Anyone can throw a Halloween party, but you can throw the best Halloween party. You will need some great Halloween party ideas to do that though.
You need to think of everything. Drinks, food, things to do during the party, and your costume. It can be intimidating, but don’t worry. As long as you take things one thing at a time, planning the best party will be easy.
Halloween Recipe Ideas
People have to eat. If you throw a party without food, your guests will be upset. Show off your culinary skills with these recipes.
Graveyard Parfaits
Video screen shot, Rachel Hollis, via YouTube
Here is a sweet treat that you can serve your guests. You will need
- 1 can of evaporated milk
- pumpkin puree (1 can)
- 1 box of instant vanilla pudding
- cinnamon (1 teaspoon)
- ½ of an 8 ounce container of cool whip
- 1 package of Oreos, crushed
- 4 tablespoons of melted butter
- 8 Milano cookies
- Handful chocolate chips
To make the pudding, you will need to combine the evaporated milk, pumpkin puree, and put it in a bowl to mix it. Once it’s smooth, refrigerate for 5 minutes.
Add the cinnamon and cool whip. Then put it back in the fridge until you are ready to serve it.
Set aside the crushed Oreos until you are ready to serve.
To make the gravestone cookies, you will need to put the Milano cookies on a baking sheet. Melt chocolate in the microwave and put it in a plastic bag. Cut a small hole in the corner and write out RIP on the cookie.
Halloween Popcorn Treats
Video screenshot, yoyomax12 - the diet free zone, via YouTube
Here’s some finger that both kids and adults will like. It’s easy to make too. You will need food
- Vegetable cooking spray
- 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
- 1/3 of a cup popcorn kernels
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
- mini marshmallows (6 cups)
- 6 fun size caramel peanut chocolate bars cut into ¼ inch pieces
- 3 3 inch chocolate chip cookies crumbled
- 1/3 cup of chopped salted almonds
- ½ cup of orange and black chocolate candy
To start, spray a large mixing bowl and baking sheet with vegetable cooking spray. In a 3 quart or larger pan, heat the oil and popcorn over medium-high heat. Cover the pan and shake gently. Cook until all the kernels are popped.
In a medium sized pan, heat the butter over a low heat and add the vanilla extract and marshmallows. Stir until they have melted and everything is smooth.
Pour the mixture over the popcorn and using a spatula, stir until the popcorn is coated. Then put the whole thing on the baking pan and add the chocolate, cookies, almonds, and candy in.
Let it dry for an hour and you’re done.
Mummy Hot Dogs
Video screenshot, Sweet y Salado, via YouTube
Here’s something more savory among all the sweets. You will need
- 1 16 ounce package of bun size hot dogs, each cut in half
- 2 ounces of cheddar cut into 16 thin slices
- kosher salt (½ teaspoon)
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- freshly ground black pepper (1/4 teaspoon)
- 8 sheets of phyllo dough
- 4 ounces of unsalted butter melted
- Any dipping sauce of choice
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut slits into the hot dogs and add a slice of cheese, then set it aside.
Next, combine the salt, garlic powder, and pepper in a small bowl.
Work with one sheet of phyllo at a time, lay it down on a cutting board and lightly brush it with melted butter. Then lightly sprinkled the spice mix and fold it in half lengthwise. Brush the top with more butter and cut it into ½ inch thick strips.
With 2 pieces of stuffed hot dogs for every phyllo sheet, wrap the strips around each hot dog to create the mummy look.
Repeat until everything is done. Then set it in the oven for around 25 minutes.
Spider Web Guacamole
Video screenshot, The Anthony Kitchen, via YouTube
Can’t have a party without chips and dip. Get spooky with this recipe. You’ll need
- 4 cups of guacamole
- ¼ cup of Mexican cream or sour cream
- Lime juice, if needed
- 2 pitted black olives
- Blue corn tortilla chips
- 1 firm avocado, skin on
To create the spider web, you will need to put a round bowl on a platter. Fill the bowl with the guacamole and smooth the top with a spoon or spatula. Fill a squeeze bag or pastry bag with Mexican cream or sour cream.
Pipe 2 circles onto the guacamole. Using a knife or skewer, pull lines from the center circle out, creating the web pattern.
To create the spider, slice 1 olive in half lengthwise and use one of the halves for the body. Cut 8 spider legs from the remaining olives. Put the spider on the web and spread out the chips.
To create the skull, you will need to carve a face out of the avocado.
Best Halloween Drink Ideas
Most parties have drinks, keep the spooky spirit going with special drinks. These can be a fun addition to your table.
Blood Orange Blackberry Rum
Video screenshot, Northern Fork, via YouTube
This is a great drink for a punch bowl and the color scheme will set the mood. You will need
- 1 cup of chilled blood orange juice
- 4 chilled natural blackberry sodas
- 1 cup of rum
- ¼ cup of fresh lime juice
- 1 cup of fresh blackberries
- 1 blood orange thinly sliced
It’s super easy to make. You just mix all the ingredients together and stir. Then you add the blackberries and blood orange slice to each glass and you’re done.
Candy Corn Jell-O Shots
Video screenshot, SheKnows, via YouTube
Here is a fun and festive drink. You will need
- 1 small box of orange flavored Jell-O
- 3 envelopes of Knox unflavored gelatin
- 7 ounces of sweetened condensed milk
- 2 cups of water
- 1 cup of vanilla or cake vodka
- yellow food coloring
- Tall shot glasses
To start, you are going to make the first and last layer. Pour 1 cup of water in a small saucepan and add 2 packets of unflavored gelatin. Warm the water and gelatin over low heat and stir it occasionally. Do this until the gelatin is dissolved.
Remove the pan and add half the can of condensed milk. Stir it until everything combines. Then add 2/3 cup of vanilla vodka. Cover that and set it aside.
Evenly spread the first half of your mixture throughout the shot glasses to a third of the way. Then refrigerate them until it’s firm.
Once the layer is firm, pour another cup of water into the saucepan and add a packet of gelatin to make your middle layer. Repeat the process, and this time add the box of orange Jell-O, and wait until it’s dissolved as well. Add a third cup of vanilla vodka.
Then pour that mixture over the first layer and refrigerate again.
Now you grab your milk mixture that you put aside and add some yellow food coloring. Then add that as the final layer and touch
Poison Apple Punch
Video screenshot, Tipsy Bartender, via YouTube
A poison apple is a classic symbol with Halloween. You can have fun with your friends by serving them this drink. This is a drink that can also be made sober. You need
- 4 thick slices peeled fresh ginger
- 6 cups of apple cider
- Zest of 1 orange
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 to 2 cinnamon sticks
- 3 whole cloves
- 1 red apple sliced into 8 wedges
- Gummy worms
- 1 750 ml bottle of sparkling cranberry apple juice
- 1 cup of cinnamon whiskey
To start, you need to smash the ginger slices and put them in a medium saucepan. Add the apple cider, orange zest, lemon zest, cinnamon sticks, and cloves.
Bring it to a simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes. Then strain it through a sieve into a pitcher. Let it cool to room temperature, then put it in the fridge for 1 hour.
Poke holes in the apple wedges with a chopstick or skewer and insert a gummy worm in it. Add the cranberry apple juice and whisky to the punch. If you prefer sober, skip the whisky.
Serve it over ice and garnish it with the apples.
Brew-Ha-Ha Punch
Video screenshot, Southern Living, via YouTube
This is a drink that has no alcohol in it. This will be great if kids are in the mix at the party. You will need
- 2 cups of sugar
- 2 quarts of water
- 2 envelopes of lime drink mix
- 1 can of pineapple juice
- 1 quart of ginger ale
Stir together the sugar and 2 quarts of water until the sugar is gone. Then stir the rest of the ingredients in and keep it cool.
If you want an extra spooky presentation, put the punch bowl into a bigger one and add dry ice to the bigger bowl.
Halloween Costumes
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You can’t host a Halloween party without a costume. It can be easy to forget amidst all the Halloween party ideas. You can either buy one or make one yourself. Here are a few fun category suggestions that can get your brain pumping.
TV and Movie Characters
Part of the fun of Halloween is becoming someone you’re not. Use this to your advantage and become one of your favorite characters.
Who doesn’t daydream about taking their favorite character’s place inside their world?
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Iconic Figures
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You can pick an icon that you love and create a costume around them. Also, you can mimic real people from history and see if your friends recognize who it is.
You could also choose a character like mascots from famous companies.
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Animals
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You can’t go wrong with a classic. You can choose from a variety of animals like cats and sharks.
Most of the time, these types of costumes are easy to make yourself if you are on a budget.
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Creatures
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This is a wide category that offers plenty of ideas. You can be a mermaid, an angel, or a monster. The possibilities are endless.
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Best Halloween Party Ideas
The party planning doesn’t stop when the party starts. No, you need to make sure you have some fun activities to do during the party.
Costume Contest
image via P exels
Sometimes the magic of Halloween gets lost as people age. Encourage your friends to dress up in costumes by having a costume contest.
You can have categories like Most Scary, Cutest Costume, Best Couple Costume, and the like. If you want to go even further, you can create your own trophies. There’s a great tutorial on Make It Love It for some Halloween trophies.
Play Games
Playing games can bring some magic to the party. Find Halloween themed games that everyone can enjoy. Games don’t have to be just for kids.
Party Favors
Remember when you were a kid and you would get a bag of goodies at the end of a party? Why not bring that back? Give your guest a bag of candy or small toys as they make their way out the door.
image via Pexels
Have a Theme
Instead of having a general Halloween party, create a themed one. You can go with a scary movie theme, haunted house, or a monster party. Do a Google search and see what others have done and if you can come up with one of your own.
Get Ready to Have a Spooktacular Night
You should be bursting with Halloween party ideas. Hopefully, this list has given you some inspiration and you’re planning out things faster than your hand can write.
The biggest thing to remember is to have fun with the planning. There’s no point if you are stressing out and not enjoying yourself at the actual party. Your guests will notice your discomfort and that brings the mood down.
Halloween is supposed to be fun, no matter what age you are. Keep that in mind and bring some spooky magic into your home this year.
Last update on 2021-03-04 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API