By Katy Wilkens, MS, RD

Halloween isn’t just for kids. Adults can also enjoy some treats this holiday.

Homemade candies can bring memories of sweets people no longer hand out to trick-or-treaters. Get nostalgic with the recipes below for popcorn balls, caramel apples and peanut brittle. These treats all make use of sugar with fruit, high fiber popcorn or healthy nuts, so you get the sweet treat, but at a sugar discount. Plus, these homemade treats are low in sodium, good for our kidneys and our hearts – no tricks involved!

All you need are a heavy-bottomed pan, a pastry brush and family or friends to share in the fun. If you have a candy thermometer, it’s handy to help you know at what stage your candy is in the boiling process.

Halloween popcorn balls

1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/ 1/2 cups brown sugar
6 tablespoons water
6 cups of popped popcorn
Food coloring, optional
Melt butter in heavy sauce pan. Add brown sugar and water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook for about 3 minutes until the steam has washed the sugar crystals down the sides of the pan. Uncover and cook without stirring to the soft ball stage, which is 238 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Pour the hot syrup over the popped corn. Stir gently with a wooden spoon until the popcorn is well coated. When popcorn is cool enough to handle, lightly butter your hands and shape popcorn into balls and set on waxed paper to harden. Wrap in waxed paper, parchment paper or plastic wrap.

Nutritional information (per popcorn ball):
Calories: 216, Carbohydrates: 40 grams, Protein: 1 gram, Sodium: 40 milligrams

Homemade peanut brittle

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cup shelled raw peanuts, unsalted
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Grease a shallow baking pan or cookie sheet. Put the sugar, corn syrup and water in a heavy-bottomed pan. Cook, stirring, until the syrup begins to boil. Wash down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush. Cook to hard crack stage, which is 300 degrees on a candy thermometer. Add the nuts, butter and lemon flavoring. Pour mixture onto shallow pan. As soon as it’s cool enough to handle, lightly butter your hands and stretch with your fingers to make as thin as possible. When it hardens, break into irregular pieces. Makes one pound.

Nutritional information (per two large pieces):
Calories: 166, Carbohydrates: 41 grams, Protein: 1 gram, Sodium: 33 milligrams

Caramel apples

4-5 tart apples
1 bag caramel bits or 1 package caramel apple sheet – wooden popsicle sticks included
Push the wooden popsicle stick from the bag of caramels into the stem end of each apple. Cover a large plate with waxed paper, spray with cooking spray, set aside. Put caramel bits in medium sauce pan, add water and cook on low/medium heat about 3 minutes until melted. Dip apples into caramel until evenly coated, spooning over fruit if needed. Place on prepared plate, refrigerate 1 hour. Remove from fridge 15 minutes before serving.
If you use the caramel wraps, you can do it in the microwave – just follow the package directions.

Nutritional information (per apple):
Calories: 200, Carbohydrates: 40 grams, Protein: 3 grams, Sodium: 95 milligrams

The information in this column is meant for people who want to keep their kidneys healthy and blood pressure down by following a low-sodium diet. In most cases, except for dialysis patients, a diet high in potassium is thought to help lower high blood pressure. These recipes are not intended for people on dialysis without the supervision of a registered dietitian.

[Katy G. Wilkens is a registered dietitian and department head at Northwest Kidney Centers. The 2014 recipient of National Kidney Foundation Council on Renal Nutrition’s Susan Knapp Excellence in Education Award, she has a Master of Science degree in nutritional sciences from the University of Washington. See more of her recipes at www.nwkidney.org.]