Replacing Refined Sugar During the Sweetest Month of the Year

Being the first day of October, today marks the start of a whole month of Halloween celebrations. Spooky decorations, pumpkin carvings, and the dentist’s worst enemy- candy (and probably yours too). As a parent, this month can be both super fun and extremely trying all at once. With so many fun projects to do with your kids, costumes to create, and games to play, it can be a wonderfully artistic, playful time to be a parent. On the flip side, there are also quite a few unfortunate aspects of this Hallmark holiday. The unprecedented candy consumption all throughout October not only presents a number of dental concerns, but all of the extra sugar has quite an adverse effect on the little ones. If you’re like most parents during Halloween time, you might be seeking healthful alternatives to all the sweet treats they’ll be getting this month, while also granting them the Halloween experience they deserve.

This month is also a great opportunity to teach your children about healthy alternatives to sugary sweets and candy. After all, most kids just want to eat something that looks fun and tastes sweet, they don’t actually care what it’s made from, which can work in your favor. It’s actually fairly easy to get them into eating sugar-free alternatives without them even tasting the difference. Every parent is allowed some well-intended secrets, right? And even though most hard candy is vegan, it doesn’t mean it’s healthy or okay to consume in excess. So to help you out this Halloween, here are some of our top plant-based replacements for typical Halloween treats:

Natural Sweeteners

The best way to start crafting yummy health food treats is to identify some key natural sweeteners that you’ll use to replace refined sugar, preservatives, and synthetic fillers in the desserts and candy we all know so well. Here are some of the main guilt-free sweeteners:

• Dates
• Bananas
• Mango
• Various berries (strawberries, blackberries, raspberries)
• Carrots (fun for Halloween for its orange color)
• Beets
• Natural chocolate
• Honey
• Coconut Sugar
• Maple syrup

Every diet should include foods that contain natural sugar like fruits and certain veggies in order to replenish blood sugar levels. Most would be surprised to learn that vegetables like carrots and beets actually contain quite a lot of natural sugar. In fact, one medium-sized carrot contains about 2.9 grams of sugar (4 grams = 1 teaspoon). These sugars are normal, natural, and healthy to consume on a daily basis. Therefore, we can extract the sweetness from these healthy foods to create delicious treats, candies, and desserts that we can feel great about, and feed our children without worry! Use these natural sugars to make popsicles, pies, cakes, cookies, and even hard candy!

If you’ve run out of inspiration or simply don’t have time to make these treats yourself, don’t stress. There are hundreds of healthy alternatives just waiting to be ordered and delivered straight to your doorstep with the click of a button. Check out Elivefood.com to stock up on all your plant-based health foods this season! From date-sweetened cashew-based cheesecakes to cauliflower buns, dips, and dressings, Elive Food has all the real vegan products your meals have been missing! Family owned and operated in Los Angeles, Elive Foods is a female-owned business by Julie Atri. As a mother and ayurvedic enthusiast, Julie employs her health-centered background together with the knowledge of motherhood and creates amazing food for hundreds of plant-based families across Southern California. With online ordering, food delivery, and catering available, Elive Food makes it easier than ever to feed your family right and make sure your kids are getting healthy alternatives to the classics they crave.