Halloween party...allergies...

My son has a peanut allergy, but luckily its not so severe that they have to ban from the class. But, for his first grade Halloween party they avoided nuts all together, just in case and went w/ an "orange" theme - doritos, cheez puffs, carrots, popcorn balls (dyed orange) and some kind of orange punch. The kids loved it - not healthy - but very festive :-)

Have you looked at www.familyfun.com? They have TONS of ideas with fresh fruit & veggies (a very cute frog made from a green apple, and "teeth" from apples and slivered almonds -I'm sure you could substitute something like broken pita chips for the teeth).

If your school allows homemade goodies, why not make cookies and let the kids decorate them? I saw a cookie recently that was decorated like a cat - licorice string "whiskers", candy corn ears, etc. (I think the eyes were M&M's.)
Hope this helped!

How about caramel apples (no nuts of course)? Or cupcakes? Most recipes (even the box mixes and canned frosting) do not include milk.

The kids also might like to cut out fun shapes from Jell-O. What about using orange Jell-O with pumpkin cookie cutters and use sprinkles or candies to decorate them? They would have a blast, enjoy the snack, and make a "craft", too!

You could also use gel frosting in tubes to decorate things. I'm sure they would love it!

Hi L.. Here is a food list we developed at St Peters Elementary as a suggestion to parents when it comes to what is considered a 'safe' food:
Fruit Snacks:
Fruit Roll-ups
Fruit by the foot
Fruit Snacks (in the packets)
Gushers

Chips: (the brand name products only...the generic brands tend to be processed with nuts)
Popcorn (plain)
Tostitos
Fritos
Pretzels (read labels carefully on these...i've had to confiscate more of these last year from my son's goody bag)
Potato Chips
Puffed Corn

Crackers:
Triskets
Saltines
Teddy Graham (honey/banana/plain)
Ritz (no peanut butter varieties)

Goldfish (pretzel and original)
Graham crackers

Cereals:
Fruit Loops
Trix
Cheerios (plain or multi grain)
Kix
Lucky Charms

Cookies:
Sugar wafers (vanilla and strawberry)
Oreos
Plain Rice Krispie Treats (not the chocolate variety)

Fruit:
Apples
Bananas
Grapes
Raisins (plain only)
Any fruit that is cut and ready to eat

Please do not send the following due to the fact that they may contain traces of nuts:
All Little Debbies
All Mars Products
Some Keebler products
Any Granola products
Most Easter chocolate

at the end of the ingredients list if it mentions that the product may have trace amounts of nuts...do not give! It is better to be safe than sorry.

Also be on the look out for the following when it comes to milk allergies:
Whey - milk
Avoid chocolate - it tends to have dairy and trace nut products
caseins - a milk product

Hope this helps.

H.

We are serving donuts at our Halloween party where we have the same allergies. Of course, check with the parents first. Jello is usually safe and well received.

My kids also have multiple food allergies. For their classroom parties (kindergarten and 1st grade) we're going to let the kids make their own bag of trail mix. We'll have bowls with scoops set out containing Chex cereal, pretzels, raisins, gummy worms, Fritos corn chips. Then each kid will be given a little bag and they can scoop what they want into their bag. This way those with allergies can avoid any questionable food but everyone has a choice (although none of the foods I listed should have a problem with dairy or peanuts). Also, try to talk to the moms of the kids with allergies prior to the party - they may offer some great ideas but at the very least they can be assured that party planners are aware of the allergies and trying to plan accordingly.
L.

As a mom of a child with multiple food allergies...both nuts and dairy included, I can say that you do have to be really careful about what you serve. Cake and cookie mixes almost always have dairy in the mix. Even though it isn't always listed on the package. Definitely nothing containing cheese or milk. I think you're better off sticking with some of the cute fruit and veggie ideas. Make sure that once you do decide on the food, contact the parents of those children and ask them if the foods you've chosen are OK for their child. They will know for sure, as they've been reading food labels daily and know the foods that might be a problem. I know they'll appreciate the fact that you're getting their advice and input.

M.

My son is allergic to both of these items as well as eggs and corn. Oreos would be safe. some fruit snacks would be safe just make sure to look at the ingredient list to make sure they weren't packaged in a facility with nuts. Fruits and veggies are always a great snack. Last Halloween in my sons class they had roasted pumpkin seeds, apple juice/cider, halloween oreos, and a fruit. On one occasion they wanted to have ice cream floats. That went over really well with the kids. I took in my son's soy ice cream and you couldn't tell the difference.
I hope this helps, if you need any help, just send me a message.

Fresh fruit (grapes, strawberries, bananas, etc.) on toothpicks/skewers to make fruit kebobs! Add celery, jicama for some crunch.

Another idea is "Ants on a Log" made with Sunbutter. (Just in case someone doesn't know: it is usually peanut butter stuffed celery with raisins or chocolate chips on top - resembling the name.) Sunbutter is made from sunflower seeds, which does not have the allergy effect that peanut butter does. Or try soy-butter.

Another relatively easy thing to make is chocolate pretzels. Melt dipping chocolate and dip half of pretzel rods (the ones that are about 6"-7") and then dip or roll in sprinkles or colored sugar. Or leave plain.

Hello. Try looking on perpetualpreschool.com
I have found lots of great idesa. Just go to the Holiday section on top and then to Halloween. They have art, games, snacks, science, and more.....Good luck

I've read some of the responses you got, and most cake mixes DO have milk in them. They don't call for milk, but it's already in there. Try Best Choice Yellow cake mix or Pillsbury Lemon. You also have to be careful about frosting. Pillsbury white and Best Choice White are ok. I also saw that someone recommended popcorn balls. You'd better double check that b/c they often have butter in them.