Home Halloween Party Ideas

Most of us remember the typical Irish Halloween party; where we bobbed for apples, or visited the local bonfire, left mountains of monkey nut shells all over the carpet and got stomach ache from too many sweets.

Traditionally Irish families would have had Halloween food like barn brack cake, colcannon, chocolate or toffee apples, and would carve a pumpkin and wash it all down with lots of sweets and nuts. Nowadays, the thoughts of fruitcake or mashed potato with cabbage will probably repulse even the most open minded child.

Things have changed quite a bit but food has always been at the heart of Halloween and there are loads of great food ideas for a party at home. Whether you are having a special kids party with lots of children that love to help, these easy recipes will create the perfect scary grub.

Firstly, carving the pumpkin is the ultimate annual tradition with the family. Not exactly food but you can use the guts as mixture for fairy cakes (see below). Carving the pumpkin is wet and messy which children love. After cutting off the top make sure you scoop out the seeds first, then keep the pumpkin flesh for later. Draw your favourite scary face or letters like the one below, and test it out with a tea light.

Scary fairy/cupcakes. For scary fairy cakes topped with a frightening spiders or eyeballs begin by making your cake mix. For a simple mix add flour, caster sugar, butter and eggs. Pour mix into cake shells and cook in the oven. For iced topped spiders use chocolate sprinkles, string liquorice for the legs and candy eyeballs for the eyes.  For an eery eyeball topping use white icing for the eyeball, half a glacier cherry and a raisin for the pupil.

Using the pumpkin leftovers you can make a delicious pumpkin fairy cakes: Cook and puree the pumpkin flesh and leave to cool. Add cinnamon, ginger, allspice, salt and baking powder along with ingredients for fairy cakes and mix together in bowl. After baking, top with icing of your choice.

Dead man fingers are spooky fingers made of rolled up white sliced bread. You will need white bread, soft margarine, peanut butter, strawberry jam and almonds. First, flatten bread with rolling pin then spread with peanut butter/margarine or filling of your choice. Roll into finger shape, and with sharp knife make indents for knuckles on the bread. Make fingertips at the end into a v-shape and add an almond for the spikey nail. Finally, add some strawberry jam at base of the dead man fingers for some blood.

Slimy jelly with worms is really easy and super gross treat that young kids will love making in the kitchen.  Prepare some green jelly mix and add it to clean glass jars. Fill green jelly mix half way in jars and refrigerate until firm. When firm, add long gummy/jelly bean worms into the mix and hang over side of jar. Then carefully add some new blue or red jelly mix, filling to the top and refrigerate again.

White chocolate banana ghosts are super simple and fun to make. Simply slice a banana in half and stick a skewer into the banana then place in the freezer until firm. Melt some white chocolate and then dip the banana into the chocolate and decorate with choc for eyes and mouth. Place in the freezer until ready to eat.