It has been such a busy week getting ready for our ghost themed Halloween party. We all had so much fun though! The scavenger hunt was a hit, and the kids had a blast! With Halloween just a few days away, I wanted to share these simple Halloween treats that were enjoyed at the party as well. Please keep reading to the end to find out what the Pumpkin Prayer is.
Halloween Party
One little thing I want to add is a picture of the large ghost that I was planning on making in the last post. It was very simple. I just put a round white table cloth from the dollar store over a treasure chest. Then I cut two eyes and a mouth out of black paper, and adhered them to the table cloth. For how simple it was, this was probably the favorite of the night. The last clue in the scavenger hunt was to scare the ghost. When the kids said, “Boo!”, the ghost jumped and displayed the treasure chest that was filled with bags of candy for each child.
We absolutely love our little tradition of creating a safe and fun party for our family to come and enjoy with us. Other than a family Halloween party, we plan on going to our local Trunk or Treat on Halloween day, and then going home to watch a kids Halloween movie.
Ghost Banana Halloween Treats
These Halloween treats were so simple! All you need is some bananas, popsicle sticks, and white chocolate chips. I started by peeling four bananas and cutting them in half. Then I put a popsicle stick into each one. I laid them on a plate, and put them in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
Next, I took two 12 oz. bags of white chocolate chips, and melted them down using the double boiler method. This is when you put a pot with a little bit of water in it on the stove top on low to simmer. Then you place a glass bowl that can sit in the pot, but above the water. As the water heats the bowl, the chocolate will start to melt. The chocolate will need stirred occasionally. When the chocolate is fully melted, it can be removed from the pot.
Chocolate Coating
Now, the best part of these Halloween treats is the chocolate. To do this, I took the bananas from the freezer, and rolled them in the melted chocolate. Then I laid them on parchment paper, added two eye sprinkles for the face, and left them to harden. I recommend keeping the bananas in the freezer while you are doing this process. I took all of them out of the freezer when I started coating each one with chocolate. When I got to the last two, the bananas were almost too soft to roll in the chocolate. Once all of the bananas were covered, I placed them back in the freezer to keep chilled.
For the remaining white chocolate that was left in the glass bowl, I decided to make some chocolate bark out of it. This was a much tastier solution than just dumping it out. I poured the chocolate onto parchment paper and smoothed it out to about an 1/8″ thickness with a spatula. Then I shook some sprinkles onto it and added some sprinkle eyes.
Once the chocolate was hard, I broke it into random sizes. Then I placed those pieces in and around the ghost banana Halloween treats. This extra treat made the plate look that much more delicious!
Halloween Cookies with Buttercream
These next Halloween treats took a little bit more effort. As I am sure you know cut out cookies can take quite some time. The nice thing about them though, is that they only take 8 minutes to bake. Plus, I have a little helper, who loves punching out cookies with me. If you feel like going the extra mile, I made my own fresh pumpkin puree for the recipe. It makes any pumpkin recipe extra delicious. Once I have my bowl full of pumpkin puree, I will put it into ice cube trays to freeze for future use.
As for the cookie recipe, I have shared it in a previous post before. It is absolutely delicious, and they turn out perfect every time I make them. The longest part of this recipe is waiting for the dough to chill in the refrigerator. It is totally worth it though, because I have never had a problem with the cookies expanding during baking. If you would like to make them, please check out the recipe below!
Buttercream Ghost
Instead of covering each cookie in frosting, I decided to pipe a cute little ghost in the middle of my tray. I used a cake stand, and placed it on top of a plate for extra cookies below it. For the buttercream frosting, I used left over vanilla frosting that I had frozen in the freezer. Once it was thawed, I stirred it up in a bowl, and added it to a piping bag. Then I piped a cute little ghost. I left a two circles for the eyes and an oval for the mouth, so that I could fill them with sprinkles. These Halloween treats allowed the guests to have plain delicious cookies, or add a little extra sugar to them. They were so good either way!
The Pumpkin Lesson
Now that you have a few easy and delicious Halloween treats to try, I wanted to share with you a wonderful little pumpkin lesson that I found. I had the wonderful privilege of giving this lesson at our children’s church on Sunday. It is called the Pumpkin Prayer. If you would like to print up a booklet for your child to make, you can find it at https://christianpreschoolprintables.com/holiday-bible-printables/thanksgiving-bible-printables-crafts/.
If you haven’t carved your pumpkins yet, I would definitely read through this prayer as you carve them. It basically teaches your child how a pumpkin is like being a Christian. Here is how I like to explain each page of the little booklet.
- In searching for your perfect pumpkin at the pumpkin patch, it is like asking God for guidance and wisdom in life. Our prayer is that our children will always look to God before making decisions. We all need His guidance each and every day.
- When we get the pumpkin home, the first thing that has to be done is to scrape out all of the guts. These are all of the bad thoughts of jealousy and anger that God takes away from us and then replaces that with love.
- Then we begin to carve our pumpkin. We start with the eyes, which help us see clearly. Our eyes help us to see all of the wonderful and amazing things God has made for each and every one of us to enjoy.
- Now we move on to carving the nose. Where ever our children go, we want what they do and say to be a sweet fragrance to God.
- The last thing to carve is the mouth. When our children speak, we pray that they will have kind and loving things to say. We pray that they will speak of all the wonderful things that God does for them.
- Finally, it is time to add the light to the inside of the pumpkin. This is just like how God fills us with His light to shine for all to see. Our kids can spread His wonderful words by being a light to the world.
The booklet ends with this verse to finish up the lesson.
“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
I just thought this was such a wonderful way to bring God into your Halloween festivities. I hope you and your kiddos have an absolutely wonderful Halloween. Be safe and enjoy!