Chili with Cheddar Shortbread is perfect for a fun Halloween Dinner idea. Dress it up for a super Easy Halloween Party Food by serving it in individual dishes with cheddar shortbread “tombstones” or large square dish to feed a crowd.
Nothing smells better than warm chili simmering on the stove when you walk through your front door on a chilly evening. Have it ready to dish out to the Trick or Treaters in your life.
Serve this fun and spooky spin on your favorite chili recipe or use one of our favorite recipes.
This is a Fan Favorite Recipe so I have updated this post to include my quick and easy tips for an Easy Halloween Party Food.
Time Saving Tips For Chili with Cheddar Shortbread Tombstones:
- Make the chili recipe several days ahead and refrigerate until party time. Chili often tastes better when the flavors have time to blend.
- No individual serving dishes? NO problem! Serve the chili in baked potato skins. Just bake large Russet potatoes then, cut them in half and scoop out the centers. Save the potato for Loaded Baked Potato Salad
- Make the Cheddar Shortbread Tombstones a day or two ahead BUT, do not decorate until the day of the party. (an hour or two before should be fine)
- Test your brand of ketchup for the desired thickness. If the ketchup is too runny, stir in cornstarch a little at a time until you reach your desired consistency.
- If you don’t like to bake, no problem, use store bought crackers instead. Choose crackers that are rectangles or oblong (not round) so you will have room to write.
- For a crowd, serve chili recipe in a large square baking dish and place multiple cheddar shortbread/crackers in the dish to look like a graveyard.
Here is a good example of crackers you can substitute for the cheddar shortbread– You can order them from this link or find them at your local grocery store.
You can find more of Donna’s recipes here on Everyday Southwest and on her blog, ApronStringsBlog.com.
Here is her original Post.
Chili is perfect for this time of year, and I decided to dress it up a little to make it Halloween friendly.
I have always wanted to make savory shortbread, and so I thought these cheddar shortbread crackers would do well. In the shape of tombstones, of course. With the inscription on the tombstone in ketchup. SO easy and festive. I used small loaf pans – the perfect graveyard shape – to serve the chili.
Choose your favorite chili recipe or use our famous Ultimate Veggie Chili. This is the best vegetarian chili I have ever eaten. Heck it is even the best chili of any kind I have ever eaten. I even prefer it to chili with meat. Guy Fieri of Food Network fame tasted this chili when Anne competed on the Food Network show “Ultimate Recipe Showdown.” He said, and I quote: “I didn’t even miss the meat.”
Try Our Chili Recipes for your Halloween Dinner-
Anne’s Award Winning Vegetarian Chili Recipe
Authentic Texas Chili Recipe or “Bowl of Red”
Four Pepper Slow Cooker Chile Verde Recipe
Cheddar Shortbread Tombstones
It’s that time of year when spooky food is on the menu.
Chili is perfect for this time of year, and I decided to dress it up a little to make it Halloween friendly.
I
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups cold butter cut into cubes
- 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 4 1/2 cups Your Favorite Chili Recipe OR Anne's Ultimate Veggie Chili Heated
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in food processor and process until dough resembles sand. With the food processor still on, drizzle in about 1 or 2 tablespoons of water, until dough comes together in a clump.
- Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least two hours. Remove from refrigerator and let come to room temperature.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness on a baking sheet that has been lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Cut out tombstone shapes that are about 2 inches wide and 3 inches tall. Remove excess dough between tombstone shapes.
Recipe Notes
PRINT
PREP TIME
10 mins
COOK TIME
12 mins
TOTAL TIME
22 mins
Sandy is a former elementary educator whose love for cooking has gone out of control. She has completed a degree in culinary arts and is now a food writer, photographer, cookbook author and co-creator of the popular website Everyday Southwest. 
Your wonderful recipes with your beautiful photographs make me hungry! Lets make tamales one more time!
These chili treats were not only delicious but adorable. I will make it again for football and top with some football theme toppings.
This is so good! My family loved it!
What a fancy and scrumptious idea, we had fun by making this and then we all had a delicious dinner!
Thank you for sharing
Such a creative and adorable idea! Chili is our annual dinner on Halloween and making these cheddar shortbread tombstones took dinner up a notch! My kids loved this!!
These were so much fun to make for Halloween! My kids loved them!
This is an awesome idea. the chili looks fabulous for Halloween.
I love this idea! Definitely pinning this one for my next Halloween party. I don’t really like to make Halloween treats, because there’s already so much candy to share, so I love savory Halloween recipes!