Healthy Candy Ideas for Halloween

What’s your favorite part about halloween? 

a. The cute costumes 

b. Walking around the neighborhood in crisp fall air knocking on doors 

c. The sugar rush 

I doubt you answered ‘c’. If you want to sidestep the insane sugar rush (and help some other parents on the way) then you need these 5 healthy candy ideas for Halloween. 

In our house, we try to reduce the amount of sweets and classic candies our children are eating. We don’t like to completely eliminate them because we want them to enjoy sweets and not feel like they are being deprived. Below are some of our favorite healthy sweet treats that our kids absolutely love. Not to mention, they’re incredible to handout for Halloween.

Some options are easy (healthy brands found at local stores) or fun (DIY recipes)— but all our kiddy crowd pleasers. Enjoy! 

5 Healthy Candy Ideas for Halloween 

Smart Sweets

for the fruity and sour candy lovers 

Smart Sweets’ logo is kick sugar, keep candy— and we’re here for it. As a recovering sweets (and fast food) addict, like Smart Sweets’ founder Tara, I know that total elimination just doesn’t work. 

Smart Sweets promises to craft candy free from artificial sweeteners, sugar alcohols, and added sugars. And that right there is why Smart Sweets is making our list of the best healthy candy for Halloween this year. 

Our family absolutely loves Smart Sweets. I mean, they take your favorite candy and recreate it in a way that’s healthy and sustainable for you and your family! Can’t get much better than that.

Try their sour melon bites, sweet fish, fruity gummy bears, sour blast buddies, sweet chews, peach rings, or their new gummy worms! 

The non-GMO candies’ vibrant colors come from fruit and vegetable juices like carrot and spirulina. And there are no tricks here! Seriously, no calorie counting or messing with portion sizes–this candy is the real deal. 

Shop their goodies at their online store, over 20,000 stores in the country (think Whole Foods), or on Amazon! Halloween will be better because of it. 

Unreal

for the chocolate lovers 

Founders Nicky and Kris decided to create UnReal after their parents didn’t want them to eat their favorite candies all the time (I think we can all relate). They went on a mission to make great tasting favorites without all the bad stuff. 

A thousand recipe tests later, they finally came up with delicious tasting chocolate treats with 40% less sugar than the leading brands and 70% organic ingredients. Unreal is our go-to when a craving for chocolate hits us. 

Their incredibly delicious candies are non-GMO verified, certified gluten-free, vegan (except for milk chocolate gems), free of artificials, and made of fair-trade, sustainable ingredients. With classics like peanut and almond butter cups, chocolate gems (think m&m’s), dark chocolate coconut bars, and their new caramel peanut nougat bars, UnReal won’t make you feel like you’re missing out this Halloween. 

Shop UnReal at their online shop, Whole Foods, Natural Grocers, Thrive Market, Amazon, and more! 

Homemade Healthy Halloween Twix 

This recipe is one of my family’s favorites. Rachael DeVaux of @rachaelgoodeats is a registered dietician and total foodie. One of my favorite candies is the Twix bar, but honestly, after having these, I won’t ever eat a real Twix again. Yup, these healthy Twix are the real real deal. 

Here’s what you do:

Ingredients: 

Shortbread layer 

• ½ cup coconut flour
• ½ cup almond flour 
• ⅓ cup coconut oil, melted 
• 3 tbsp honey, warmed or maple syrup 

Caramel Layer 

• ½ cup almond butter, creamy or crunchy 
• ½ cup coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 
• ¼ cup maple syrup 
• Pinch sea salt 

Chocolate Layer 

• One 2.5 oz dark chocolate bar (Evolved Eating Signature Dark or Hu Chocolate are our favorites) or sub ½ cup chocolate chips (we like good life) 
• 1 tbsp coconut oil 
• ¼ tsp flakey sea salt 

Instructions:

Shortbread Layer 

1. Preheat oven to 350 
2. Combine coconut and almond flours with melted coconut oil and warmed honey in a large bowl. Stir out all the crumbles of flour until thoroughly mixed 
3. Line a 6×6 baking dish with parchment paper and back down shortbread mixture 
4. Bake for 10-12 minutes or golden brown. Remove and let cool completely. 

Caramel Layer 

1. Combien almond butter, coconut oil, vanilla, maple syrup, and sea salt ina saucepan over the stove on medium-low heat until liquid. Whisk for 2-3 minutes 
2. Remove from burner and let cool completely 

Chocolate Layer 

1. Break up the chocolate bar in a bowl and add coconut oil. Heat over the stove until liquified. 

Twix Bars 

1. Once shortbread and caramel are cooled completely, pour caramel sauce over the base layer and spread evenly. Set in freezer for about 1-2 hours until it is completely hardened 
2. Remove from the freezer once completely frozen and pour chocolate over the top and spread evenly. Sprinkle flakey sea salt and set back in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to harden 
3. Once chilled, remove the mold from the pan by pulling on the sides of the parchment paper. Lay on cutting board and slice into ½ inch steps and from there, slice each strip into thirds 
4. Serve! Store in airtight container in freezer or fridge  

Caramel Apples 

Ok, so I don’t know about you, but I have to have a caramel apple during fall and Halloween. And what’s a better healthy treat than something with an apple?!! Mia Zarlengo (RD, MS) agrees. Her vegan and gluten-free caramel apple nachos recipe is to die for, and the perfect healthy Halloween sweet treat recipe! 

Here’s what you do:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup full-fat coconut milk (mostly the thick creamy part on top) 
• ½ cup coconut sugar 
• 2 tbsp maple syrup 
• 1 tbsp arrowroot starch (can sub for cornstarch but not tapioca starch)
• ½ tsp vanilla extract 
• ½ tsp sea salt 
• 2-4 tbsp dairy-free milk of choice, as needed 

Instructions: 

1. Add coconut milk, coconut sugar, maple syrup, arrowroot starch, vanilla, and sea salt to a small pot. 
2. Give everything a good stir and then heat over medium heat. Once simmering, continuously whisk for 3-4 minutes until sauce is thickened, dark brown, and glossy. Remove from heat 
3. Pour caramel sauce into a jar and mix in 2-4 tbsp dairy-free milk to get the desired consistency. 
4. Allow to slightly cool before serving—store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-3 weeks. 

Coconut Praline Caramel Corn 

This yummy gluten-free snack is perfect to package up and hand out at Halloween. From Against All Grain Danielle Walker’s blog, this mama knows how to hook the kids up with delicious, healthy treats. 

Ingredients:

• 12 cups unsalted popped popcorn 
• ½ cup chopped pecans 
• ½ cup coconut flakes 
• 1 cup blonde coconut sugar 
• 1 stick unsalted grass-fed butter 
• ¼ cup maple syrup 
• ½ teaspoon salt 
• ½ teaspoon baking soda 
• ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar 

Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 300. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the coconut flakes out on the tray and toast coconut in the oven for 15 minutes 
2. Put popcorn, coconut, and pecans into a large bowl. Turn oven down to 225. Use convection setting if you have it 
3. In a medium saucepan, combine coconut sugar, butter, maple syrup, and salt and bring to a boil. Add baking soda and cream of tartar and boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the syrup is a deep amber (about 4 minutes) 
4. Pour hot syrup over the popcorn mix and stir with a wooden spoon until coated evenly. Divide the popcorn between the 2 baking sheets and place them in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the trays from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature. Let cool before storing. 

Those are the best healthy candy ideas for this Halloween. Which have got you absolutely drooling and running out to the store ASAP? Let me know in the comments below.