Let’s face it, most houses are haunted with the remnants of piles of Halloween Candy the days and weeks following the festive eve. Most moms go crazy because their kids want to fill up on the sugary goodness instead of eating fruits and vegetables. And some parents (women specifically and single women who bought candy to give away and are left with extra!) are just mad because they are eating the candy. Relatively speaking, for most women, Halloween leftovers are a lose-lose situation. But you can’t throw it away, right?! After all, that’s wasting perfectly good food.
Oh, the haunted dilemma! Truth be told, this scary holiday launches us into months of eating from left-over candy to Thanksgiving pies and casseroles to Christmas cookies and office treats topped with New Year’s wine and celebrations and don’t forget the sweet goodness of Valentine’s. Stock-piling all these treats is likely not the best idea for our waistline or cholesterol levels! So, here are 5 things you can do to use and get rid of left-over Halloween candy without “wasting” perfectly good “food”:
- Top Your Kids’ Parfait: Looking for a way to get your children to eat protein-rich Greek yogurt? Top it with a crumbled Halloween candy and some nuts. A little sweet crumbled on a parfait gets your child protein, a serving of dairy and calcium along with other nutrients. It is a great way to for kids to enjoy their favorite Halloween treat in moderation paired with a healthy friend.
- Make Homemade Trail Mix: Most Halloween candy is bite size and little baggies of M&M’s, Reece’s Pieces, and Candy Corn likely exist all over your house. Allow your kids (or you and your husband/partner/roommate) to make their own trail mix. Pair nutrient-rich nuts and dried fruit with a mini bag of your favorite treat. Again, a little sweet surrounded with nutrient-rich ingredients makes a healthy snack that is satisfying.
- Spice up Your Coffee: Want to save $5+ and be your own barista? Make a normal cup of coffee with steamed milk and drop one of your bite-size Halloween treats into your cup of Joe and let it melt. From a dark chocolate mocha to a snicker doodle treat, your normal routine coffee can be spiced up this fall with some remaining Halloween goodness, for free!
- Use it as Holiday Decor: From making gingerbread houses to decorating gifts, most women are looking for ways to be creative. So, save your Halloween candy and let your kids decorate their gingerbread houses with it. If the wrappers are orange and gold, make little baggies of candy to decorate your house and give them to friends as they come over. You can even decorate holiday cookies and cakes with some of the candy to take to parties and family get-togethers.
- Give it Away: This might be the quickest option to get rid of temptation! Make baggies of candy and send to school or to a sleep-over with your kids. If you don’t have kids, take it to your office and dump it in a bowl far from your desk. There are even organizations that take unopened items to package and give away or you could take to a shelter to bless others. Giving candy away might not only solve your sugar-high, but also allow you to be a light to others.
