12 Ways to Use Up Leftover Halloween Candy!

Halloween might be over, but it is not forgotten at the Frugal Upstate household. Despite the fact that we get over 200 trick or treaters a year, we still somehow wound up with leftover candy and the perennial question: “What do we do with leftover Halloween Candy?!”

I asked my friends on Twitter and we came up with 12 great ideas for using up leftover Halloween candy:

1. Save it for your holiday gingerbread houses (via VisitFingerLake)

2. Freeze it for later.

3. Add a cup at a time to rice crispy squares (via Jeremy Wright). If it’s chocolate or easily meltable let the mix cool a bit first

4. Chop and roll candy apples into crushed candy.

5.  Chop and use as icecream topping or as a decorative/tasty topping for an iced cake.

6.  Toss into homemade trail mix.

7. Chop and mix into brownies. Peppermint Patties or any chocolates/candy bars are especially good.

8. Make Molten Candy Cookies. Just take chocolate chip cookie or sugar cookie dough and wrap a ball around a mini chocolate bar.

9.  Make Leftover Candy Cake.

10. Make Chocolate Candy Corn Cookies (via Feels Like Home)

11. Donate the extra candy to a rehab center (via MommyBlogExpert) a nursing home (via backhomeagain) or a shelter (via luciagia)

12. Sell it to your dentist (via KingdomFirstMom and jodirotondo). Really! There is a program called “Halloween Candy Buy Back” that many dentists participate in.

So what do you do with your leftover candy. . . besides eat it!

Recipe: Big Dog Kahlua

In the last few weeks I have posted my recipe for Homemade Amaretto and Homemade Bailey’s Irish Cream.  Just to round it out I figured I better also put up my recipe for Homemade Kahlua.

This recipe came from our good friend from Army days-Randy.  He would have all our friends save their dark glass bottles from beer and wine and then make big batches of this to give to friends.

This would make a great frugal  gift for the holidays.  You could keep a couple of small bottles on hand for hostess gifts or last minute presents.   I think they are especially attractive if you dip the head in melted wax. . . very classy.

Big Dog Kahlua

2 C Sugar

2 C Water

3 TBS Instant Coffee (pick something that tastes decent!)

1 Vanilla Bean or 1 TBS Vanilla Extract (preferably real)

2 C Vodka

-Mix water, sugar and instant coffee.

-Simmer until sugar is dissolved.

-Cool completely.

-Stir in in Vanilla and Vodka and pour into a dark bottle to age.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pmitchell/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Recipe: Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip

Sometimes when you are having folks over you want something a little classier than chips and onion dip.  It is a copycat of the appetizer dip sold at TGI Friday’s.

I love making this dip when I’m having a crowd over~everything except the baking can be done ahead of time then refridgerated. . .then just pop it in the oven.  You can even microwave it!

Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip

1/2 C Sour Cream

1/2 C Mayonnaise

1/2 C Paremesan Cheese

1/2 C Shredded Mozerrella

2-3 Cloves minced garlic

10 oz Frozen Spinach

14 oz can Artichoke Hearts

-Thaw spinach and drain thoroughly.  You may want to actually squeeze excess liquid out.

-Chop artichoke hearts.

-Mix all ingredients and place in a shallow greased casserole dish.  At this point you may refrigerate until ready to cook.

-Bake for 20 min at 325 or microwave for approx 5 min on high.

-Serve with tortilla’s, pita chips (homemade?) or toasted bread wedges.

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