Healthy Halloween Recipes From Kendra Peterson's Drizzle Kitchen

When you think of Halloween foods, thoughts of chocolate, candy and lots of sugar probably come to mind. But the haunting holiday doesn't have to be all about sugar.

Kendra Peterson, the chef and owner of Drizzle Kitchen personal chef service has some ideas for a healthier Halloween:

Dark Chocolate Bark with Pumpkin Seeds and Ginger

Makes 16 servings
• 1 pound good quality dark chocolate, such as Callebaut or Scharffenberger, chopped

• 1/4 c. candied ginger, chopped

• 1/2 c. raw pumpkin seeds

• 1/2 c. dried cranberries

• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

• 1/8 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

• pinch sea salt

1. Place a sheet of parchment or wax paper on a baking sheet, set aside. Fill a small saucepan with three inches of water and bring to a simmer. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium metal or glass bowl and place over the simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water) and melt.

2. Pour melted chocolate on the parchment or wax paper, then sprinkle the ginger, pumpkin seeds and cranberries evenly over the top. Finish with the cinnamon, nutmeg and sprinkle of sea salt. Place in the refrigerator to set for 15 minutes. Remove and allow to fully cool on the counter about an hour or two. Break into bite size pieces. Store in a covered container in a cool area for 4-5 days (if it lasts that long!) or store in refrigerator to keep longer.

Truffle Popcorn

Makes about 6 cups popcorn
2-3 servings
• 1/4 cup popcorn kernels
• 1 t. vegetable oil
• 2 T. melted unsalted butter
• 1 T. truffle oil
• truffle salt, to taste

Directions
1. Pour the vegetable oil into the bottom of a large stock pot (at least 6 qts.) and pour the popcorn on top of that.

2. Turn the heat to medium and cover the pot. Let warm up, every once in awhile giving the pot a little shake to move the kernels around. Once you begin to hear the kernels popping, keep shaking it around every 30 seconds-1 minute until the popping slows down to just a few per minute.

3. Pour the popped kernels into a large mixing bowl and drizzle with the truffle oil then sprinkle with some truffle salt, to taste.

Monster Fingers
Created for Enjoy Life Foods

Serves 4
• 1 c. Enjoy Life Perky's Crunchy Flax® Cereal with Chia
• 1 T. garlic salt
• 1 t. olive oil
• ½ c. tapioca starch or potato starch
• 1 c. warm water
• 1 lb. chicken tenders
• raw pumpkin seeds (shelled)
to serve: catsup or bbq sauce as the "monster blood"

DIRECTIONS
1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 400.

2. Pour the cereal and garlic salt into a small food processor. Pulse until finely ground. Drizzle in the olive oil and pulse a few more times to blend. Pour into a bowl.

3. Pour the tapioca starch in another bowl and the warm water into another bowl (you will have three total). Arrange them left to right starting with the flour then water then ground cereal.

4. One at a time, coat the chicken in the tapioca starch, then quickly dip in the warm water-gently shake off extra water-then coat with the cereal mixture. Lay on the parchment lined baking sheet. Continue in this manner until all chicken tenders are coated.

5. To create the "monster nails": gently insert the tip of a small, sharp knife into the more tapered end of the chicken tenders just until you are about ¼ inch deep. Insert pumpkin seed into slit. Continue with remaining chicken pieces.

6. Place in oven and cook at 400 for 14-16 minutes until cooked through. Serve with "monster blood" to be extra spooky!