Halloween is almost here, and all manner of folks, from the tiniest goblin to the ghastliest ogre, will be celebrating all things spooky and macabre. Celebrations such as this call for comely comestibles and devilish delights to gnaw upon, and there are oodles of deliciousvegan recipes to nibble upon ’til well past the witching hour. Savory snacks, sweet treats, drinks, and even dinner entrees are all on the menu here, and there’s undoubtedly something that everyone will enjoy sinking their fangs into.
3-Ingredient Apple Bites
Angela Liddon, the gorgeous genius who publishes the vegan recipe and lifestyle blog, has created a healthy Halloween appetizer that’s as fun for adults as it is for kids. The recipe and directions for these spooky apple bites can be found on her website. I like to fill mine with a combination of almond butter and blackcurrant jam, but they’re so versatile that you can stuff their maws with whatever you like!
Creepy Crudites and Dips
Have you ever noticed how cauliflower looks a bit like a brain? Or that olives can be a bit… eyeball-ish? You can create an artfully creepy platter of raw veggies and team them up with a couple of dips for a dark, delicious platter that’s just perfect to celebrate this spirit-riddled night.
Black radishes are ideal for a dish like this, as their dark skins contrast beautifully with their pale inner flesh. Carrots can be carved to look like fingers, white asparagus has a bone-like aesthetic, and of course, small cauliflower florets are perfect as brain bites. Add in some heirloom mini tomatoes in shades of yellow, purple, and orange, maybe some endive spears and orange pepper slices, and you’re golden! For dips, consider a rich, salty tapenade made of mixed black olives with capers and garlic, and perhaps a lighter, citrus-y dip (like Green Goddess) for contrasting flavor.
Spooky Cupcakes
No celebration is complete without a cupcake. Babycakes, a New York bakery that specializes in vegan/gluten-free baked goods, has an incredible cupcake recipe that can be altered to create a variety of tastes and flavors. The basic recipe can be found here, and do feel free to adjust ingredients to make them your own. For example, try using pumpkin puree instead of applesauce as the moistening agent, add some ground cinnamon and nutmeg, and top with chocolate frosting for a truly autumnal delight.
Ectoplasmic Smoothies
Anyone who remembers Slimer from the Ghostbusters movies probably remembers the goo he left in his wake: a thick, slimy green mess that grossed out anyone who was unlucky enough to come in contact with it. (Sort of like wheatgrass!) A bright green smoothie isn’t just reminiscent of spider guts or monster slime; it’s also a delicious pick-me-up on a cool October day.
- 1/2 cup vanilla almond, soy, or coconut milk
- 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
- 1 cup frozen mango or piece slices
- 1 large handful fresh baby spinach leaves
- 2 tablespoons vanilla or peach soy yogurt (optional)
- A couple of ice cubes
This will create either one large, or two small smoothies.
Pour the milk into your blender, followed by the remaining ingredients, and blend until smooth. If you feel that it’s a bit too thick, you can add a bit more non-dairy milk or even a bit of water. Serve immediately.
Crispy Rice Treats
You really can’t go wrong with these crispy, crunchy snacks, especially since you can mould them into any shapes you like. Try pressing them into witch’s hats or pumpkins, or just dip them into melted vegan white chocolate and decorate with a pair of dark chocolate chips as eyes for ghostly munch-ables.
- 3 cups crisp rice cereal
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup smooth salted nut butter (almond or peanut work best)
- 1/2 cup agave syrup
Melt the nut butter, extract, and agave in a saucepan until the mixture is nice and runny. If you like, add a few drops of food coloring to make the cereal orange, green, or yellow. Pour the cereal into a large bowl, and then drizzle the liquid over it, making sure that all the crisps are coated well. Form into whatever shapes you like, then place on a baking sheet that’s covered with wax or parchment paper. Place the sheet in a freezer for about an hour to set, and then store in the fridge or other cool, dry place until you’re ready to serve them to visiting goblins.
Graveyard Dip
A layer of spicy black bean dip covered with a chunky layer of guacamole, with dark blue corn chips or other crackers as “tombstone” dippers.
Black Bean Dip
- 2 cans (14 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 cup minced onion
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 small chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Put all the ingredients into a food processor or blender, and puree until it’s quite smooth.
Guacamole
- 3 large avocados, peeled, pitted, and sliced
- 2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
- 1/3 cup onion, minced
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 shakes tabasco or other hot sauce (optional)
Pulse all ingredients in a blender or food processor until mashed and combined: you don’t want this to be pureed, but rather to maintain a chunky texture. You can even mash it all by hand if you don’t want it to get too smooth.
To Make the Dip:
Use a spatula to spoon the black bean dip into large, shallow serving bowl, and smooth the top so you have a flat surface. Cover that with the guacamole, and then stand blue tortilla chips into the dish like tombstones.
Mysterious Martinis
This alcoholic bevvie from Vegan Yack Attack is obviously for the adult crowd, but you can easily make a non-alcoholic version for kidlets, expectant mums, and other non-imbibers. You can find more vegan spooky sips on The Vegan Woman website as well.
- 1 oz Midori Melon Liqueur
- 1 oz Vodka (your preference)
- 2 oz Fresh green grape juice (the recipe’s creator just blended grapes together and strained the mixture)
- Red grapes for garnish
Shake all ingredients with ice and pour into martini glass. This is not a super strong recipe so use less grape juice if you would like it to have more umph. For a non-alcoholic version, use the green grape juice as a base, and add in a bit of green cola of your choice.
Veggie Dog “Mummies”
Pillsbury Crescent Rolls are listed on PETA’s “Accidentally Vegan” list, and that’s good news as far as this snack is concerned! To make mummies, just wrap strips of the crescent roll dough around your favourite veggie dogs (uncooked), and then bake according to the directions on the rolls’ packaging. Once they’re nicely brown and toasty, dot a pair of eyes on the mummies with some mustard, and serve warm.
Sugar Cookies
These little niblets do take a little bit of time and effort, but they’re so worth it when you crunch into them. Children love to help out to make these, especially if they get to decorate them with orange, black, or green sugar sparkles! The Kitchen Witch has shared her recipe for the perfect vegan sugar cookies on her website , and if you have Earth Balance, Tofutti, and a few basic baking ingredients in the house, you can make a batch of these in just a couple of hours.
Pumpkin Pie Ice “Cream”
If you want to get really spook-tacular, slather some of this between two of the sugar cookies mentioned above for a delectable vegan ice cream sandwich. (You’ll need an ice cream maker to create it.)
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 1/4 cup coconut milk
- 2 cups roasted pumpkin chunks
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1/4 cup agave nectar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Blend cashews, coconut milk, pumpkin, water, and agave nectar in a blender until very smooth. Then add the remaining ingredients and pulse briefly to combine them. Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and process according to the machine’s directions.
As a final note, if your little ghouls and ghostlings are heading out trick-or-treating, you can sift through PETA’s list of vegan candies to verify whether the sugary treats in their stash are cruelty-free.
Happy Halloween!
An avid permaculture gardener, locavore, and novice (but enthusiastic!) canner, Lana Winter-Hébert joins Inhabitat after spending the last decade working as a writer and event guru for non-profit/eco organizations. In addition to her work with this site, she writes features and blog posts for Vegan Cuts, Green Pigeon, and several event planning websites based in London, UK. Currently, Lana divides her time between writing, and doing collaborative projects with Winter-Hébert: the design studio she runs with her husband. Best described as “endearingly eccentric”, she spends any spare moments wrestling with knitting projects, and devouring novels by obscure Czech writers. A Toronto native, she has recently chosen to leave that splendid city in favor of a tranquil lakeside nook in rural Quebec, where she and her Sir co-habitate with two hand-raised sparrows that live in their writing-desk.
