Growing up I LOVED Halloween! The spooky decorations, the thrill of scary movies, and yes of course the candy too- I loved it all! I used to lag behind my friends and let them trick-or-treat at the houses first, so I could get a full report of the candy selection (wow what a trick-or-treat snob!!). My favorite candies were butterfingers and Reese’s peanut butter cups, and with diligent effort, I’d have a pillowcase full of them by the end of the night!
Halloween memories are a bit different as an adult though! I used to go trick-or-treating with my nieces and had fun watching their excitement when choosing their candy treat. I, on the other hand, always ate too much candy and felt bloated, tired and little groggy (even the into the next morning). And if there was any candy around the house, the torture would continue!
You live and learn! Now I plan on my Halloween being fun AND scary too! But the scary should be reserved for ghosts and haunted houses, not artificial colors, flavors and preservatives found in your typical Halloween candy. I’ve learned that it is possible to still have fun and connect with those childhood memories without the blood-sugar rollercoaster…and next-day candy hangover.
If you have little ones at home, there are ways to monitor your kids’ sugar intake too (check out the Halloween Book Fairy video on our Facebook page)! Consuming too much of the sweet stuff can make our trick-or-treaters more susceptible to colds and the flu due to a compromised immune system. High sugar consumption has been linked to a number of other chronic health issues (diabetes, weight-gain, etc.). While it’s healthy to treat yourself every so often, you need to make sure you don’t overdo it.
If you’re headed out to (or hosting) a Halloween party, make sure you eat a healthy, filling meal before you leave. Kids will be less likely to candy-binge on a full stomach and, for the adults choosing those Halloween cocktails, it also helps to fill up on a healthy meal beforehand. If you’re hosting the Halloween party, try to avoid giant bowls of candy! Savory roasted pumpkin seeds offer something seasonal and crunchy to nibble on, check out this super easy recipe! If you’re looking for something to satisfy that sweet tooth, try these super decadent, no-bake, dark chocolate, grown-up version of those peanut butter cup favorites I had as a kid. They are decadent AND healthy? Yep, it must be Black Magic…
Black Magic Dark Chocolate Cups
You’ll need:
½ cup coconut oil, melted
½ cup raw cacao powder
1 Tbsp. brown rice syrup
2 Tbsp. canned coconut milk (check the Asian food aisle)
¼ cup nut butter
2 Tbsp. frozen blueberries (optional)
2 Tbsp. chopped nuts (optional)
large pinch sea salt
small paper candy cups or muffin cups
Directions:
1. Arrange paper cups on baking pan.
2. In a small bowl, combine the coconut oil and cacao powder until smooth. Then stir in the syrup and coconut milk. (Note: the coconut milk from a can works best in this recipe since it has a thicker texture than the coconut milk from a carton)
3. Pour a thin layer into the bottom of the paper cups.
4. Freeze for 5 minutes, then remove from freezer and spoon thin layer of nut butter into each one. Add in your (optional) frozen blueberries or nuts.
5. Pour the remaining cacao mixture on top of the nut butter layer and scatter sea salt over.
6. Refrigerate for 30 minutes until set (or if you’re short on time, freeze them).
7. Enjoy the Black Magic Dark Chocolate cups right from the fridge/freezer, beware these will melt at room temp!
Here’s to your Happy, Healthier Halloween!
Live your WHOLE life,
Shannon + Meg
Recipe inspired by Sarah Wilson
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