Halloween is an exciting holiday because you can really go all out. You can decorate your house, think up elaborate costumes for the whole family and even cook up some deliciously spooky Halloween-themed food. If cooking spooky food isn't a family tradition, once you see these recipes you'll want to make it one! Make these all week leading up to the big day and your kids will love it.
We're going to keep things simple and prove how you can transform an ordinary pasta dish into a spooktacular one! After all, pasta dishes are often a kid and family-favorite. Put your creative cap on and let's get cooking!
1. Spooky Spaghetti With Eyeballs
Halloween is busy on its own. You have to get everyone ready, costumes on, get the creative makeup done, trick-or-treating bags ready and be out the door at a reasonable hour. The last thing on your mind is cooking up a meal.
If that's you, don't opt for the takeout because with this spooky spaghetti recipe you will see how easy it is to whip not just any meal up but one that is perfect for Halloween night. The colorful spaghetti comes from food coloring and the creepy eyes come from mozzarella balls and olives. Make your family Halloween dinner one they won't forget.
2. Frankenstein Pasta
Whether you're throwing a big Halloween bash or cooking an intimate dinner for your family you need to try making this Frankenstein pasta. It'll be the talk of the table and everyone will love it.
If you don't love dyed food then that is totally okay! Go the natural route with this recipe! Instead of green food coloring, this pasta is naturally colored thanks to basil pesto. Along with a few ingredients and a dash of creativity you can have this Frankenstein served on a platter quickly.
3. Jack-O-Lantern Mac And Cheese Cups
Creativity doesn't have to only extend to the food itself. Another great way to transform your meal into one that is Halloween themed is to be creative with the presentation.
This recipe by The Seasoned Mom takes ordinary macaroni and cheese and serves it in a Jack-O-Lantern cup. To create these, you'll simply use clear cups and a black sharpie marker. It's an interactive and easy way to get your kids involved in the preparations for dinner.
4. Toxic Waste Mac And Cheese
Macaroni and cheese is often a kid-favorite. There is no wonder why, it is creamy, cheesy and delicious! This recipe shows how you can give a traditional dish like mac and cheese a small makeover to make it perfectly fitting for Halloween dinner.
This isn't your average box of mac and cheese. This is homemade "Toxic Waste" mac and cheese with a few disgustingly awesome tweaks. You'll start off by making the homemade cheesy sauce then by adding in green food coloring your turn this average dinner into a toxic waste masterpiece.
5. Swamp Pesto With Severed Fingers
This dinner recipe is very creative but quite terrifying. You might want to save this one if you have older children at home.
The severed fingers are created from hot dogs, onions and a dollop of ketchup. Once the hot dogs are cooked and assembled you'll lay them on top a bed of linguine noodles. If you want to make this dish extra spooky add a few drops of green food coloring to the pasta for a spooktacular meal!
6. Healthy Halloween Pasta Salad
Pasta is great as a warm hot and hearty meal, but it is also a great ingredient for salads, like this one by Smile Sandwich. To create the deep color, you'll want to use a natural purple food coloring.
To finish the pasta salad you'll combine fresh veggies and Italian salad dressing for a delicious lunch or light dinner. You can even go an extra step, and get creative by cutting out cute jack-o-lantern faces in your cucumber slices.
7. Eyeball Pasta
If you're trying to avoid food coloring this Halloween, another great pasta option is spinach pasta. It's naturally green and perfect for a spooky bowl of dinner.
This pasta bowl gets a Halloween makeover with tiny edible eyeballs. These are made from cheese string slices and pieces of black olive. This recipe will fill you in on an easy secret to help you make the perfect eyes for a fun dinner.
8. Wormy Dogs
This recipe is incredibly easy. You will only need 3 ingredients that you'll most likely have on hand. The assembly is easy too so you can let your kids join in on the fun and make it a fun-filled family dinner.
These wormy dogs are created by pushing spaghetti noodles through cut up pieces of hot dogs. You'll boil the wormy dogs until the pasta has reached the perfect consistency. Then, to enjoy for dinner, serve with your families favorite pasta sauce.
9. Spooky Spaghetti Stuffed Peppers
Carving pumpkins is one of my favorite Fall activities. However, you don't have to stop there, try carving jack-o-lantern peppers.
They're so easy and your kids will get a kick out of them. It might actually encourage them to eat something healthy like peppers. Then to make this a wholesome meal, the jack-o-lantern peppers are filled with spaghetti.
10. Squid Ink Halloween Pasta
If you haven't heard of squid ink pasta, it's essentially pasta that has been naturally colored from squid ink. That sounds odd and maybe nose turning for some but this blogger exclaims that it doesn't have a strange taste what so ever!
The squid ink does, however, provide this pasta with a perfect deep black Halloween color. Pair the pasta with an orange harvest vegetable like butternut squash and a few other healthy ingredients for a healthy yet delicious bite.