Find the ingredients in Halloween candy a little spooky? You’re not alone. I’ve created loads of healthy Homemade Halloween Candy for your little ones to fill up on before they go trick or treating. Truth be told, big kids, aka adults, love these healthy Halloween treats too!
Trick or Treats
This healthy homemade candy will take the trick out of the treat. No refined sugar, artificial coloring, or toxic chemicals in these easy, wholesome recipes. These healthy Homemade Halloween Candy recipes are the perfect way to please palates in search of sweets this season!
Healthy Homemade Halloween Candy Recipes
Here are my favorite healthy Homemade Halloween Candy recipes!
Gummy Bears
Gluten-Free Candy Bars
Homemade Mounds
Peppermint Patties
Almond Joy Bars
Nut Butter Cups
Orange Coconut Clusters
Macadamia Caramel Clusters
Fudge Babies
Our Creepy Crawly Halloween Strategy
Our boys, now 11 and 13, started their Halloween candy careers when they were 7 and 9 years old. BTT (before trick-or-treating) we took them to a haunted house at the Waldorf school which distracted them from the unhealthy aspects of Halloween. Now our strategy is to let them trick-or-treat. We offer them money for their candy, paying by the piece, and they love it. They sell us about 80% of their haul and keep what they really like.
The Halloween Buy Back System
This works for me because the boys are in middle school, an age where they are increasingly out of the house with more freedom of choice to exercise regarding food. Selling the candy to us allows them to create their own boundaries with foods they know are seductive, yet devoid of nutrition.
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Your Halloween Plan
If you’re trying to maintain a healthy household, how do you deal with the onslaught of processed Halloween sugar that arrives each year? Do you let your children trick-or-treat? If you do, do you let them keep their candy? What about the Halloween fairy? Does she visit your house? Let’s all share our strategies (or lack thereof) for dealing with the season of sugar.
Melodee Issa says
Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes and advice. I have 2 daughtersagrs 2 and 5. We started with the candy fairy from the time my daughter understood what candy was about(around 3 years old). The candy fairy comes and spine all of the sugar into special gifts for the girls. This works for all of our candy laden events.
Elana says
Thanks Melodee!
Barb says
I removed any items or home made treats that could be tampered with. My children were allowed to keep their loot bags in their rooms. Most things were not eaten. I ate the odd piece. They are grown up and did not develop a candy or sugar habit. I give trick or treaters small bags of potato chips.
Elana says
Thanks Barb!
Lori says
What a great idea to buy our kid’s candy! Not only does it support our paleo lifestyle, but it supports our educational efforts related to saving and investing. Sweet in so many ways! Thanks.
Elana says
Lori, you’re welcome! I’m happy to help :-)
Chrissy says
Our dentist buys back candy and then ships the candy to deployed troops. Although I think that is an awesome program, we’ve never taken part. I allow the kids a few pieces that night and then a piece every day for awhile. They lose interest pretty quickly. We were never allowed to go Trick-or-Treating as kids and I always hated missing out on it!!! So, I’m not doing it to my own kids! They eat well so I don’t want to go too extreme buy eliminating everything “fun”.
By the way, I’ve made those Nut Butter Cups (truffles in my case). THEY ARE FABULOUS! I am still dreaming of them. Like Reese’s Peanut Butter cups except a million times BETTER!!! Thanks for the recipe!
Elana says
Chrissy, I’m so glad to hear you are enjoying my candy recipes!
Julie says
I read a tip in the newspaper this week from a mom who lets her kids keep all the Halloween candy — but it has to last until Easter! When the Easter bunny brings candy, that has to last until Halloween. I could see this working really well, depending on the age of the kids and how much they collect.
Thanks for the links! I’m looking forward to trying the peppermint patties.
Elana says
Julie, you’re very welcome!
KellyBelly says
Hi
My boys are 6 & 8 and have been selling their halloween candy to the dentist for $1/pound. During the rest of the year I will pay them for candy. The amount depends on how “yummy” the item is to them. The yummier the candy the higher the dollar amount. I also teach them about “quality” verus “quantity”. So this year I said I’d buy them a quality piece of chocolate after they sell the quantity junk candy.
Elana says
KellyBelly, that’s wonderful!
carmen says
We’ve never really had a battle with our 6 year old. We let him pick 15 of his favorites the rest goes to trash or husbands work. Sometimes we still have half of that candy at christmas. He’s always been empowered to make choices and now that he’s older he makes good food choices on his own.
Elana says
Carmen, thanks for your comment!
Sarah says
Last year we let our boys (4 and 2) trick-or-treat and eat a few pieces as we roamed the neighborhood. When we got home, they each picked 7 pieces of candy (enough to last a week eating one piece a day) and they left the rest out for the Candy Fairy. The next morning they woke to find a toy they had each really been wanting. I sent the candy to a dear friend of the family who was deployed to pass out to his fellow troops. We have the same plan for this year, and the boys are thrilled about getting to exchange the candy for a visit from the Candy Fairy. We want them to have the experience of trick-or-treating, but without the candy becoming a huge issue for the next few weeks. We talk a lot about how candy isn’t very good for their/our bodies, but it sure is a special treat that we get to enjoy sometimes. They seem totally ok with giving most of it up and I am so thrilled we found a solution that works for us all!
Elana says
Sarah, thanks for sharing your way of handling this!
Tonya says
I recently ordered your almond flour cookbook and the almond flour you suggested. So far I have baked the choc chip cookes and they are outstanding. I am a recovering sugarholic and the holidays are going to be brutal with temptations. Thank you so much for giving us healthier alternatives. I cannot wait to make some of the Halloween goodies for my family….and a few for me.
Elana says
Tonya, I’m so happy to hear that you are enjoying my first book and that the cookies in it are outstanding!
jamie says
Last year At our home we were visted by a switch witch after we went trick or treating…we left the candy out for her and she switched them for tatoos stickers, and healthy treats. The switch witch of course had rotten teeth ;)
This year were going to a friends halloween party where the children will be lead on a lantern walk in the forest in search of treats the jack o lantern will light the way!
Elana says
Jamie, that is so fantastic!