How To

Spookalicious Halloween Party Food Ideas

Written by Mint.com
Published Oct 17, 2012
2 min read
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If you’re planning to throw a Halloween party this year, the best fare should be creepy as well as cheap.

Only 7.1% of shoppers turn to content-sharing site Pinterest for costume ideas, according to the National Retail Federation. Fair enough. It’s probably easier to pick something browsing through the local pop-up shop.

But we think Pinterest is a go-to source for recipes for the third of consumers who say they plan to host a Halloween party.

The site’s users have plenty of tricks to spice up your usual party fare. Cheese ball? Shape it into a pumpkin. Chocolate cupcakes? Top ‘em with a split Oreo to mimic an owl’s giant eyes.

We hunted down more offbeat party fare that fits the bill — cheap to make, with a holiday look, and asked chefs, bloggers and other experts to add their picks. Here are 6 to try:

Cheesy Bones

Kraft’s recipe made it to Pinterest. To make, preheat the oven to 375. Separate a package of soft breadstick dough; stretch each out to five inches in length and knot the ends.

Roll in a quarter cup of grated Parmesan cheese, and bake 8 to 10 minutes. Serve with a dip of ranch dressing and a few drops of hot pepper sauce.

Witches’ Fingers

Pinterest turned up both sweet and savory versions of this treat. The sweet uses cookies; the savory, cut-up sausages or hot dogs.

Pizza Mummies

A scary taste on pizza bagels or English muffins with some strategically placed olives and mozzarella strips, via Pinterest.

Brain Cake in a Jar

If you’re sending guests home with favors, consider these cupcakes in a canning jar, tweaked to resemble brains.

Apple Bites

Yep, apples can be scary, too. Pinterest turned up these “green meanies” with pine nuts for snarly teeth.

That reminded us of a less creepy version from a column two years ago, that subs in marshmallows for a pearlier grin.

Crescent Mummy Dogs

Pillsbury’s Pinterest hit: cut a package of crescent rolls into strips, and do the same with two and a half slices of American cheese.

Wrap 10 hot dogs each with a piece of cheese and four pieces of dough to resemble a mummy. (Be sure to leave space for two mustard eyes after baking.) Bake for 13 to 17 minutes.

Frugal Foodie is a journalist based in New York City who spends her days writing about personal finance and obsessing about what she’ll have for dinner. Chat with her on Twitter through @MintFoodie.