25 Spooktacular Halloween Snacks and Treats

Are you looking for some great snacks and treats for your next Halloween get-together, class party or for fun treats for the family and friends? If so you've come to the right post!

I've gathered 25 goodies to share with you. Whether you like sweet or savory, simple or more elaborate, there is something here for everyone. 

20+ Awesome Cookie Swap Recipes from Iowa Bloggers

Mixers are mixing and ovens are heating up this holiday season.  If you are looking for some great recipes for your cookie swap or to keep for yourself, you've come to the right place. 

I am showcasing recipes from my fellow Iowa bloggers.  There is certainly something here for everyone!

Visit their pages for more yummies and crafts!

Make the best of everything

The Gingered Whisk

Ally's Sweet and Savory Eats

Corn, Beans, Pigs and Kids

Been THERE, Baked THAT

Sawdust and Embryos

Simplify, Live, Love

donnahup.com

Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownie Bars

One day I had a craving for brownies but then I had a thought that chocolate chips cookies sounded good too.  Then I wondered if I could combine them both in one recipe.  I took my great grandma's Congo Squares recipe and my Coffee Cream Brownie recipe and got to stirring.  The end result was better than I imagined it would be so I had to take my few pieces out of the pan and send the rest with my husband to work. He said they didn't last long before they were all gone and the plate was empty. 

Soft and chewy with a little bit of crunch from the nuts and the cookie bar dough on top makes this a taste for the senses! 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownie Bars                                                    Printable Recipe

Cookie Layer:

2-3/4 cups flour

2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup shortening

2-1/2 cups light brown sugar

3 eggs

1 cup nuts, coconut and/or chocolate chips

Brownie Layer:

1/2 cup butter, cut up

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate broken into pieces.

3 eggs

1-1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup flour 

3 Tablespoons finely chopped nuts

Apple Fritters

Recipe now at..... 

http://www.inthekitchenwithjenny.com/2016/06/apple-fritters.html

Strawberry Cheesecake Bars

Strawberry season is in full swing here in Iowa and I've already made one Strawberry Pie for my family.   Today I changed it up a bit and made these tasty cheesecake bars because who doesn't love cheesecake?!

You can use other berries if you like or even open up a can of pie filling.  All I can say is that it is a good thing it makes a small dish.  I can hear it calling my name from the fridge!  To help myself, I'll be wrapping some up for the freezer so the family can enjoy some now and some later.

Strawberry Cheesecake Bars  Makes 12                                               Printable Recipe

"Pie" Filling:
1 cup quartered fresh strawberries
1/2 Tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons corn starch
2 teaspoons cold water
Crust:
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1/2 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour (I used Einkorn flour from Jovial Foods)
Cheesecake:
8 ounces low fat cream cheese (softened as needed)
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

35+ Knock Your Socks Off Brownie Recipes

Soft, dense, ooey goey, frosted, plain or stuffed full of treats. There are so many ways to make brownies. I've gathered 35+ chocolately goodness recipes for you to check out.  Whether you like them plain or doctored up I know you will find a recipe here to try. 

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

I saw these cookies at a local gas station one day when I came in get a bottle of water.  The clerk told me these cookies were fantastic so I had to try them out.  I have to agree, they were quite delicious.  The next time I came to the gas station I found they had the cookies again.  This time with an ingredient label on the package.  To my dismay, there weren't strawberries in them at all.  It was some concoction to make strawberry "bits" and a list of ingredients that was crazy long.  The dried strawberries I found at the store are made of  real strawberries and cane juice.  I thought they tasted like fruit roll-ups!  You can also find them online, but watch the ingredients and also make sure they aren't freeze dried.

I set out to make a similar cookie so we can enjoy them at home. This base makes a thicker cookie than they had but are still tasty. You could easily switch out the strawberry bits and white chocolate chips for other delicious add ins and have a whole new flavor of cookie.

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies                                                      Printable Recipe

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 – 2/3 cup chopped dried strawberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Apple Cider Cinnamon Steel-Cut Oatmeal

My family has recently discovered steel cut oats.  They haven't been run through a bunch of processes other than a quick cut so when they cook they aren't mushy like quick or regular oats.

If you are looking for a warm, nutritious breakfast but don't have the time in the morning, try this oatmeal recipe.  You can throw all of the ingredients into the crock pot before bed, set a timer (in the electric section of the store that will turn your crock pot on and off for you based on how you set it) or program on your crock pot and you're off to sleep.  The oatmeal cooks without effort and in the morning you will have an aroma that smells like baked apple pie filling your kitchen.

This recipe makes plenty and you can save the leftovers in the fridge to heat up for another tasty quick breakfast. I made ours for dessert since I was testing the time needed to cook and wanted to be awake during the process.  After our family of four we devoured our share, there were still 2-3 servings to be re-heated for breakfasts.

Apple Cider Cinnamon Steel-Cut Oatmeal                                   Printable Recipe

3 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped

2 cups apple cider (or use 3-1/2 cups and leave out the water)

1-1/2 cups water

1 cup steel cut oats ( I used organic Bob's Red Mill)

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon sugar (I used raw)

Optional: chopped pecans or walnuts and pure maple syrup

Key Lime Cheesecake Bars

I saw a bag of Key Limes at the store the other day.  Curious about these tart little fruits, I bought the bag.  Not sure how to go about making Key Lime bars I looked a few recipes and then came back to the Apple Pecan Cheesecake Bars I made last fall and tweaked the recipe a little bit.  A little sweet, a little tart. They are perfect little bites of yummy!

If you don't have Key Limes where you are or don't want to take the time to squeeze those little guys you can use regular limes or lime juice from the bottle.

Key Lime Cheesecake Bars                                                             Printable Recipe

Crust:

1 cup flour

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

6 Tablespoons butter

Filling:

2 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1 Tablespoon flour

1/2 Tablespoon Key Lime zest

1/3 cup Key Lime juice

8 ounce package light cream cheese

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

Crumb Topping:

6 Tablespoons all purpose flour

2 Tablespoons cup brown sugar

2 Tablespoons old fashioned oats

2 Tablespoons quick oats

3 Tablespoons cold butter, cubed

Top 10 Recipes of 2014

2014 is drawing to an end and I thought we should take a look back at some of the fan favorites.  Most of them are from this year but a few from last year snuck in. 

I hope you enjoy the look back with me. Click on the title to see the recipe or click on the "pin it" link to go right to Pinterest to re-pin for later!

Turtle Thumbprint Cookies

 I love the classic “turtle”combination of caramel, pecans and chocolate so I decided to put them into a cookie!  I used the original thumbprint base, changed up the nuts, added caramel and then a finishing drizzle of melted chocolate.  Your friends and family will think you are a gourmet but won't believe how easy they are to make.  Bite sized and super delicious!

Turtle Thumbprint Cookies (28-30 cookies)                                   Printable Recipe

2/3 cup butter
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 egg whites, beaten
pecans, finely chopped
24 caramels
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1 cup milk chocolate chips (or semi-sweet or dark if you prefer)

Pecan Tassies

These little darlings are great to add to your holiday cookie plate.  The crust is light and flaky and there is just enough filling to fix your sweet tooth without going overboard.  They are freezable so you can make them ahead and not be in a time crunch closer to the holidays.  

Warning though, if you think that freezing them will keep you out of them, I can tell you from experience that they are pretty tasty, and edible right out of the freezer.  I didn't even break a tooth trying to eat one. 

Pecan Tassies          makes 24                       Printable Recipe (with doubled ingredients)

Pastry:

4 ounces light cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup (1 sticks) butter, softened

1 cups all purpose flour

Filling:

1 egg

1 cup chopped pecans

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 Tablespoon butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

Baked Chocolate Buttermilk Donuts with Chocolate Coffee Glaze

 Soft, moist, and just the right amount of coffee in the glaze.   You'll want to share with a friend (or two!) 

Baked Chocolate Buttermilk Donuts with Chocolate Coffee Glaze         Printable Recipe

Donuts:
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1/4 cup butter, melted
1-1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

Peanut Butter Candy Bar Brownies

I used up the leftover chocolate and caramel candies from Halloween in the Loaded Monster Cookie Bars.  This brownie recipe will use up all of your chocolate and peanut butter candies!

Peanut Butter Candy Bar Brownies                                                  Printable Recipe

1 stick butter, melted

2 eggs

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup all purpose flour

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Reese's Fast Break Bars

1/3 cup Reese's Pieces 

Loaded Monster Cookie Bars

Every year it happens.  People buy bags of chocolate goodies to give out and they over buy. Not as many kids show up as they thought.  Maybe they did run out of goodies to give out.  So off to the next day to get hit the 50% off sale off of leftover Halloween treats.  Either way, this bar cookie is easy to make and will use up the leftover chocolate bars and candies or that "on sale" bag that just had to be bought.  If you have a lot of peanut butter and chocolate candies leftover try my Peanut Butter Candy Bar Brownies.

Loaded Monster Cookie Bars                                      Printable Recipe

1/2 cup butter

1 egg

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup quick oats

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

1 teaspoon baking soda

Mini candy bars (IE. Snickers, Milky Way, Nestle Grand, Hershey’s Chocolate Bar)

2 small pkts M and Ms (or approximately 1/3 cup)

Baked Apple Cider Mini Donuts

We purchased an apple press this year and are pressing our own apple cider.  I mentioned this to someone and she told me about apple cider donuts.  Intrigued, I looked them up.  I decided I must make them!  I have tweaked my Baked Eggnog Mini Donuts with Eggnog Glaze recipe to include the flavors of fall.  Careful, they are addicting, especially warm.  I had downed a half dozen before I knew it.  Good thing I made them mini size!

As an after thought I thought an apple cider glaze instead of a cinnamon and sugar dusting might be lovely so I have included ingredients for that also.  

Baked Apple Cider Mini Donuts – makes 20 mini donuts           Printable Recipe

Donuts:
2-1/2 Tablespoons canola oil
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup apple cider reduced (see instructions)
1-1/4 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Couple dashes salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Apple Pecan Cheesecake Bars with Caramel

I love cheesecake and caramel apple pie so why not put them together in one dish? Drizzle on some caramel or leave it off.  We decided it is good either way!

Apple Pecan Cheesecake Bars with Caramel                                Printable Recipe

2 cups flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup cold butter, cubed
2 – 8 ounce packages light cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and shredded
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 Tablespoon sugar

Crumb Topping:
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup quick oats
5 Tablespoons cold butter, cubed
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Chewy Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

The only thing that would be better than a tall glass of milk is sandwiching a little bit of ice cream in the middle of two of these and making an ice cream sandwich!

Chewy Double Chocolate Chip Cookies                                     Printable Recipe  

1-1/2 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1-1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups mini semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Apple Pecan Bundt Cake with Apple Cider Glaze

Fall has arrived and I'm ringing it in with this beautiful bundt cake.  I love cakes made in this pan.  So simple and the pan does most of the work. All I did was drizzle on some glaze and sprinkle on the pecans. And viola...one gorgeous cake!

Apple Pecan Bundt Cake with Apple Cider Glaze                      Printable Recipe

1-3/4 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used French Vanilla)

1-1/2 cup canola oil

3 cups all purpose flour

1-1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon salt

3 medium Granny Smith apples

1 cup chopped pecans

Glaze and Topping:

2 Tablespoons apple cider

1-1/2 cups powdered sugar

3 Tablespoons chopped pecans

Old-Fashioned Banana Cream Pie

My family loves pie and I usually use a box of pudding to make the filling.  I had been using a sugar-free version for a while but we've made the decision that eating sugar (in moderation) is better than the SF stuff.  

I bought regular pudding in a box and it was good. Then I decided to try and make my own and get rid of another pre-measured boxed helper. It's so easy to make! Even if you don't want a pie, the pudding is fantastic alone and even yummy slightly warm.  The egg yolks add a lovely richness and color.  I see many more pies in our future. 

Old-Fashioned Banana Cream Pie

1 baked pie crust
2/3 cup sugar *
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2-3/4 cup milk (I  used whole goat milk)
5 eggs yolks
1 Tablespoon butter
1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2-4 bananas
whipped topping or 1 cup heavy whipping cream plus 2 T powdered sugar