56 Halloween Recipes To Give Your Party Guests A Fright

As food holidays go, Halloween is really only associated with one type of edible: candy, candy, and great big bags, buckets, and pillowcases stuffed with candy. Not even any one specific type of candy, apart from the ever-divisive candy corn (although any candy shaped like eyeballs, ghosts, bats, or pumpkins will likely go on clearance come November 1, and will be off the shelves long before Thanksgiving).

As Halloween expands from a single-day celebration to an entire festive season, rivaling the winter holidays when it comes to over-the-top decorations, we're not totally opposed to the idea of creating some kind of traditional sit-down Halloween meal. Hey, there are enough spooky snacks, both sweet and savory, to appeal to any kind of event. Whether you're having an adults-only dinner, a family-friendly party, or even just trying to get something into your kid before they overload on sugar, here are 55 recipes to kick off the festivities.

One problem with Halloween, at least, if you've got impatient young kids in the house, is that the main event –- that being trick-or-treating, of course! — doesn't really kick off until evening. That doesn't mean you can't still start the day in a fun and somewhat nutritious way with a breakfast of homemade pumpkin Pop-Tarts. These aren't just pumpkin spice flavored, but include real canned pumpkin (that's the nutritious part).

Top these toaster tarts off with orange-and-black sprinkles for a fun holiday treat. (And don't forget to bring them back for a Thanksgiving breakfast encore! Just swap your spooky sprinkles with a more autumnal color mix.)

Recipe: Homemade Pumpkin PopTarts Recipe

Everyone loves brownies, and they're always a welcome addition to any holiday party spread. But you know what's even better than plain ol' brownies? Brownies topped with adorable marshmallow "ghosts!"

These wee little wraiths are glued in place with delicious vanilla icing and get their too-cute-to-be-scary faces from a dab of black gel frosting. The decorating process is easy enough that you can get the kids to help, and the finished brownies will make for a "boo-tiful" centerpiece for your Halloween treat table!

Recipe: Halloween Ghost Brownie Recipe

If you're not familiar with buckeye cookies, they can be described as a kind of deconstructed peanut butter cup. The treat is actually more of a candy than a cookie, as the recipe contains no flour, nor are they baked. Instead, buckeyes consist of peanut butter sweetened (and stiffened) with powdered sugar, then dipped in chocolate.

For Halloween, double down on the "eye" part of buckeye by adding an extra dot of chocolate (perhaps a point-down chocolate chip?) in the center of each cookie to make it resemble like an oversized eyeball.

Recipe: Easy No Bake Buckeye Cookie Recipe

Pumpkins, for obvious reasons, are Halloween's official fruit (yes, pumpkins are fruit, though many people think of them as a veggie). Apples, however, run a close second, since bobbing for apples is one of those old-timey Halloween party games people played back in the days when no one feared sticking their faces into a pool of other people's germs.

A far safer way to enjoy this seasonal fruit, however, is with these slow-cooked baked apples, filled with tasty maple syrup-sweetened oats. Our recipe makes four apples, but you could easily scale up or make multiple batches for larger groups.

Recipe: Super Easy Slow Cooker Baked Apples Recipe

While Halloween party fare leans heavily towards all things sugar, it always helps to include some savory snacks in your holiday spread. Everyone likes nachos, and these cooked-on-a-sheet-pan ones couldn't be much easier!

In order to make them extra-Halloweeny, we suggest topping your nachos with black olives and orange bell peppers instead of your usual mix. You could also slice up some pimento-stuffed green olives to make "eyeballs." As a final touch, maybe drizzle your platter of nachos with sour cream or crema to create a spooky spiderweb pattern.

Recipe: Sheet Pan Nacho Recipe

Pumpkin pie is perhaps even more American than apple pie, and has been a perennial favorite in the U.S. almost since the first Thanksgiving. It can be pretty time-consuming to make, though, at least if you're going with a home-baked crust. A quicker, easier version, and one that makes for a lighter dessert, is to turn pumpkin pie into a delicious dip.

Try this pumpkin pie dip on a buffet or dessert charcuterie board with graham crackers and sliced apples for dipping. If you prefer single servings (or are worried about potential germs from double-dippers), you can always serve the dish in small cups or cupcake liners.

Recipe: Quick Pumpkin Pie Dip Recipe

Shamrock Shake?? Did we get our holidays crossed here, or is The Nightmare Before St. Patrick's Day now a thing? Bear with us here –- the reason this shake makes the cut is for its color. After all, you don't have to tell the kids it's a St. Patrick's Day staple. Instead, you can call it drinkable oobleck, an alien libation, or a slime monster milkshake. (Googly eyeball candies or spooky sprinkles on top would be a nice touch!)

Recipe: Copycat McDonald's Shamrock Shake Recipe

The phrase "healthy treats" often comes across as an oxymoron, along the lines of "short Russian novel," "tiny elephant," or "super-fun algebra equation." Many times, the stuff that goes into making something nutritious unfortunately detracts from the yum factor. That is so not the case with these no-bake peanut butter balls, since the nutritious peanut butter, oat, and honey filling is tasty enough on its own, and absolutely amazing when coated with a little bit of melted chocolate.

If you like, you can also shower these peanut butter balls with Halloween-themed sprinkles before the chocolate hardens for an extra festive treat.

Recipe: No-Bake Peanut Butter Ball Recipe

One of everyone's favorite pre-Halloween traditions involves a trip to the pumpkin patch to pick out the perfect jack-o'-lantern-to-be, and no trip would be complete without a fresh donut. Out-of-this-world delicious, right? But not the kind of thing you could easily make at home ... or so you might think. Frying in hot oil is so tricky, after all, not to mention potentially dangerous.

Well, how about making pumpkin donuts in the air fryer? They're just as tasty as the deep-fried kind, and you can have a whole batch of them hot and ready in less time than it takes to drive to the farm stand. (Plus, you can fry the donut holes for your very own DIY pumpkin munchkins!)

Recipe: Air Fryer Pumpkin Donuts Recipe

This is a two-fer holiday recipe, as the original version of these cupcakes was created with Easter in mind, but this dessert can easily undergo a Halloween makeover with just a few simple swaps.

Choose orange, green, black, or purple frosting (or perhaps a mixture of all four hues) and in place of the Cadbury Creme Eggs, use the company's Cadbury Screme Eggs. With their green "ooze" filling, you'll have a sweet treat sure to gross-out your guests.

Recipe: Cadbury Creme Eggs Cupcake Recipe

Bar cookies are a favorite for both bakers and eaters alike. The former love them because they're so effortless to make –- no rolling, cutting, or dropping; no batches to keep an eye on; and just one pan to get dirty. The lucky people who get to enjoy the cookies appreciate the fact that bars are nice, substantial, and almost cake-like, except you can still eat them with your hands.

These pumpkin bars are not only tasty and seasonally appropriate, but they are so easy they are to make: just cake mix, canned pumpkin, butter, and a sprinkling of cinnamon. Stir, bake, enjoy!

Recipe: Easy Pumpkin Bars Recipe

Hot chocolate bombs, no matter how easy they look in those TikTok videos, do require a bit of effort to make, but the results are pretty darn impressive.

While this version calls for edible gold dust (mixed with vodka, though no need to worry — the treat is still family-friendly, as the small amount of booze will evaporate), you can always swap out the fancy decorations for some Halloween sprinkles. You could also use icing or melted white chocolate to make the hot chocolate bombs into giant chocolate eyeballs, pipe on spider webs, or create other spooky designs. Include some sprinkles or spooky-shaped marshmallows in the cocoa mix for a fun surprise.

Recipe: The Hot Chocolate Bombs You'll Want All Year Round

Who didn't love playing in dirt as a kid? Eating dirt, well, not so much ... at least not after that one failed experiment when you were three. A delicious dirt cake, however, is a whole 'nother story. This recipe is actually more of a parfait, as the cake is made from crumbled Oreo cookie "dirt" layered with delicious chocolate "mud" pudding.

Top this treat off with some yummy gummy worms and maybe, since it's Halloween, a few candy bones or even a cardboard tombstone. This kid-friendly recipe is so simple to make you'll have plenty of time to get creative before guests arrive.

Recipe: Easy Dirt Cake Recipe

Whether you want to make formal Halloween dinner a thing or are just trying to fill up your family with something warm and nutritious before a night out on the town, these pumpkin and parmesan-filled ravioli are sure to be the star of your meal.

These ravioli are surprisingly easy to make, too! No need to roll out sheets of pasta, since this recipe uses wonton wrappers instead. They really don't need an elaborate sauce, either, as a simple sage-seasoned brown butter suits their delicate flavor. Top with an extra sprinkling of cheese and voilà! Even the most candy-loving kid won't be able to resist.

Recipe: Homemade Pumpkin Ravioli Recipe

Apple cider donuts are one of the true joys of fall, worth driving miles out into the country since the very best ones seem to be sold at apple orchards and fried right on site. If you're trying to cut back on fried foods, though -– either that, or you've put your car on a gas diet and long drives for donuts just aren't going to happen -– well, you'll be glad to know you can easily bake your own cider donuts in the oven.

These donuts, along with a mug of hot apple cider, make the perfect treats for telling ghost stories on a dark, chilly night.

Recipe: Easy Apple Cider Donuts Recipe

While cake pops may no longer be the most trendy treats on social media, they are still a fun and relatively mess-free way to serve cake. Our recipe calls for an almond bark coating that you can try tinting in Halloweeny-y colors. For a nut-free dish, we suggest using chocolate instead of almond bark.

Top your pops with spooky sprinkles and maybe color the cake batter green to give your guests a shock. You can even use some frosting to decorate your pops with goofy monster faces, jack-o-lantern smiles, or spiderwebs.

Recipe: Cake Pops Recipe

You might think of pumpkin as primarily a dessert ingredient, starring as it does in pies, quick breads, and other baked goods. Lately, though, pumpkin savories have been increasing in popularity, and that's a trend we can get behind 100%. Pumpkin is such a nutritious food, after all, so why shouldn't it be the focus of a tasty meal?

This pumpkin pasta recipe is chock full of goodness, including veggies, coconut milk, miso, and nutritional yeast for an extra flavor boost. Bonus: this creamy dish is vegan! You could even make it with gluten-free pasta to make sure you've covered everyone's dietary needs.

Recipe: Instant Pot Pumpkin Pasta Recipe

What better dessert for a classy Halloween dinner party than a cake that's deep, dark, and mysterious? The mystery, in this case, being what holds this cake together in the absence of any flour (shh, the secret is butter, sugar, eggs, and a generous amount of dark chocolate, all combining to make for a dense, decadent dessert).

To make this cake extra-Halloweeny, create a spooky powdered sugar spider web on top using a doily.

Recipe: Flourless Chocolate Cake Recipe

We can't quite tell if these pumpkin streusel muffins are breakfast or dessert. On the one hand, they're called muffins, so that makes them a breakfast dish, right? On the other hand, they are made with cake mix, so they're kind of straddling the fine line between muffins and cupcakes.

Mupcakes? Cuffins? Call them what you will, eat them when you like, but if you love pumpkin-flavored baked goods, you've got to give them a try.

Recipe: Easy Pumpkin Streusel Muffins Recipe

Halloween and Day of the Dead are not the same holiday, despite their use of similar imagery and happening one after the other. There's of course no reason not to celebrate both, and if there's one thing you can be sure of, it's that churros are a welcome sight no matter which holiday you're celebrating.

While these churros are delicious simply dipped in cinnamon sugar, you could sub in pumpkin pie spice to up the fall flavor. Decorate them to suit the occasion with sprinkles, colored sugar, crushed cookie crumbs, and frosting, or serve them simply alongside a bowl of chocolate dipping sauce.

Recipe: Churros Recipe

These super-cute Halloween pumpkins could hardly be any easier -– or healthier! Seriously, all you need to make them is two ingredients: clementines (or tangerines, or mandarins) and nice, leafy celery stalks. Peel the fruit, then use small pieces of the celery, leaves included, to make little "pumpkin" stems.

Vegan, gluten-free, and only 50 calories each, these adorable little snacks are suitable for almost every diet. Parents will also appreciate having at least one nutritious food available for their sugar-loving kids to enjoy at the Halloween party.

Recipe: Halloween Clementine Pumpkins Recipe

Need to get energized before a long night of trick-or-treating with the kids or want to offer a pick-me-up to friends as they head out the door? No need for a Starbucks run, as you can always make your fall favorite Pumpkin Spice Latte at home with this quick copycat recipe. It contains real pumpkin as well as pumpkin spice and gets a caffeine kick from instant coffee to save time on brewing espresso shots.

The whole thing comes together in less than 10 minutes, and any misspelled names on to-go cups can be a punny Halloween trick you play on your friends to accompany their caffeinated treat. (Frank-enstein, Bella-Donna, Night of the Living Dan? We'll be here all week!)

Recipe: Copycat Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe

If you're a fan of pumpkin-flavored coffee drinks, you'll understand why pumpkin coffee cake works so well. This cake doubles down on the fall flavor, since it uses pumpkin in both the cake batter and the streusel topping.

This pumpkin coffee cake is already a lovely orange color, but to give it some extra seasonal flair, you could always tint the glaze with black gel food coloring or add a sprinkling of black sugar to the top.

Recipe: Best Pumpkin Coffee Cake Recipe

Is your favorite part of making cookies when you get to decorate them? If you want to skip the baking altogether and get straight to the creative part, it's perfectly okay to start with a store-bought cookie and then fancy it up to make it all Halloweeny. This super simple recipe takes just 2 ingredients (Oreo cookies and mini chocolate chips) and transforms them into adorable little bats — no baking required!

Recipe: Oreo Cookie Bats Recipe

Every year around Halloween, all of the fast food chains begin to trot out their seasonal fall offerings. While there are numerous spins on the PSL, Dairy Queen goes a far more indulgent route by mixing real pumpkin pie into one of their Blizzard ice cream treats.

If you want to DIY this fall treat, there's no need to bake a whole pie only to smash it up. Our copycat version achieves a similar taste and texture by blending pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla wafers with vanilla ice cream.

Recipe: Copycat Dairy Queen Pumpkin Pie Blizzard Recipe

Peanut brittle is one of those treats that gets us all nostalgic for those old-timey Halloweens few of us actually remember: the ones where strangers handed out homemade treats at the door and invited you in for punch and party games.

While you definitely don't want to do that unless you know the trick-or-treaters (and their parents) really well, you and your guests can still enjoy delicious homemade peanut brittle at your Halloween party. Try dressing this candy up with some Halloween sprinkles or edible googly eyes for a spooky-sweet treat.

Recipe: Homemade Peanut Brittle Recipe

Peanut blossoms are a popular option in every cookie swap, but the idea of a cookie topped with a Hershey's kiss is something that deserves a version tailored to every holiday. For Halloween, what could be more perfect than swapping out the peanut butter cookie base for one made with pumpkin? While pumpkin + chocolate might not be the most common flavor combo, they're absolutely delicious together, so we predict these cookies will be something you'll want to add to your annual repertoire.

Recipe: Pumpkin Hershey Kiss Cookies Recipe

Candy corn would hardly be considered everyone's favorite Halloween treat, not by a long shot. While there are some who do enjoy it, numerous others greet its annual reappearance with a resounding "blecchh!!" If you're in the latter camp, you'll be relieved to know that this parfait really only utilizes the candies as a garnish — one you're not obligated to eat. The candy corn-colored layers are instead made of far more nutritious ingredients: pineapple, mandarin oranges, and vanilla yogurt.

Recipe: Best Candy Corn Parfait Recipe

The very thought of a Halloween party might be terrifying to some people -– not because of the spooky decorations, but because they dread facing a table full of sugar, sugar, and more sugar. But there's no actual law stipulating that Halloween must be celebrated with nothing but candy and sweets. Why not treat your guests to a tasty, yet nutritious and filling snack like this roasted pumpkin hummus?

Serve it with chunks of whole-grain bread, pita, or sliced veggies to make a wholesome party platter everyone can enjoy.

Recipe: Easy Roasted Pumpkin Hummus Recipe

Are you spooked by super-hot foods? No need to worry with these candied jalapeños. The sugar in this recipe helps to tame the jalapeños' heat, so you're left with something that is as sweet as it is spicy.

These green peppers would make them a great addition to any Halloween charcuterie board — you could even use them to make witches' hair, monster claws, googly ghost eyes, or the stems for mini pumpkin cheese balls.

Recipe: Quick Candied Jalapeños Recipe

If you're looking for Halloween-themed savory snacks, you'll for sure want to include these cute little witches' brooms. They are so simple they go together in just the twitch of a nose, although you won't need any magic powers to make them.

Just take a skinny pretzel stick and push it into the end of a piece of string cheese to serve as a broom "handle", then peel the cheese to make the broom's "straw."

Recipe: Cheese And Pretzel Broomsticks Recipe

If there is one candy almost everybody wants to see in their trick-or-treat bag, it's Reese's peanut butter cups. Year after year, this salty sweet tops the charts of favorite Halloween treats, and for good reason since milk chocolate + peanut butter is the perfect combo.

If you want to be the most popular house on your block, by all means give out Reese's cups to the kids (full size for bonus points), but try making a batch of these homemade ones to enjoy with your family — or all by yourself, no judgments. One great thing about these DIY peanut butter cups is that you can easily swap out the peanut butter for any seed-based one, so they can be enjoyed by people with nut allergies, too.

Recipe: Copycat Reese's Peanut Butter Cups Recipe

Even before stores like Trader Joe's and Aldi started pumpkining all the things every fall, there was one savory pumpkin dish that could reliably be expected to make an appearance on autumnal menus: pumpkin soup. It's creamy, it's tasty, it's nutritious, and it can be dressed up for an impressive dinner party dish when served in hollowed-out mini pumpkin tureens, or dressed down served in shot glasses for a less formal affair. This soup recipe even doubles up on the pumpkiny goodness by using toasted pumpkin seeds as a garnish!

Recipe: Creamy Pumpkin Soup Recipe

Are you a fan of candy corn? Ehh, not so much, you say? Well, that's no reason to pass on this recipe since it contains no candy corn whatsoever, nor is its flavor reminiscent in any way of that corn syrup confection. Despite the fact that neither candy corn nor popsicles seem like the most nutritious treat, these homemade candy corn-colored popsicles are guaranteed good for you! Their stripes are made up of coconut milk, pineapple juice, and OJ, so this is one popsicle you can even let the kids have for breakfast.

Recipe: Best Candy Corn Popsicles Recipe

Pudding is an old-fashioned type of dessert that seems to have fallen out of favor in recent decades. When is the last time you saw pudding on the menu at any restaurant other than the type of classic diner that also offers "fruited gelatin?" If your only experience with pudding is a snack pack in your elementary school lunch bag (or perhaps worse, the kind served in a cup on a plastic tray with "skin"), you may be surprised to find out how delicious the homemade kind can be.

This pumpkin pudding, in particular, has all of the pumpkin pie flavors you love, and it's made with plant-based milk so even vegans can enjoy the creamy treat.

Recipe: Homemade Pumpkin Pudding Recipe

Ever since macaroni and cheese got trendy, it's been upgraded with all kinds of fancy ingredients like lobster and truffles, as well as more down-to-earth add-ins like chili, chorizo, and buffalo chicken. It was inevitable, then, that one day mac and cheese would meet up with the similarly popular pumpkin, so yes, pumpkin mac and cheese is now a thing.

Note: this recipe is not for pumpkin spice-flavored mac and cheese (yuck!), but instead, it's a savory, cheesy dish with some extra flavor, color, and added nutrients provided by pumpkin puree. Festive, flavorful, and filling — what more could you ask from a Halloween meal?

Recipe: Best Pumpkin Mac And Cheese Recipe

One of the first signs of fall -– long before the leaves start changing colors and right around the time when back-to-school store displays start giving way to Halloween decorations -– is the return of pumpkin spice season. Even some who are slightly embarrassed to order the titular Starbucks drink will make the pilgrimage to perform this annual autumnal rite. And once you're at Starbucks, it would be a shame to leave without another pumpkin goodie in hand, most likely their moist and flavorful pumpkin bread.

If you're craving the seasonal treat but don't want to leave the house (or pay the big bucks charged by the chain), this copycat Starbucks pumpkin bread recipe will leave you more than satisfied.

Recipe: Copycat Starbucks Pumpkin Bread Recipe

If you're a parent, a teacher, or another caregiver tasked with providing a seasonal snack that's kid-friendly, there are two words that are sure to catch your attention in any recipe description: nutritious and easy. Well, these banana ghosts definitely fit the bill! You can even have the kids prepare their own snacks if you chop the bananas in half ahead of time. They'll just need to peel their half bananas, then poke two mini chocolate chips (pointy end in) into to the fruit make the ghost's eyes.

Quick, snap a picture before these adorable ghosts disappear into hungry bellies!

Recipe: Easy Banana Ghosts Recipe

Three-ingredient recipes have been around since the days of nuts, roots, and berries (just add woolly mammoth to make it a complete meal!), but they are trendier than ever since we're all looking to simplify our lives and cut down on some of the clutter in our kitchen cabinets (thank you Marie Kondo, for showing us the way).

To make this rich, gooey pumpkin dessert, all you'll need is a box of cake mix, a can of pumpkin pie filling (spices included), and a jar of marshmallow cream. Top the cake with orange and black colored sugar or spooky sprinkles for extra holiday fun. Sure, this will make for four ingredients, but Halloween only comes once a year!

Recipe: 3-Ingredient Marshmallow Pumpkin Cake Recipe

Every year it's the same struggle: The kids are antsy to get into their costumes and head out trick-or-treating, but you want to make sure they have a decent meal before they start filling their buckets (and bellies) with candy. Everyone might be a bit more willing to sit down at the table if you're serving up this yummy monster pasta for dinner.

The whole thing comes together in under 20 minutes (pasta cook time included) and is as healthy as it is Halloween-y. Adults will enjoy the marinara-topped spinach noodles, and even the most anti-vegetable kid will find it hard to resist the hearts of palm/olive "monster eyeballs."

Recipe: Best Halloween Pasta Recipe

Most of the candy scattered around your house at Halloween is likely of the pre-packaged variety, either from a trick-or-treat haul or what you stocked up on to prepare for all the hungry ghosts and gobblin' goblins who'll be dropping by. While it's not cool to hand out homemade goodies to kids you don't know, it can still be fun to try making your own candies for a party or your family to enjoy — especially if they're as easy as these copycat Mounds bars.

All you'll need to make them is condensed milk, coconut, and dark chocolate for dipping. Simply freeze the coconut filling so it holds its shape before dunking in the chocolate.

Recipe: Homemade Mounds Bar Recipe

Pumpkin bread is one of our favorite seasonal snacks. The puree makes for a moist, tender, and oh-so-delicious treat, while having the added bonus of being full of vitamins and fiber. If there's one thing that can take pumpkin bread to the next level, though, it would be the addition of chocolate.

This recipe for pumpkin chocolate chip bread is extra-flavorful as it not only uses pumpkin pie filling, but adds some extra spices like cinnamon, cloves, extra pumpkin pie spice, and a splash of maple syrup — plus chocolate. What more could you ask for in a fall treat?

Recipe: Easy Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread Recipe

Need to whip up a kid-approved Halloween treat in a hurry, but you've got no time nor inclination to bake? No problem, we've got you covered with this super-simple recipe.

All you'll need to do to make these cute spider cookies is to melt some chocolate chips, then dip Oreos in the chocolate and attach pretzels to make each spider's legs (you'll need 8 of these to be entomologically correct). Add some M&Ms to make the spider's eyes, and you're done in just about 5 minutes! This project is great for the whole family, though clean up may turn it into a longer activity the younger your child is. While melted chocolate isn't too hot, it does tend to get everywhere.

Recipe: Halloween Oreo Spiders Recipe

While Starbucks is known for making upscale coffee available to the masses, they may also have helped to introduce the scone to a wider U.S. audience. By now, these sweet-but-not-too-sweet breakfast treats have been embraced by fans everywhere, especially the seasonal pumpkin scone that makes its appearance every autumn along with the infamous PSL.

Should you want to dish them out en masse at your Halloween brunch (or party, who says scones are only for breakfast!), or even get a craving for a pumpkin scone outside of the fall season, you can bake up a batch with this copycat recipe.

Recipe: Copycat Starbucks Pumpkin Scone Recipe

Who doesn't love a quesadilla? They're so easy to make and filled with one of the best things on earth — your favorite cheese. But you know what's even more fun than a quesadilla? Super-cute holiday quesadillas like these jack-o-lantern-shaped ones!

All you'll need to make this perfect Halloween lunch or afternoon snack is the rudimentary knife skills to carve a face in the top tortilla. Shred some orange-colored cheese to make for a pumpkin-hued filling, then maybe serve these quesadillas with a side of "green slime" (salsa verde) for dipping.

Recipe: Easy Jack O Lantern Quesadillas Recipe

Pumpkin pie is a tried and true holiday dessert, pumpkin bread is well on its way to becoming a seasonal staple, but pumpkin cake has yet to match the popularity of the classic cake made with that other orange veggie, the carrot. Why is this? Pumpkins are equally colorful, just as nutritious, and even easier to work with if you use the canned kind. What's more, as this recipe demonstrates, pumpkin cake tastes just as scrumptious under a delicious frosting made from sweetened cream cheese.

For Halloween, we suggest giving this cake a try over your go-to carrot cake recipe.

Recipe: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Sheet Cake Recipe

When you see cream puffs in a bakery, they seem like something that would be next to impossible to make at home. Surprisingly, these pastries are not as difficult as you might think. 

The rich, buttery choux dough puffs up perfectly as it bakes, leaving a hollow middle perfect for filling with sweetened whipped cream. This cream puff recipe ups the deliciousness factor by mixing in some pumpkin puree and warm autumn spices, making for an elegant Halloween dessert.

Recipe: Pumpkin Cream Puffs Recipe

You know those foil-wrapped chocolate eyeballs you can only get at Halloween? (Well, duh, nobody wants a Christmas eyeball.) They're fun to put in the candy bowl or use on a Halloween snack tray, but they tend to hang around long after the holiday's gone since they don't actually taste all that great. Well luckily for you, these yummy homemade eyeball candies as just as fun, and won't stick around nearly as long.

They've got a tasty peanut butter and honey filling and are dipped in white chocolate before being finished off with M&M "irises."

Recipe: Halloween Candy Eyeballs Recipe

Hummus comes in so many flavors these days — even dessert hummus is now a thing. So why not pumpkin pie hummus? This sweet spread is as easy as, well, pie to make it yourself. (TBH, it's actually quite a bit easier.)

As per the name, this pumpkin hummus recipe calls for just three ingredients. How can this possibly work? Shh! We took a shortcut, using plain store-bought hummus and adding pumpkin puree and a dash of pumpkin pie spice. If you don't mind a fourth ingredient, add some roasted pumpkin seeds as a garnish.

Recipe: 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Hummus Recipe

How do you feel about Rice Krispies treats? If your answer is something along the lines of "They're okay, but kind of plain," we're with you. This recipe, however, gives that most basic of bar cookies a double-chocolatey makeover. Cocoa Krispies are used in place of the regular kind, while the bars are topped with delicious melted chocolate. While the recipe calls for dark chocolate, you could use milk, white, or even ruby. For a Halloween-y touch, finish off the treats with sinister sprinkles or pipe on frightening frosting faces.

Recipe: Easy Chocolate Marshmallow Crispy Bars Recipe

When Halloween is over, you don't have to get out of the party mood right away. The very next day -– or rather two days –- are dedicated to the celebration known as Dia de los Muertos. Sugar skulls and skeleton dioramas aside, the Day of the Dead has nothing to do with supernatural monsters and everything to do with celebrating dearly departed family and friends. Perhaps that's why the color palette associated with the holiday isn't dark and gloomy, but rather vibrant and colorful –- just like these pan dulce conchas. While they are made in a cupcake pan, these not-too-sweet holiday treats are made with a yeast dough and topped with colored sugar in lieu of frosting.

Recipe: Colorful Pan Dulce Conchas Cupcakes Recipe

While most Halloween cookies, particularly the kind thickly layered with frosting, are meant to appeal to kids, these biscotti are a dessert with adult appeal. Biscotti as a rule aren't too soft or sweet, and they're best dipped in coffee or even wine. The biscotti in this recipe are flavored with pumpkin puree as well as pumpkin pie spice and maple syrup, and they're both vegan and gluten-free, so they are suitable for serving to guests (or ghosts) with those dietary restrictions.

Recipe: Best Pumpkin Biscotti Recipe

No matter what else is on the menu, Halloween is ultimately all about the candy, right? No, wait, it's also all about the decorations ... or is it the costumes? No need to get into a big debate over it! While there are probably numerous people arguing the topic on social media right this minute, rather than wasting your time jumping into the fray, why not prove them all wrong (or right) by bringing these three things together with a platter of "costumed" candy arranged in amazing Halloween party centerpiece?

Recipe: Best Halloween Candy Platter Recipe

Pumpkin is something that works well in all manner of baked goods, but one of our all-time favorites is the pumpkin donut. While every donut shop is likely to be selling them at this time of year, did it ever occur to you that pumpkin donuts might not be all that difficult to DIY?

Even if you're not a fan of deep-frying, you can still make these donuts at home. Our recipe makes use of a donut pan to bake these ring-shaped goodies in the oven for a treat that's somewhat healthier than the fried kind.

Recipe: Baked Pumpkin Donuts Recipe

If you want to celebrate Halloween or the Day of the Dead with an adult beverage, Mexican-born chef and restaurateur Richard Sandoval has the perfect libation for you. It takes as its base the standard margarita (rocks, not frozen) made with top-shelf tequila, sour mix, and agave nectar, but omits the triple sec or other orange liqueur in favor of passionfruit puree. As a crowning touch, this holiday drink is garnished with thyme and fresh marigolds. Yes, the marigold is an edible flower!

Sandoval describes its flavor as "citrusy, subtly spicy, and herbaceous." Even if you don't eat the garnish, the flower's festive color makes for a beautiful beverage — and it's meaningful as well! Smithsonian Magazine explains that marigolds are important to the holiday, as they are believed to help our loved ones' spirits find their way to traditional alters.

Recipe: Chef Richard Sandoval's Flor De Muertos Margarita – Exclusive Recipe

The best part of holiday parties for many is the opportunity to graze and sample a wide variety of treats. How often are we presented with multiple sides, mains, and desserts in one setting? Well, this Halloween charcuterie board is a great way to combine all your favorite spooky snacks in one place. Think of it as an excuse to go all-out on a platter for your scary movie marathon or place it in a tucked away spot for guests to pause between drinks.

We love the combo of homemade and store-bought ingredients, meaning this platter looks like a lot more work than it is. Make it as large as needed by adding more small snacks (may we suggest some of the ones shared above?), cured meats, and cheeses.

Recipe: Halloween Charcuterie Board Recipe