When it comes to Halloween, it’s pretty easy to figure out how to get your hands on sugary treats. I will admit that the amount of “fun size” candy I’ve personally consumed already is already verging on SCARY… and it’s not even October 31st yet! :0

On the flip side, it IS possible to serve up super cute Halloween eats that go easy on the sugar while still delivering on the “sweet”. One way to do this is to swap out some or all of the sugar in your recipes with a zero calorie sweetener like NECTRESSE®, who I’ve teamed up with on 2 festive Halloween recipes that still deliver the sweetness without tons of sugar.

I’m excited to share the first one with you below – these (Reduced-Fat) Smoky Cheddar Tombstone Sandwiches are a little bit sweet and a little bit savory. This recipe is so fun to put together, especially setting it up in the kale “graveyard”! You can use a cookie cutter or simply freehand-cut the tombstone shapes (we’ve done it both ways) – just don’t forget to pipe on the “RIP” in mustard for the finishing touch. ;)

(REDUCE-FAT) SMOKY CHEDDAR TOMBSTONE SANDWICHES

makes 20-28 finger sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 4 oz light cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup low fat mayonnaise
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sweetener
• 2 cups (8 oz.) shredded reduced fat Cheddar cheese
• 2 cups (8 oz.) shredded smoked Gouda cheese
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped
• firm whole wheat or dark rye bread slices
• tombstone cookie cutter or sharp knife
• mustard (for garnish)

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, paprika, salt, and NECTRESSE™. Stir until well blended.

2. In a larger bowl, mix cheddar cheese, gouda, and sun-dried tomatoes. Add in the cream cheese mixture and stir until well combined.

3. To make the sandwiches, use a tombstone cookie cutter or a knife to trim bread into small tombstone shapes. Spread the filling mixture on half of the bread tombstones, then top with the rest of the tombstones.

Garnish: Pour mustard into a plastic bag, cut a very tiny hole at the tip. Pipe “RIP” onto sandwiches.