Treats and Tricks for Kid’s Parties - Big Y® World Class Market®

Easy Planning For a Frightfully Fun Halloween

pumpkin It’s Halloween night. You’re tiptoeing up the pitch-black walk when spine-tingling sounds screech from darkened windows. Was that a black cat crossing the shadowy path or was it simply your imagination? Yikes! Somehow you’ve gotten yourself tangled up in some giant spiderwebs! Just as you’re about to make a quick getaway, the front door of the haunted house slowly creaks open. You hold your breath for what might happen next! Imagine your relief when you see your best friend standing there inviting you into his haunted home. “Come on in and join the party!” he says. Wow! This is a Halloween party you don’t want to miss!

Sound like fun? There’s nothing like Halloween to scare up some exciting and frightening kids’ parties! We’ve taken most of the fear out of throwing kids’ parties by offering a complete mix of age-appropriate ideas for spooky décor, creepy food and scary activities. Add your own creativity, and you can have a ghoulishly good time, too.

No-Bad-Dreams Atmosphere (Ages 5-8)

Halloween can be an exciting time for kids, but it can also be a little frightening for younger children. At this age, children still have some difficulty separating reality from fantasy, and too many witches and monsters roaming around may end up causing some frightening moments. A good tip is to ask all the party goers to wear cartoon character costumes instead of some of the spookier versions, and avoid using scary decorations or sound effects. Try a more whimsical décor such as colorful pumpkin and scarecrowcutouts and cartoon-like ghost decorations. And keep the lights bright for a cheery, festive, but not-too-scary atmosphere. Then prepare yourself for a house filled with giggles and screams!

Gobblin’ Goodies
Let your little guests feast on popcorn balls, baked pita chips with dip, roasted pumpkin seeds and some spooky-shaped peanut butter and jelly sandwiches made with Halloween cookie cutters. For a sweet treat try Graveyard Pudding (in clear plastic containers) made with chocolate pudding and gummy worms peaking out from under the crumbled chocolate cookie “dirt.” Another sweet treat that’s always a hit is chocolate caramel dipped apples. See our recipe on page 33.

Amusing Activities
To keep kids engaged, hold an indoor costume parade with prizes, and play a Halloween version of Duck, Duck, Goose! calling it Boo, Boo, Ghost! You can also show a favorite cartoon characters’ Halloween video. These Halloween-friendly party ideas are a great way to introduce younger children to a holiday that they will grow to love and look forward to in the coming years.

Set the Scene for Preteens (Ages 9-12)

At this age, kids already know that Halloween is just for fun but also a bit of a fright too. You can be a little more lenient now by including scary music and “fingers” floating in the punch bowl. Throwing some white sheets over the furniture will give the room the appearance of an old, abandoned house; add fake cobwebs with little black, plastic spiders for an even creepier effect. A few colored light bulbs around the room will further set the scene.

Fun Food Frenzy
Kids love pizza, so how about some jack-o-lantern pizzas with menacing faces made from cut-out shapes of their favorite deli meats, package cheeses and vegetables? Another creepy treat is Swamp Slime. Simply prepare some lime gelatin according to directions and when it starts to solidify, divide it into two containers. Stir various types of gummy bugs into the first container and beat some whipped cream into the second. Spread the whipped cream gelatin mixture over the top of the “slime” and chill until you’re ready to serve!

Ghostly Games
A fun Halloween activity is the Guess What Body Part is in the Bowl game. Gather a few containers and put a different “organ” in each one. Use cold spaghetti for intestines or veins and large, wet grapes for eyeballs. Make a bowl of ears and tongues out of dried apricots or prunes and use cubes of gelatin for internal organs like the heart, stomach or liver. Cover the containers, cutting a hole just big enough for a hand to fit through, then dim the lights and let the good times roll as partygoers feel around inside the containers and try to guess what they’re touching — eeeeew!

Big Y’s Hauntingly Handy Meals

One stop at Big Y will feed all your party guests! Pick up a Hearth Baked Pizza ora gigantic Party Grinder, made-to-order. Nevada Annie’s Fiesta Dip with Tortilla Chips serves as a perfect side. The Big Y Fresh Cut Fruit Platter and the World Class Cheese Platter are also great snack options for any kid’s party. Visit Big Y’s Patisserie for a beautiful platter of cup-cakes, decorated with a fun Halloween theme, providing the perfect dessert.

Cool Ghouls: A Teenage Halloween Party (Ages 13-15)

Once kids get into their teenage years, it’s no-holds-barred with how spooky you can make the party atmosphere. Let’s face it, the scarier the setting, the more successful the party for teens.

A Seriously Scary Setting
A great idea for teens is to hold the party outdoors, if weather permits. Backyard fire pits are a greatway to create a witch’s bonfire complete with bats, ghosts and spiderwebs hanging in the trees and bushes. Hang some lights and set up a fake cemetery by creating creepy tombstones with a scary sound effects CD player hidden behind one of the graves. A plastic hand reaching up out of the earth, a few skulls and bones lying around and “corpses” made from old clothes andfake blood are more cool props that kids can have a blast putting together.

Frightening Food
Make a cool Spiderweb Dip by spreading a layer of bean dip over a prepared pizza shell or large pita pocket followed by a layer of guacamole. Then top with small dollops of sour cream and using a toothpick, drag outward from the center to create a spiderweb design! And don’t forget the big bowl of Day-Old Bathwater, made by combining lemonade, ginger ale and sherbet. Finish it off with floating shrunken heads, which are actually apples carved with sinister facial features, and drop in a few lemonade ice cubes made with little raisin “bugs” frozen inside them for an added fear factor effect!

Ghoulish Games
A terrific activity for kids this age is a pumpkin-carving contest with prizes in different categories — you can even do the same for their costumes. Another fun game is the Mummy Wrap. Divide the kids into teams of three — one mummy, one mummy wrapper and one mummy unwrapper. (To add to the excitement, put on some fast-paced Halloween “wrap” music.) Give each team one double roll of toilet paper, set an egg timer, and on your signal, one kid starts wrapping another team member as a mummy. When the mummy is, for the most part, wrapped, the third team member tries to unwrap him without tearing the toilet paper. Of course, the first team to finish wins!

Safety First Trick or Treating

• Plan a route in advance, going only to houses that you are familiar with — friends and relatives.

• Bring a flashlight, so kids can see where they’re going, and drivers can easily spot them.

• Have your kids wear good walking shoes; avoid costume high heels, or other uncomfortable props.

• To help prevent them from falling, avoid costumes that drag on the ground.

• Make sure your child’s mask allows him to see and breathe easily. Better yet — use makeup instead of a mask.

• Before kids eat candy, parents should inspect it for any hint of tampering.

Treats for the Sweet

Go ahead and offer these scrumptious, caramel apples as a special party treat — they’re sure to please the sweet tooth in every child. And each caramel apple will provide one serving of fruit, so parents will approve too!

Chocolate Caramel Dipped Apples

– Big Y nonstick cooking spray

6 wooden candy sticks

6 medium apples (your favorite kind), rinsed and dried

1 1/2 pkgs. caramels, unwrapped

5 Tbsp water, divided

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1 12-oz. pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped nuts or other topping (optional)

Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper and spray paper with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Insert a candy stick into stem end of each apple; set aside. In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt caramels with 3 tablespoons water. Remove from heat and quickly add milk chocolate chips. Stir until chocolate has melted. Add remaining tablespoons of water and stir vigorously until smooth. Immediately dip apples in caramel mixture; drain excess caramel and place on a cookie sheet. Place in refrigerator until set, about 1 hour.

Once set, melt semi-sweet chocolate in the microwave according to package directions. Dip apples halfway in the melted chocolate; allow excess to drain. Roll 1/4 bottom portion of apples in nuts or other desired topping. Place on waxed paper that has been coated with nonstick cooking spray and let set.

Makes 6 (1-apple) servings