Creepy, Crawly, Creative Eats For Halloween

Creepy, Crawly, Creative Eats For Halloween
By Camille Rhoades

Halloween is such an exciting day, but finding a way to get anything other than sugar in the bellies of those ghosts and goblins can be a real challenge. From school parties to trick-or-treating they have a pretty constant flow of the sweet stuff from morning until bedtime.

These recipes are funny, spooky, kooky, and creative…and might just trick your monsters into eating something other than treats before they head out.

Bone Chillin’ Breadsticks and Halloween Dip

12 Rhodes™ Dinner Rolls, thawed but still cold
1/4 cup butter, melted
Parmesan cheese
poppy seeds

Halloween Dip

1 pound lean ground beef
1 pound processed cheese, Mexican style
10 ounce can diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
4 ounce can diced green chilies, undrained

Using the flat of your hand, roll the center part of a roll into a 6-inch rope leaving both ends large and rounded. With scissors, clip 1 1/2 inches into the center of each end. Separate and lay the cut sides flat on a large sprayed baking pan. They will look like bones. Brush well with melted butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and poppy seeds.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise about 20-30 minutes. Remove wrap and bake at 350°F 15-20 minutes. Serve with Halloween Dip, if desired.

Halloween Dip:
In a frying pan, brown ground beef until completely cooked. Drain and set aside. Cut cheese into 1-inch cubes and place in microwave safe bowl. Microwave until melted. Add tomatoes and green chilies and mix well. Combine cooked ground beef with cheese mixture and serve warm.

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Pizza Mummies

Whole wheat English muffins
Spaghetti sauce
Chopped green onions or chives
Black olives, sliced
Green bell peppers, chopped
Red bell peppers, chopped
Mozzarella string cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Spoon about 2 tbsp. of pizza sauce onto each slice of English muffin.
Put two sliced olive eyes on each English muffin.
Poke a tiny piece of chopped green onion, chives or a bit of red or green bell pepper into the center hole of each black onion to make creepy eyes.
Arrange a few pieces of thin string cheese across the pizza mummy to look like wrapped bandages.
Put the pizza mummies on an ungreased baking sheet and bake them for about 10 minutes, until the muffins are golden and toasty, and the cheese is melted.

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Octodogs

A hot dog
Sharp knife

Cut the bottom 3/4 of a hot dog into 8ths (using vertical cuts). Leave the top 1/4 intact.
Boil as normally would.

When done, your child will enjoy a crazy octopuss with wavy arms!

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Jack-O-Lantern Quesadillas

1 package flour Tortillas
1 package shredded Mexican or Taco cheese blend
Sour Cream
Cooking oil spray

Toppings- any combination of:
Salsa
Black Olives, sliced
Sweet peppers- green, red, or orange.
Jalapenos
Chives or green onions, chopped

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Or, pre-heat Quesadilla maker if you have one.
2. If using oven, line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.
3. Lightly spray the bottom of one flour tortilla and place it on the cookie sheet.
4. Add shredded Mexican or Taco cheese blend on top of the tortilla.
5. Place a second tortilla on top of the cheese.
6. Lightly spray the top of the tortilla with cooking oil spray.
7. Bake in oven for about 3 minutes.
8. Quesadilla is done when the cheese is melted, and the tortilla begins to turn a light brown.

Topping/Decorating the Quesadilla... this is the fun part. Use your imagination and "artistic" talent!

1. Use a pizza cutter to cut quesadilla into six slices, but do not separate them.
2. Use a spatula to spread some sour cream on the quesadilla.
3. Add splotches of salsa to represent blood.
4. Use black olives or Jalapenos to represent eyes.
5. Cut green pepper into a nose shape.
6. Use red or orange peppers for the mouth.
7. Use long slices or chopped green onion or chives for eyebrows and hair.

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Tuna Spook Sandwiches

1 (8 ounce) can solid white tuna fish, packed in water
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 celery stalk, finely diced
14 slices white sandwich bread
14 raisins

Drain water from tuna and place in small mixing bowl; break the tuna into small pieces with a fork. Mix in the mayonnaise, lemon juice, and celery.
Cut the bread slices with a cookie cutter into the shape of a ghost. Spread 7 slices with the tuna mixture and cover each with a second slice of bread. Use the raisins to make the eyes on each sandwich. Serve with celery and carrot sticks.

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