When I think about traditional holiday side dishes, Green Bean Casserole always comes to mind. The problem for me is that two of the main ingredients come from a can. Although your mom’s green bean casserole may have been delicious, most likely it was made with a can of Cream of Mushroom soup and topped with a tin of fried onions. But don’t despair, there are ways to recreate this classic the way you remember, only healthier and a lot more fresh tasting. With just a bit of freshly grated parmesan, some sautéed onions and a homemade, flavorful sauce, the green bean casserole of your youth is taken to a new level and becomes something even more special that your kids will be telling their kids about years from now.

Green Bean Casserole (Serves 6)

1 Lb Green Beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 Small Yellow Onion, diced
1 1/4 Tsp Salt, divided
1/2 Cup Panko or Bread Crumbs
1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
8 Oz Mushrooms, sliced
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
3 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Flour
1 Cup Chicken Broth
1/2 Cup Whole Milk (you can use half and half if you want the dish to be extra rich and creamy)
Canola or Olive Oil Cooking Spray

1. Place the green beans in a steamer pot over boiling water and steam for 8 minutes or until fork tender.
2. Preheat oven to 400 F.
3. In a large sauce pot melt 1 tbsp butter and sauté the chopped onion and 1/4 tsp of salt for 4 minutes.
4. Remove the onions and set aside in a separate bowl with the panko and parmesan cheese. Toss to evenly combine.
5. In the same large sauce pot, melt the remaining 2 tbsp of butter, add the mushrooms and remaining 1 tsp of salt and sauté for 4 minutes.
6. Add the minced garlic and cook for an additional 1 minute.
7. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of flour over the mushrooms and stir for 30 seconds until evenly coated.
8. Add the chicken broth and milk, bring to a simmer and cook for 8-10 minutes or until thickened.
9. Add the beans to the sauce and then pour into a greased 8 x 8 inch baking dish.
10. Sprinkle with onion/panko mixture on top, lightly spray with oil and bake for 25 minutes or until the top is golden.
11. Serve.

I’m way into fruit, nut and seed butters. Peanut butter, almond butter, sunflower butter, apple butter, pumpkin butter….I love ‘em all. With HalloWEEn just days away, there seems to be pumpkin seeds everywhere you look in my kitchen. It got me to thinking: why not pumpkin seed butter? I don’t know of anyone who sells it, so why not make it?

This is an awesome recipe for getting your kids involved in cooking. My little ones had a blast making it with me. After I toasted and cooled the seeds, we put them in the food processor and watched the seeds change shape and texture several times. Every time we took the top off, the aroma of toasted pumpkin seeds filled the kitchen. The kids were totally fascinated by it and loved tasting it.

Pumpkin seeds are an excellent source of manganese, magnesium, iron and protein, which makes this butter perfect on a sandwich or even served as a dip with celery or apples. Plus, if your kids have nut allergies or attend a nut free school, a good peanut butter alternative like this one is a great spread to add to your lunch time ingredient arsenal.

At this time of year when the weather is getting cool and you’re looking for more fun activities to do inside, this is one that will stimulate all of your kids senses — especially their taste buds!

Pumpkin Seed Butter (Makes 1 1/2 Cups)

3 Cups Hulled Pumpkin Seeds (aka Pepitas)

Accompaniments: Honey, Celery, Apple, Bread

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place the pumpkin seeds on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.
3. Allow the pumpkin seeds to cool.
4. Place the seeds in a food processor and puree for 5-6 minutes, occasionally scraping down the sides with a spatula (you need to puree the mixture so it eventually becomes smooth- you don’t need to add any additional oil).
5. Serve on bread with honey, or celery or apple slices.

* This pumpkin butter can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

Spooky.
Silly.
So much fun!

I don’t know what more I can say about this recipe. Plus, my husband says he can’t take anymore of the HalloWEEn recipes. But I love them all and apparently so do my kids, because this Spider Web Pizza disappears faster than I can spin, I mean, make it!

Spider Web Pizza (Makes 4 Mini Pizzas)

1 Lb Pizza Dough (white or whole wheat from Trader Joes, your local grocery or pizza shop or Weelicious whole wheat dough)
1 Cup Olive Tapenade or Wee Tapenade
1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese, grated or shredded

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. If using prepared dough, leave the dough on the counter until at room temperature.
3. Cut the dough into four equal pieces and using your hands, shape into individual pizza circles.
4. Place on a parchment or Silpat-lined baking sheet and cover each pizza with black olive tapenade.
5. Using the mozzarella cheese, create a “web” on top of the pizza (see picture above).
6. Bake for 15-18 minutes.
7. Serve.

I can’t claim this as an original recipe (considering I used to eat it at least once a week when I was a kid), but I wanted to share it with you anyway since it’s a comfort food that takes me back to my childhood. Pimento Cheese Spread is a traditional recipe in the south and one that my grandmother made frequently when we went to her house. She would use it to make the most delectable tea sandwiches that my brother, cousins and I would devour. While I admit that this recipe is somewhat out of character for weelicious in that it is not exactly super healthy, it is vegetarian and totally delicious, so indulging in it now and then seems ok to me.

Since it’s HalloWEEn, I’ve been thinking about orange and black themed recipes and what fun would it be to make a Pimento Cheese Spread sandwich on pumpernickel or dark rye and put it into your little one’s lunch box. Cut it into the shape of a pumpkin, bat, witch or ghost (yes, that’s a ghost pictured above) and lunchtime doesn’t get any more fun! Whether you’re trying to impress your kids during the holidays or just want a delicious dip or sandwich spread that’s perfect for any time of year, Pimento Cheese Spread will ensure you have a lot of happy customers. I hope one of my childhood favorites will become one of yours too!

Pimento Cheese Spread

1 Cup Cheddar Cheese, finely grated ( I like to use a hand grater, but you can also use a box grater and then chop it into smaller pieces)
2 Oz Diced Pimentos, drained (or 2 Tbsp Roasted Red Bell Peppers, diced)
2 Tbsp Mayonnaise or Veganaise

1. Place all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.
2. Serve with sliced bread.

Continuing with my pumpkin puree obsession this month, I’m back to one of my seasonal favorites, Pumpkin Butter. I had some pumpkin puree leftover after I made Pumpkin Seed Cookies last week, so I used it to whip up a batch of pumpkin butter to have on hand to spread on rice cakes, use as a topping on yogurt or even swirl into oatmeal. After making way too many pancakes for breakfast one morning this week I thought how delicious the sound of pancake sandwiches with cream cheese and pumpkin butter would be. I was right. Talk about a seriously delicious school lunch! Kenya and his buddy at school loved them and my pumpkin streak continues….

Pumpkin Butter & Cream Cheese Sandwich (Serves 2)

4 Pancakes (any bread will do)
1/4 Cup Cream Cheese, divided
1/4 Cup Pumpkin Butter, divided

1. Spread 2 tbsp of cream cheese on one side of the pancake (or bread) and top with 2 tbsp of the pumpkin butter.
2. Place another piece of bread on top to make a sammie.
3. Continue to make the second sammie.
4. Serve.

*Feel free to use a little more or a little less of the cream cheese and pumpkin butter depending on the size of your pancake (or bread).

I’ll start off by saying that I’m pretty lucky to have kids who eat their greens. But even if I didn’t, I think this Spooky Green Smoothie would be irresistible to them. If you have a kid who avoids eating his or her greens, this drink treat (just in time for Halloween) may just be the answer to your prayers.

On a vegetable nutrition ranking, spinach is way up at the top in terms of vitamin and mineral richness. Packed with Vitamins K and A, magnesium and folate — just to name just a few — there’s no doubt why Popeye ate so much of the stuff. It gives this delicious drink a beautiful green color as well as a mild, sweet flavor that will surprise you. With the added (healthy) sweetness from banana and agave, this smoothie will be the perfect Hallo-WEE-N treat for your kids and their friends this holiday. My hope is that they like it so much, you’ll be making it year round!

Spooky Green Smoothie (Serves 4)

2 Cups Vanilla Rice Milk
4 Cups Fresh Spinach, packed into the measuring cup
2 Large Bananas
1 Tbsp Honey or Agave

1. Place all the ingredients in a blender and puree on high for 1 minute until smooth.
2. Serve.

I’ve had this Chocolate Tofu Pudding recipe on weelicious for a long time, but when I sat down to come up with Halloween recipes, I couldn’t resist adapting this one slightly to be a special holiday party treat. My husband and I both have fond memories of growing up eating Bill Cosby’s favorite dessert: Jell-O brand chocolate pudding. It was delicious, but full of sugar, sodium coloring and preservatives.

We wanted our kid’s to form their own chocolate pudding memories, we just wanted to offer them something more natural and healthy. That’s partly what inspired me to come up with this recipe. The best part is that you can get your little ones involved with every step. They can help put all of the ingredients into the blender, fill the pots with the delicious, rich chocolate pudding and then, make them Halloween ready by adding the “dirt”, “bugs”, “worms” and any other fun, creepy, and edible things you find. Let your kids improvise and make their dessert as spooky and sweet as they want before goblin it all up! This year, have a delicious (and healthy) HalloWEEn!

Chocolate Tofu Pudding Pots (Serves 4)

1 14 Oz Package Soft Silken Tofu (I like House Foods soft silken or Mori-Nu firm silken)
1/3 Cup Pure Cocoa Powder
1/3 Cup Agave Nectar (feel free to use a little more if you want it sweeter)
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
24 Chocolate Wafers (I like using Famous Chocolate Wafers)
Gummy Worms (I know, it’s candy. If you think of a healthier “worm” substitute, go for it. Or, you can leave them out altogether.)
4 Small Clay Flower Pots

1. Place the first 4 ingredients in a food processor and blend to combine.
2. Scrape down the sides of the food processor and blend again to make sure everything is incorporated.
3. Place 4 whole chocolate wafers in the bottom of the clay pots so none of the pudding goes through the hole at the bottom of the pots.
4. Divide the chocolate tofu pudding between the 4 pots.
5. Place the remaining 20 wafers in a ziploc bag and using a rolling pin, crush into small pieces resembling dirt.
6. Sprinkle the crushed wafers on top of the pots and place the gummy worms in the pots.
7. Serve.

Whenever there’s a seasonal item at Trader Joe’s like pumpkin puree, I get so excited that I lose control and end up buying at least 10 cans of it. Individual Pumpkin Cheesecakes, Pumpkin Milkshakes, Pumpkin Seed Cookies, Pumpkin Waffles….those are a few of the things I love to make with pumpkin puree, just to give you a hint of my obsession with it.

In general, I try not to eat a lot of canned foods, but if there’s one thing that is simply easier and tastier to get from a can, it’s pumpkin puree. Roasting and pureeing an entire pumpkin, is a time consuming task that I don’t recommend doing, especially when their are a couple of very good canned brands out there. As you now know, I love making my arsenal of Vitamin A packed pumpkin recipes, but it’s always a fun challenge for me to come up with new ones. When these Pumpkin Apple Muffins came out of my oven, the entire kitchen was filled with the delicious smells of cinnamon and spice. The first bite of a muffin was even better though, especially when spread with a spoonful of weelicious Pumpkin Butter.

So go out, get some canned pumpkin and get into the pumpkin spirit. I’m not saying you have to go crazy like me, but no matter what you make — especially this time of year — pumpkin makes everything taste more special!

Pumpkin Apple Muffins (12 Muffins or 24 Mini Muffins)

1 1/3 Cups All Purpose Flour
2/3 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Tsp Pumpkin Spice
3 Tbsp Vegetable or Canola Oil
1/2 Cup Agave OR Honey
1 Egg
1/2 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Pumpkin Puree
1 Medium Apple, peeled and grated (Gala, Pink Lady, Fuji or Golden Delicious are good choices)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine the first 7 ingredients in a bowl and mix.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients together.
4. Slowly add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.
5. Grease muffin tins or line them with muffin cups and fill each cup 3/4 full with the batter.
6. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Serve.

I wouldn’t exactly call nacho cheese dip “healthy,” but considering all of the junk kids traditionally consume on Halloween, this dip will definitely give them a good protein boost to start their evening of Trick or Treating and hopefully fill their bellies with something more nutritious than candy bars.

I don’t know about your kids, but if my kids see chips and something with cheese along side it, they’re totally in! With a few black beans “bugs” thrown in for fun and giggles, it’s a Halloween recipe for success!

Buggy Nacho Cheese Dip (Serves 6-8)

2 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Flour
2 Cups Whole Milk
2 Cups Cheddar Cheese, grated (8 oz cheese)
1 15 oz Can Black Beans, rinsed and drained
Tortilla Chips

1. Stir the butter and flour in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring continuously for about 1 minute or until bubbly and golden.
2. Slowly add the milk, whisking continuously and bring to a boil.
3. Simmer on low to medium heat for 10 minutes or until the mixture thickens (it should coat the back of a wooden spoon).
4. Turn off the heat, continue to stir for another minute to cool then add the cheese and stir until melted.
5. Stir in the black beans.
6. Serve with tortilla chips.

*This dip should be served warm as it solidifies when it gets cold. Reheat this dip in a sauce pan over low heat till it is warm.

One of the unfortunate things for kids with nut allergies is that they miss out on so many great recipes they would probably love, were it not for their bodies’ adverse reaction to nuts. We here at weelicious are constantly experimenting with different kinds of seeds as nut substitutes in some of our favorite nut-based recipes, so allergic kids don’t have to miss out.

I love pestos. They’re great as spreads for sandwiches, on fish or chicken, mixed with your favorite pasta or simply roasted. However, most pestos contain nuts, which obviously rule them out for kids with allergies or as something you can put in your little one’s lunch box if they attend a nut-free school. After a lot of trial and error, I found pumpkin seeds (or pepitas) to be a great nut alternative in this recipe. Pumpkin seeds seem to be everywhere this time of year — it being Halloween and all (or HalloWEEn as we like to call it here!). Pumpkin seeds have great flavor and, like the nuts they are replacing, are a great source of protein, minerals and provide essential polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Whether your kids have nut allergies or just attend a nut free school, there’s no reason they have to deprived of great taste. This Pumpkin Seed Pesto is perfect for the holidays, simple to make and simply delicious!

Pumpkin Seed Pesto (Makes about 1/2 cup)

1/2 Cup Pumpkin Seeds (pepitas), hulled
1/4 Cup Parmesan
1 Garlic Clove
1 Cup Cilantro, Parsley or Basil
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/3 Cup Olive OIl

1. If using raw (green) pumpkin seeds, place them on a baking sheet and toast for 10-15 minutes in a 350 degree oven or until golden. If using toasted/roasted pumpkin seeds you can skip this step.
2. Place all the ingredients in a food processor and puree until smooth.
3. Serve on pasta, fish, chicken or a spread on sandwiches.

* For a dairy free version use 1/4 cup nutritional yeast and 1/2 cup olive oil (instead of 1/3 cup).

* To freeze, place in ice cube trays or baby food cubes and freeze for up to 3 months.