9 Easy Gluten-Free Recipes for Halloween
(+9 Decoration Tips)
by Mariana Lessmann
Halloween is coming and I bet you would like to have something related to this celebration in your house. In case someone comes trick or treating, you would like a small Halloween decoration. Spending a lot of money in some cardboard pumpkins that you are going to end up throwing out, may not be worth it. Buying expensive cookies at the bakery may not be worth it either. Money may be tight so you should save it for later, maybe for Christmas :) If you are not willing to buy expensive food or decorations that you will only use one night, this article is for you. In my case, I love decorating. I have a thing for tables and I always want them to be nicely decorated. In the past I used to decorate friends and family members’ events and enjoyed it so much that it became a job for a while.
I would love to buy any Halloween decoration that can make my apartment look spooky. And I would love to make desserts with Halloween toppings. But I’ve learned better and more practical ways to decorate and cook. Spending money on pumpkins and ghosts are not my priorities right now. Instead of buying Halloween ornaments, I would rather buy orange placemats that I could use later for Thanksgiving. The same with candles, table runners and food. I recently moved into an apartment in New York. For now, my priorities are others besides spending money in Halloween decorations. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to celebrate, and it doesn’t mean I won’t. I have been thinking about simple and cheap ideas for eating safe that day in case someone comes over. And on how to decorate my kitchen table in case kids come trick or treating. And that’s why I put together ideas on how to celebrate this Halloween with my boyfriend who is celiac, by making easy gluten-free recipes. Here are 9 quick tips for a basic and easy Halloween decoration for your dinner table that will make you save money:
1. Buy orange, brown or yellow flowers.
2. Get a brown or orange tablecloth, table runner, placemats or napkins for setting the table.
3. Brown sticks or pine cones from your backyard to place them as a decoration.
4. Buy one pumpkin that you can later eat.
5. Take mandarins from your fridge and use them as part of your decoration. You can also draw some eyes and mouth with a black market to make them seem as pumpkins.
6. Make recipes with orange ingredients.
7. Use orange candles that you can reuse later for Fall and Thanksgiving.
8. Use kraft paper to cover the table and draw Halloween icons like ghosts, spiders and pumpkins.
9. Serve red wine pretending it’s vampire’s blood.
And here are 9 easy, simple and delicious gluten-free recipes that you can make in less than 30 minutes, with less than 10 ingredients.
Banana & Chocolate Chip Cupcakes
Cupcakes that you can decorate as you wish if you would like to. You can make them in 5 minutes and cook them in 20.
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
- I use Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Baking Flour. - You can use another kind of flour (brown rice, almond or lentil flour). - I use Enjoy Life chocolate chips. - The bananas must be ripe. - You can use a mixer but I prefer to use the blender because it mixes the ingredients faster.
Ingredients
- 2 Eggs - ½ Cup of Milk - ¼ Cup of Butter - 2 Ripe Bananas - 2 Cups of Flour - ½ Teaspoon of Baking Soda - ¾ Cup of Chocolate Chips
Steps
1. Add all the ingredients (except the chocolate chips) in the blender and mix them. 2. Add the chocolate chips to the batter. 3. Grease a cupcake tray with butter so the cupcakes won’t stick. 4. Pour the batter in the cupcake tray, and put it in the oven in low cook (200 F) for 15-20 minutes.
Carrot Arepas
Arepas are a Venezuelan traditional meal and a very popular one worldwide. They are round corn flour dough. You can stuff them with cheese, ham, turkey, butter, meat, chicken or vegetables. Arepas are easy to make and we are going to start making them now.
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
- The corn flour I use is Harina Pan (it’s gluten-free). - If you use warm water instead of cold water, this will help the dough be softer. - If the dough is too dry, you can add a little more water, and if it’s too moist, you can add more corn flour. - If you like the arepas toaster, leave them more time on the pan. - You can add more or fewer carrots depending on your taste. In either case, they will taste good. - You can add a pinch of salt to the recipe for more flavor. - Don’t let them get black because that means they burned.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Cup of Corn Flour - 2 Cups of Warm Water - 4 Carrots
Steps
1. In a bowl, add 2 cups of warm water. 2. Shred the carrots and add them to the bowl with water. 3. Add the corn flour to the mix. 4. Mix until you get a semi dry dough. 5. Make balls of approximately 3 inches width. 6. Flatten the balls (like ½ inch height). 7. On a pan with some melted butter, put these flatted rounded dough and cook them in medium-high cook for 5 minutes. Then flip them with a spatula to cook the other side.
Carrot Soup
A very healthy meal that you can try with all different vegetables you have in your fridge.
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
- You can add more or fewer vegetables. - You can add a pinch of salt to the recipe for more flavor.
Ingredients
- 6 Medium Size Peeled Carrots - 4 Cups of Water - 1 Onion - 2 Red Chilli Peppers - 1 Red Pepper - 3 Garlic Cloves - 2 Scallions - 1 Chicken Breast - 2 Tablespoons of Cream Milk
Steps
1. In a pot boil the water with the chicken breast. 2. Chop the carrots, onion, peppers, garlic cloves and scallions, and add them to the water. 3. Cook them for 20 minutes or until the carrots get softer. 4. Pour everything in the blender and mix until you get a creamy consistency. 5. Serve on a plate and add cream milk if desired.
Ingredients
- 700 gr of Milk Chocolate - 300 gr of Maria Cookies - 50 gr of Almonds (sliced, whole or cut into little pieces) - 50 gr of Hazelnuts (sliced, whole or cut into little pieces) - Milk
Steps
1. In low cook melt in a pot the chocolate with a little bit of milk and don’t stop stirring. 2. After melting the chocolate, add the almonds and hazelnuts and keep stirring. 3. When the almonds and hazelnuts are all mixed with the chocolate, pour the mix in a bowl or pyrex. 4. Keep it in the fridge for 3 hours and then you can cut a piece for you!
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
-For non celiacs you can try this recipe with oreos. - The chocolate I use is Enjoy Life. - The Maria cookies I use is Schaer.
Ingredients
- 350 gr of Maria Cookies - 250 gr of Cream Cheese - 250 gr of Chocolate - Milk
Steps
1. Crush the cookies to fine crumbs in a food processor. 2. Mix in a bowl the crumbs with the cream cheese until you get a dough. 3. Make 1 inch in diameter balls and place them on a tray. 4. In low cook melt the chocolate with a tablespoon of milk in a pot. 5. Dip the balls in the chocolate to cover them, or spread the chocolate on the balls to decorate them. 6. Keep them in the fridge.
Mango Smoothie
If you are celebrating Halloween or not, you may need a fresh smoothie in the middle of the day. Let’s try a mango flavor this time.
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
- If it’s not liquid enough, add more orange juice and more kefir. - You can add any other fruits that you have already frozen in your freezer. - The kefir I use is Lifeway (plain).
Ingredients
- 2 Cups of Frozen Mango Chunks - 1 Frozen Banana - ½ Cup of Frozen Strawberries - ¼ Cup of Frozen Blueberries - 1 Tablespoon of Flaxseed - ½ Cup of Orange Juice - 1 Cup of Kefir - 1 Teaspoon of Lime Juice
Steps
1. Add all the ingredients in the blender. 2. Mix until you get a semi thick consistency. 3. Pour in a glass and drink.
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
- The avocados must be very ripe. - I use Kirklands’s Organic Tortilla Chips. - You can make as much layers of nachos as you wish (like a lasagna).
Ingredients
- Nachos - 300 gr of Cheddar Cheese - Sour Cream - 1 Small Lettuce - 3 Tomatoes - 250 gr of Ground Beef Salsa - 2 Ripe Avocados
Steps
1. Cook the ground beef on a pan (medium cook). 2. Chop the lettuce and tomatoes. 3. Mash the ripe avocado in a small bowl. 4. On a tray or plate put a layer of nachos. 5. Add a layer of beef. 6. On top of the beef, add the chopped tomatoes and lettuces. 7. Add a layer of salsa. 8. Add a layer of shred cheddar cheese. 9. Heat in the oven for 10 minutes or until the cheese melts (350°F) 10. Add the mashed avocado and sour cream on top.
Sweet Brie Cheese
Imagine making a fast and delicious recipe in 5 minutes or less? I’ve got one for you here.
Tips Before Making the Recipe:
- I use Boar’s Head French Brie Cheese. - You can heat the cheese more minutes in the microwave depending on how melted you would like the cheese to be. - Serve with crackers or bread.
Ingredients
-225 gr of Brie Cheese - ½ Cup of Sliced Almonds - ¼ Cup of Honey
Steps
1. Place the brie cheese on a plate. 2. Microwave the cheese for 3 minutes. 3. Add the honey on top of the hot brie cheese. 4. Add the sliced almonds on top.
Ingredients
- 4 Sweet PotatoeS - ½ Cup of Sour Cream - ½ Cup of Plain Yogurt (no flavors added) - ½ Cup of Chopped Scallions
Steps
1. Bake the sweet potatoes in a pot with hot water until they get soft. 2. Take them off the water and cut them into medium pieces. 3. In a bowl mix the yogurt, the sour cream and the scallions. 4. On a plate serve the sweet potatoes and pour the cream on top.
LET'S MEET
We are Mariana Lessmann and Matt Ackerson.
Mariana graduated from Communications & Journalism in Caracas, Venezuela, and has over 10 years of experience as a writer. She has worked on Digital Marketing, and for over 10 prestigious Cable Television Channels aired in Latin America. Matt graduated from Cornell University in New York. He started his own company in 2010, and has been running it by himself since then. Matt is an expert in Marketing, Sales, and creating 6-Figure Funnels for online businesses.
Over the past year we decided to start a company together and created "Vookies", that later expanded and became "Be Breader". We have been helping celiacs around the world to optimize and improve their health by incorporating safe and delicious meals into their daily menus.
Let's start eating delicious and safe!
Your health can change today.
©2019 BE BREADER | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
[email protected]
516-246-4302