A Simple Halloween Breakfast Table for Kids

Some of my favorite traditions with our kids are the ones that aren't really traditions yet—the little things we do one morning that are so sweet, I immediately know I want to do them again next year.

This little Halloween breakfast table for the kids was exactly that.

Nothing about it was overly complicated. I pulled together an orange, black and white table, added fresh orange dahlias, made our Halloween character pancakes and tucked a few of the kids' favorite snacks into little Halloween favors.

We all wore our Halloween pajamas, sat around the table together and turned an otherwise ordinary October breakfast into something that felt really special.

And honestly, these are the mornings I know I'm going to miss someday.

A Halloween Breakfast Made for Little Ones

When I'm setting a holiday table for our family, I want it to feel special without feeling too precious for little hands.

Especially at this stage of life.

I want Shepherd to be excited when he sees it. I want Amelia sitting right there with us. I want everyone eating the food, touching everything and actually enjoying the table instead of worrying about keeping it picture-perfect.

For this Halloween breakfast, I kept everything within a simple orange, black and white color palette.

The Halloween pancakes brought in the playful part, while orange dahlias made the table feel a little more elevated. Then I added small Halloween favors at each place setting so the kids had something fun waiting for them when they came to the table.

It was festive without requiring an entire house full of Halloween decorations.

What I Put on Our Halloween Breakfast Table

The star of breakfast was definitely our Mummy, Pumpkin and Frankenstein Sourdough Discard Pancakes.

I started with my favorite sourdough discard pancake batter, doubled it and divided it into three bowls. One stayed plain for our mummy, one got a little natural orange coloring for the pumpkin and the last was naturally colored green with matcha for Frankenstein.

Then I used Greek yogurt, chocolate and fresh fruit to make all three characters.

Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes – Mummy, Pumpkin & Frankenstein

I love that they're fun for kids but are still made from a breakfast we would normally eat at home.

Alongside the pancakes, I added a big bowl of Cuties because...duh.

They're orange. It's Halloween. They practically decorated the table for me.

And more importantly, they're something the kids will actually eat.

Halloween Goodie Bags for Breakfast

I wanted each of the kids to have a little surprise waiting at the table, but I didn't want to fill the entire breakfast with candy.

Instead, I made little Halloween goodie bags filled with Little Spoon Puffs.

They worked as part of the table decor while also giving the kids something they already love.

I also used little witch hats as party favors and filled those with Little Spoon Bars.

This might be my favorite little detail because the hats added height and a Halloween element to the table, but they weren't decorations I was buying just to look pretty for one morning.

They doubled as favors.

If you're recreating a Halloween breakfast for your own kids, that's one of my biggest tips: let the food and favors become part of the decor.

A bowl of orange fruit, Halloween snacks tucked into bags and favors at each place setting can make the entire table feel finished without adding a ton of extra decorations.

Fresh Orange Dahlias for the Centerpiece

For the centerpiece, I kept it incredibly simple with fresh orange dahlias.

They were perfect.

The orange tied into the Halloween theme without making the table feel overly themed, and fresh flowers always make even a casual breakfast at home feel a little more special.

You could easily recreate the same idea with whatever orange flowers you can find at the grocery store or farmers market.

I wouldn't make the arrangement too tall or elaborate, especially for a family breakfast. I like being able to actually see everyone across the table.

The Halloween Pajamas Made It Even Cuter

Of course, we had to coordinate with the table.

Mine were black and white gingham, which ended up fitting the whole orange, black and white color palette perfectly.

Amelia wore the sweetest tan gingham pajamas with little bears dressed in pumpkin costumes, and Shepherd wore gray striped pajamas with skeletons driving cars.

Which may be the most Shepherd pair of Halloween pajamas imaginable.

I love that they weren't perfectly matching sets. Everything coordinated without feeling like we were all wearing exactly the same thing, and each pair still felt like them.

It made the morning—and the photos—even sweeter.

Shop Our Halloween Breakfast

I rounded up the pieces from our breakfast along with more of my favorite Halloween finds for little ones in my Halloween with Kids Favorites

I'll keep adding to the shelf throughout the season, including Halloween pajamas, kids' tableware, baking pieces, little favors, kitchen finds and other things we're using for our October traditions.

If you want to recreate a similar breakfast, I would start with just a few pieces rather than buying an entirely new table:

• Halloween or black-and-white plates and cups

• Simple napkins or linens

• Little treat bags

• Halloween party favors

• Seasonal pajamas

• Kid-friendly Halloween snacks

• A few baking or pancake-making essentials

• Fresh orange flowers

Use what you already own for everything else.

How to Create an Easy Halloween Breakfast Table for Kids

The biggest thing I took away from this breakfast is that you really don't need much.

Start with one simple color palette. Orange, black and white made it easy for me to look around the house and pull things together without worrying about whether every piece was technically "Halloween."

Then choose one special food.

For us, it was the Halloween pancakes. You don't need an entire buffet of themed recipes when one really fun dish immediately tells the story.

Next, add something unexpected at the kids' places. A tiny goodie bag, witch hat filled with snacks or another inexpensive party favor instantly makes sitting down at the table exciting for them.

Finally, use food as decoration.

The bowl of Cuties is probably the easiest example. It's something we were going to eat anyway, but all of that bright orange fruit looked so cute sitting on the Halloween table.

What to Serve for a Kids Halloween Breakfast

Our Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes were plenty festive on their own, so I don't think you need to make every single thing Halloween themed.

I'd pair them with easy breakfast foods your family already loves: eggs, bacon or sausage, fresh fruit and milk or juice for the kids.

For another cozy addition, my Peach Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping would be perfect for a larger Halloween brunch.

You could also add my Apple Pie Overnight Oats or Blueberry Cinnamon Roll Loaf if you're hosting more people.

Make It a Halloween Morning Tradition

I think this is the part I love most.

Halloween can so easily become about everything we're going to do later that day—the costumes, trick-or-treating and all the excitement that comes with it.

But there's something really sweet about starting the celebration first thing in the morning.

Put on the Halloween pajamas. Make something fun for breakfast. Give the kids a tiny surprise. Sit down together before the craziness of the day starts.

It doesn't have to be elaborate enough for Pinterest.

It just has to feel special to them.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you decorate a Halloween breakfast table for kids?

Start with a simple Halloween color palette and use a few playful details rather than trying to theme every piece. I used orange, black and white with fresh orange flowers, Halloween pancakes, little favors and seasonal pajamas.

What can I put in Halloween goodie bags besides candy?

Snacks your kids already enjoy are an easy alternative. I filled our goodie bags with Little Spoon Puffs and put Little Spoon Bars inside witch hat party favors.

Other ideas could include stickers, temporary tattoos, small toys or other age-appropriate treats.

What food can double as Halloween table decor?

Anything naturally orange works beautifully. I used a bowl filled with Cuties, but mini pumpkins, apples or other seasonal fruit could work too.

What should I serve for a Halloween breakfast?

Choose one special Halloween breakfast and keep everything else simple. We made mummy, pumpkin and Frankenstein sourdough discard pancakes and served them alongside easy breakfast foods and fruit.

Do kids need matching Halloween pajamas?

Definitely not. I actually love coordinating pajamas more than perfectly matching ones. Ours all worked within the same neutral Halloween palette while still being completely different.

More Halloween Ideas for Kids

If you're planning your own Halloween morning, start with my Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes and then shop everything I've saved to my Kids Halloween Favorites ShopMy Shelf

You can also find more seasonal recipes here:

Pumpkin Tiramisu

Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Skillet Cookie

Matcha Pancakes

Final Thoughts

I know this season of matching pajamas, funny pancakes and tiny goodie bags around the breakfast table won't last forever.

That's probably why I love doing these things so much right now.

It wasn't an elaborate Halloween party. It was just the four of us at home in our pajamas, eating pancakes around a table covered in orange, black and white.

But Shepherd got his skeletons driving cars. Amelia got tiny bears dressed like pumpkins. We had Frankenstein pancakes, little witch hats filled with snacks and a bowl of Cuties sitting next to the prettiest orange dahlias.

And somehow all of those little details turned breakfast into a memory.

Those are the traditions I want to keep.

SHOP OUR KIDS HALLOWEEN FAVORITES

Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes: Mummy, Pumpkin & Frankenstein

There’s something about making an ordinary breakfast a little festive that makes the holidays feel extra special with kids. These Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes are made from our favorite fluffy sourdough discard pancake recipe and turned into three easy Halloween characters: a mummy, pumpkin and Frankenstein.

And the best part? You only have to make one pancake batter.

I doubled my regular sourdough discard pancake recipe, divided the batter into three bowls and made a small change to each. I left the mummy batter plain, added natural orange food coloring to the pumpkin batter and used matcha to naturally turn Frankenstein green.

Then we decorated them with Greek yogurt, fresh fruit and a little melted chocolate.

They’re festive without requiring a million ingredients or complicated decorating, which is exactly the kind of Halloween recipe I want to make with little ones.

Skip to the Recipe

An Easy Halloween Breakfast for Kids

I love finding little ways to make each season feel special for our kids, and it doesn’t always need to be a big event.

Sometimes it’s simply making pancakes look like Frankenstein on an October morning.

These would be so cute for Halloween morning, an October weekend breakfast or even a Halloween brunch with friends. You can make all three characters like I did or just choose your favorite and keep things even simpler.

If you’re planning more Halloween fun with little ones, I’m also putting all of the Halloween pieces we use and love in my Kids Halloween Favorites—kid-friendly kitchen tools, Halloween plates and cups, baking supplies, seasonal finds and everything that makes these little traditions more fun.

And if you love making breakfast feel a little more special, my Peach Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping is another favorite for slow mornings at home.

Three Halloween Pancakes from One Batter

Instead of making three separate recipes, I made one double batch of my sourdough discard pancake batter and divided it evenly between three bowls.

From there, each bowl becomes one of our Halloween characters.

It makes these look much more complicated than they actually are.

Mummy Pancakes

The mummy is the simplest of the three.

I left this portion of the pancake batter completely plain. Once cooked, I used a piping bag filled with plain Greek yogurt to create the mummy wrapping and melted chocolate for the eyes.

And definitely don't worry about making the yogurt lines perfect. Uneven lines actually make the mummy look better.

This is also a great one if you don't want to change the pancake batter at all. You can make your regular pancakes and let the decoration turn them into Halloween breakfast.

Pumpkin Pancakes

For the pumpkin, I added natural orange food coloring to the second bowl of batter.

Full disclosure: you really couldn’t tell mine were very orange once they were cooked!

But once I added a little kiwi stem and drew the jack-o’-lantern face with melted chocolate, they were still so cute.

If you use natural food coloring and yours does the same thing, don’t stress about it. The decorations do most of the work.

You could actually skip the orange coloring altogether if you want. The kiwi stem and chocolate face are enough to make a regular golden pancake read as a pumpkin.

Matcha Frankenstein Pancakes

Frankenstein might be my favorite.

Instead of using green food coloring, I added matcha to the third bowl of pancake batter. It naturally turns the pancakes green while adding just a subtle matcha flavor.

For the decorations, I used blackberries across the top for his hair and pieces of banana for the scar, eyes and mouth. A little melted chocolate adds the final details.

I love that so much of his face is made from fruit, too. He's festive and silly without needing a bunch of specialty Halloween candy.

Shop Everything for a Kids Halloween Morning

One of my favorite parts of creating these little seasonal traditions is pulling out a few special pieces that make an otherwise normal breakfast feel exciting.

I created a Kids Halloween Favorites shelf on ShopMy with my favorite Halloween finds for little ones, including seasonal tableware, baking pieces, kid-friendly kitchen tools and other things I’ll be using throughout October.

I’ll keep adding to this shelf throughout the season, so it can be a spot to find everything I’m using for our Halloween recipes, treats and little traditions.

Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes

Fluffy sourdough discard pancakes turned into three easy Halloween characters—a mummy, pumpkin and Frankenstein—using Greek yogurt, fruit, matcha and melted chocolate.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: Approximately 18–20 pancakes, depending on size

Ingredients

Sourdough Discard Pancakes

• 150 g sourdough starter discard

• 400 g all-purpose flour

• 450 g milk

• 100 g butter, melted

• 80 g honey

• 4 large eggs

• 16 g baking powder

• 6 g salt

• 12 g vanilla extract

For the Halloween Pancakes

• Natural orange food coloring

• Matcha powder, as needed for desired green color

• Plain Greek yogurt

• Melted chocolate

• Kiwi

• Blackberries

• Banana

Instructions

1. Mix the Wet Ingredients

In a large bowl, whisk together the sourdough starter discard, milk, melted butter, honey, eggs and vanilla extract until smooth and fully combined.

2. Combine the Dry Ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Make the Pancake Batter

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, gently stirring until just combined.

Be careful not to overmix. A few lumps are perfectly fine and will help keep the pancakes light and fluffy.

4. Rest the Batter

Let the pancake batter rest for 5–10 minutes. This helps hydrate the flour and gives you softer, fluffier pancakes.

5. Divide the Batter

Divide the batter evenly between three bowls.

Leave the first bowl plain for the mummy pancakes.

Add natural orange food coloring to the second bowl for the pumpkin pancakes.

Add matcha powder to the third bowl a little at a time until you reach your desired shade of Frankenstein green.

6. Cook the Pancakes

Heat a lightly greased non-stick skillet or griddle over medium heat.

Pour about ¼ cup batter onto the skillet for each pancake.

Cook until bubbles begin forming on the surface and the edges look set, about 2–3 minutes. Flip and cook for another 1–2 minutes, or until cooked through.

Repeat with the remaining batter.

7. Make the Mummy

Place a plain pancake on a plate.

Add plain Greek yogurt to a piping bag and pipe it back and forth across the pancake to create mummy wrapping.

Use melted chocolate to make two eyes.

8. Make the Pumpkin

Place an orange pancake on a plate.

Cut a small piece of kiwi and place it at the top for the pumpkin stem.

Use melted chocolate to draw the eyes and jack-o’-lantern mouth.

9. Make Frankenstein

Place a matcha pancake on a plate.

Arrange blackberries across the top for Frankenstein’s hair.

Cut banana into small pieces to create his eyes, mouth and scar. Add small dots of melted chocolate to the banana eyes to finish his face.

Serve and enjoy!

Amanda’s Notes

Don’t worry if the pumpkin isn’t very orange. Natural food coloring can become much more subtle once the pancake is cooked. Mine did! Once you add the kiwi stem and chocolate face, it still looks like a pumpkin.

Add the matcha gradually. You only need enough to turn the batter green. Adding too much can make the matcha flavor stronger than you want.

Let the pancakes cool slightly before decorating. This is especially important for the mummy. If the pancake is piping hot, the Greek yogurt can start to melt and run.

Use a piping bag for the chocolate, too. It makes drawing the little faces much easier. You can also use a small zip-top bag and snip off the tiniest corner.

Let the kids decorate their own. Put out bowls of blackberries, banana, kiwi, yogurt and chocolate and let everyone create their own Halloween pancake character. They definitely don’t have to be perfect.

Keep cooked pancakes warm. Since this makes a double batch, keep finished pancakes on a baking sheet in a low oven while you finish cooking the remaining batter.

What to Serve with Halloween Pancakes

Because the pancakes are already the fun part of breakfast, I’d keep everything else really simple.

Serve them with fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, bacon or breakfast sausage and maple syrup on the side.

For a bigger Halloween brunch, make several of each character and arrange them together on a large platter with extra fruit.

You could even turn breakfast into a decorate-your-own Halloween pancake bar. Make the pancakes and set out bowls of Greek yogurt, melted chocolate, banana, blackberries and kiwi so everyone can create their own character.

For another cozy breakfast to add to your fall rotation, try my Peach Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping, Apple Pie Overnight Oats or Blueberry Cinnamon Roll Loaf

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make Halloween pancakes without sourdough discard?

Yes. You can use the same decorating ideas with your favorite pancake recipe. You’ll just need enough batter to divide between the three Halloween characters.

Does matcha make pancakes green?

Yes. Matcha naturally gives the pancake batter a beautiful green color, which makes it perfect for Frankenstein without needing green food coloring.

Will the matcha make the pancakes taste like matcha?

A small amount will add a subtle matcha flavor, but it shouldn’t overwhelm the pancakes. Start with a little and add more until you have the green color you want.

Can I make these Halloween pancakes ahead of time?

Yes. Cook the pancakes ahead of time and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Reheat before serving and wait to add the fruit, Greek yogurt and chocolate decorations until just before eating.

What can I use instead of orange food coloring?

You can leave the pumpkin pancake batter plain. The kiwi stem and chocolate jack-o’-lantern face are enough to make it look like a pumpkin.

How do I keep the Greek yogurt from melting on the mummy pancakes?

Allow the pancakes to cool for a few minutes before piping on the Greek yogurt. You want them warm, but not steaming hot.

More Fall & Halloween Recipes

If you’re looking for more recipes to make throughout October, try:

• Matcha Pancakes

• Pumpkin Tiramisu

• Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Skillet Cookie

• Apple Pie Overnight Oats

• Peach Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping

Save This Recipe

Save this one for Halloween morning, an October weekend breakfast or your next Halloween brunch with the kids.

Gather Around the Table

These Halloween Sourdough Discard Pancakes are exactly the kind of seasonal tradition I love creating with our kids.

They’re simple, a little silly and turn an ordinary breakfast at home into something they get excited about.

And you don't need three recipes or a cart full of special ingredients to make them.

One batch of our favorite sourdough discard pancakes, a little matcha, fruit, Greek yogurt and chocolate turns breakfast into a mummy, pumpkin and Frankenstein.

The characters don't need to be perfect. In fact, I think the wonky ones are usually the cutest.

And those little mornings around the table are the memories I want to hold onto most.