10 Gluten-Friendly Treats For Inclusive Halloween Parties

Everyone should have a good time throughout spooky season, even guests who can’t eat gluten. Your dessert table can stay fun and pleasant if you use the appropriate recipes and take the right steps. Here are 10 gluten-free goodies that taste great and look great. They all include gluten-free products or acceptable substitutes, and they’re meant to be easy to put together, safe for kids, and liked by everyone. Always read the labels before baking or mixing, and don’t let things get mixed up in the kitchen.

1. Flourless chocolate cake or brownies

When you don’t use all-purpose flour at all, you don’t have to worry about gluten. That’s why flourless chocolate cake or brownies are so good. A typical recipe calls for eggs, good chocolate, sugar, butter, and maybe some cocoa powder or ground almonds to make a thick, fudgy dessert. The eggs and chocolate that have solidified give it its shape since there is no flour. It’s perfect for Halloween because it’s rich, decadent, and easy to decorate with icing or powdered sugar in the shape of bats or ghosts. Flourless chocolate cake is a popular gluten-free dessert.

2. Mummy Rice Krispie treats

If you use gluten-free puffed rice cereal (check the label), Rice Krispie treats are inherently gluten-free. Put the cereal in a tray, melt the marshmallows and butter (or a dairy-free equivalent), and then cut the tray into rectangles. Add miniature candy eyes and thin drips of white chocolate or candy melts to each bar to make them look like mummy bandages. The end result is a creepy, chewy, and sweet treat that doesn’t take much work. Mummy Krispies are a popular choice for gluten-free Halloween roundups.

3. Chocolate bark with mix-ins

One of the easiest gluten-free desserts to make your own is chocolate bark. Melt dark, milk, or white chocolate (or a mix) and spread it over in a thin layer. Then, add toppings like gluten-free pretzels (broken into little pieces), pumpkin seeds, dried fruit, almonds, crushed candy corn (be careful with the ingredients), or cookie crumbs from a gluten-free cookie. Put in the fridge until stiff, then break into pieces that aren’t even. It’s easy to do, looks great, and lets you meet varied dietary demands by dividing types (nut-free, nutty, etc.).

4. Caramel-dipped apples (or apple “donuts”)

Because apples don’t have gluten in them, caramel apples are a seasonal favorite. Use a good caramel (make sure it doesn’t have any gluten-containing ingredients) or create your own with sugar, cream, butter, or other ingredients. You can dip whole apples or thin apple slices (“donuts”) in caramel and then roll them in crushed gluten-free toppings like nuts, seeds, or cookie crumbs. Put on sticks or trays. This classic is in a lot of gluten-free dessert roundups.

5. Ghost or pumpkin meringue cookies

Meringue is gluten-free by nature because it is made with egg whites, sugar, and flavoring. Use a piping bag to make ghost, pumpkin, or bat forms out of whipped meringue on parchment paper. Bake at a low temperature until the outside is crisp and the inside is dry. You can color them with food coloring (but make sure the dyes don’t have gluten in them) or use melted chocolate to make faces on them. These light and fluffy cakes are a charming addition to the dessert table.

6. SunButter (or nut-butter) pumpkins

SunButter (sunflower seed butter) pumpkins are a good choice for people with allergies. They are made by melting gluten-free chocolate or candy and mixing it with a little bit of SunButter or nut butter in molds that look like pumpkins. They look and taste great when they’re cold. They are nonetheless gluten-free because the foundation is seed or nut butter instead of wheat. SunButter pumpkins are often included as a safe alternative on gluten-free treat lists.

7. Halloween popcorn mix

Because popcorn doesn’t have gluten in it, it’s a wonderful base for a scary snack mix. You can add melted chocolate, candy melts, colored drizzles, or gluten-free sprinkles to air-popped or store-bought popcorn. You can add little pieces of gluten-free cereal, almonds, or candy. Put them in bags or containers that match the theme. This combination is crispy, can be changed to fit your tastes, and is great for parties or treat bags.

8. Gluten-free Halloween sugar cookies

To make sugar cookies, mix a gluten-free flour blend (such rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, etc.) with binding agents like xanthan gum or psyllium. Roll the dough out, cut it into shapes like bats, pumpkins, and ghosts, bake it, and then decorate it with icing, sprinkles, and edible markers. The hard part is making sure your flour blend is stable and the moisture levels are right, but if you use a tested recipe, the cookies can be just as good as regular ones.

9. Candy corn or seasonal gummy candies

A lot of gummy candies, candy corn, and jellybeans don’t have gluten in them (but always check the label). You can use these as easy treats by putting them in themed jars, mixing them with popcorn or nuts (if it’s safe), or melting little pieces into molds or bark. They’re quick, entertaining, and useful as extras to go with your baked goods because they don’t need to be baked.

10. Blondies or muffins with gluten-free flour

Use a good gluten-free flour blend instead of regular flour in your favorite blondie or muffin recipe. Make sure that all the other ingredients are also gluten-free. For fall, pumpkin, chocolate chip, or spice variants make sense. Bake in small sizes to regulate portions and make creative shapes. A lot of recipe roundups have gluten-free versions of blondies, muffins, or bars that you may use for Halloween.