Find out how to make these four banana Halloween treats packed with gut-loving nutrients that won’t throw your digestion totally out of whack—and take no more than five minutes to make—ahead. *Spooky scary cooking school* is now in session.
Experts In This Article
- Yumna Jawad, recipe developer and content creator behind Feel Good Foodie
Halloween treats that are actually good for digestion
Spooky treats, but make them microbiome-friendly? Easy enough, says Jawad. The star ingredient in all four of these recipes are bananas, which are great for digestion and have about three grams of fiber per serving.
Bananas also contain loads of potassium, a key ingredient for maintaining electrolyte balance. “Bananas are also high in potassium which is one of the electrolytes that is essential for bodily functions such as pH balance, water balance in our bodies, blood pressure, digestion, and even muscle contraction,” Jennifer Maeng, MS, RD, a NYC-based dietitian, previously shared with Well+Good.
Of course, it wouldn’t be Halloween treats without a little spooky flare, which Jawad does ever so effortlessly with the help of a few extra tasty ingredients here and there—think mini chocolate chips for ghost eyes and some thinly-cut celery for tangerine “pumpkin” stems. Learn how to make these, and other delicious banana treats ahead.
4 healthy banana Halloween treats
Frozen boo-nana pops
Yields 4 servings
Ingredients
1 banana
1 cup of white chocolate chips
8 mini chocolate chips
4 wooden sticks
1. Cut the banana in half lengthwise and then slice in half to make four quarters. Insert popsicle sticks into the cut end of the bananas, and freeze the bananas on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for up to two hours.
2. When the bananas are frozen, place the white chocolate chips in a cup and melt in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds.
3. Dip the bananas, one at a time, into the chocolate, scraping off the excess chocolate from the back of the banana, and place it on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.
4. Quickly add the chocolate chips for the eyes before the chocolate hardens.
Monster banana bites
Yields 6 servings
Ingredients
1 banana
6 lollipop sticks
1 cup white and/or dark chocolate
1 Tsp coconut oil
1. Heat the white chocolate chips in one bowl (you can add half a teaspoon of coconut oil to the mix), until melted. Heat the semi sweet chocolate in another bowl, until melted. Meanwhile, cut the banana into half-inch slices.
2. Use a fork to dip each banana slice in the melted chocolate, allowing any excess chocolate to drip off. Place the chocolate-coated bananas on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
3. Place some candy eyes and a popsicle and place the baking sheet in the freezer to set, about three hours.
Monster eye roll-ups
Yields 4 servings
Ingredients
1 tortilla
1 banana
Peanut butter, as needed
Jelly, as needed
Candy eyes, as needed
Appetizer toothpicks, as needed
1. Heat the tortilla in the microwave until soft and pliable. This will help it roll up easier.
2. Spread peanut butter on the tortilla and then spread the jelly on top. Place peeled banana in the middle.
3. Roll the banana and tortilla together. Slice into quarters. Place two of the roll-ups on a small toothpick. Use candy eye as garnish. Jawad’s pro tip: It’s okay if these get messy and you get blood–aka jelly–everywhere!
Ghost bananas and tangerine pumpkins
Yields 4 servings
Ingredients
2 bananas
Chocolate chips, as needed
6 tangerines
1 celery stick, cut into thin batonnets
1. For the ghosts: Cut the bananas lengthwise. (You can also slice them in half to make four quarters if you’d like to make them smaller.) Place two chocolate chips towards the top of the bananas to set the eyes.
2. For the pumpkins: Peel the tangerines and remove as much white pith as possible. Insert the cut celery into the top of the peeled tangerines.
Bananas to spare? Time for banana bread: