar Brownie
An XL brownie bar topped with candy corn and chocolate peanut butter cups? Say no more. Customize this shareable sweet with quite literally any and all Halloween candy you have lying around (assuming you have leftovers, that is).
Witch Cupcakes
If you don't feel like baking, but also want everyone to *think* you turned on your oven, then decorating store-bought cupcakes is your best bet. All it takes is some cupcake liners, tape, and a toothpick to transform these cupcakes into witch hats. SpOoky, no?
Dip-Dyed Donuts
Bake these donuts to perfection and decorate them with black and purple food dye to really give your dessert spread a spooky boost. Bonus points if you stick on a few edible googly eyes while you're at it.
Sweet and Salty Caramel Apples
If you're trying to take advantage of all the picture-perfect apples that fall has to offer, dip some in caramel, drizzle 'em in chocolate, and sprinkle sea salt on top. Good luck eating just one though. 😇
Jack 'O Lantern Quesadillas
Practice your pumpkin-carving skills with these festive quesadillas. Fill each 'dill with your choice of cheese, meat, or veggies, and all of your guests will be thrilled to chow down own their own personal jack 'o lantern.
Mummy Meatballs
Savory meatballs wrapped in crowd-favorite crescent rolls? Say less. Purchase a bag of frozen meatballs to make this appetizer extra easy to execute.
Toasty Cinnamon Twists
Remember the cinnamon toast cereal of your youth?? Yeah, these sweet twists take *exactly* like that, minus the soggy squares and milk dregs you'd regularly find at the bottom of the bowl.
Monster Munch
Forget the haters who like to remind you that "candy corn is ~gross~" and sprinkle an entire bag of it on freshly popped popcorn. Add in a drizzle of chocolate, a handful of pretzels, and you're in business.
Pumpkin Gnudi with Vanilla Brown Butter
Maybe you're thinking of doing an Italian cuisine night for your next Halloween party, in which case, you're going to want to revolve the meal around this gnudi. These plush lil pillows create the perfect carb base for copious amounts of grated parm and all of the vanilla brown butter.
Mummified Garlic Bread
Garlic bread is arguably the most delicious item on any dinner table (no offense to all the other apps out there), but with visible strands of melted mozz on top, this mummified recipe is sure to impress even your most picky party guests.
Pumpkin Butter Brie Pull-Apart Bread
This pull-apart bread has everything: Pumpkin butter? Good! Brie? Good! It's the perfect combo of salty and sweet, just prepare to answer a lot of "hey, can you send me a link to this recipe?" questions all night.
Banana Mummies
Feeling like your shindig is missing something sweet? Slide a banana onto a stick, drizzle it with white and milk chocolate, then decorate using chocolate candies. Problem solved.
Quick Caramel Apple Fudge
Emphasis on the quick here. If your guests are in the Uber and you still have to, um, decorate your entire place, these caramel apple fudge squares are super simple. Basically you just dump together the ingredients, including apple, caramel, and white chocolate chips, and microwave them. This recipe’s extra fall-ish and makes a batch of 36 pieces, so you’re covered even if you end up with post-party crashers.
Dark Chocolate Fudge Pomegranate Tart
If you're willing to put in a little more effort for a chocolatey dessert that also gives off a spooky vibe, please clear off space on your kitchen counter for this tart. It's chocolate + fruit (a winning combo,) and screams sophisticated while still leaning into the fun of Halloween.
Olivia Truffaut-Wong is an editor at Cosmopolitan, where she covers beauty, entertainment, and lifestyle. She loves finding and testing the best skincare products to recommend, like the best tinted sunscreens, and is always researching the best cat accessories for her fur baby. She has over 10 years of experience as an entertainment and culture writer and editor, and her work has been featured in The Cut, Refinery29, Teen Vogue, Polygon, Bustle, and more.
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