Spring and summer seem to be birthday party season for most households, which means moms around the country may need to start brainstorming for easy and fun recipes for their kid’s party food. For your child’s special day, you want to serve old favorites and familiar ingredients in a new way. Here are some ideas for party food selections that you and your child can make together, so your little one’s birthday celebration can be the talk of the town.
Pigs in a Blanket
Main courses at a child’s birthday party work best when they are bite-sized and easy to eat with your fingers. One perennial favorite of all kids is the hot dog. You can make the classic hot dog a little more exciting by reworking your recipe to create pigs in a blanket. Making these fun and savory bites for all of your guests is easy. Simply cut regular hot dogs into thirds, and have your kids help by wrapping them in blankets of refrigerated dough.
Fruit on a Stick
Serving fruit at a party is always a hit with both children and their parents. Instead of a giant bowl of cut up fruit that may need serving plates, make fruit on a stick. Choose your child’s favorite varieties, or opt for the fruit selection that is in season. Make sure to cut the fruit into bite-sized pieces, and then simply place on a stick. Party guests can grab and go and indulge without making a mess.
Veggie Pizza Rolls
Pizza is always going to be a popular choice with guests no matter how old they are. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars ordering takeout for your entire party, make your own pizza rolls. You can customize your ingredients to even make healthy, low-fat versions of pizza. You can easily make this item with small bits of dough and the ingredients inserted in the middle. Depending on the preferences of the birthday guests, you may want to make varieties with broccoli, onion, green pepper, or olive. Your kids are going to love helping wrap their favorite veggies in pizza dough.
Mac and Cheese Bites
Put a new twist on the traditional favorite of macaroni and cheese by serving them as bite-sized appetizers for your party. Start off by preparing your macaroni and cheese the usual way, but when it’s done transfer portions of it into a muffin baking tray. The end result is a muffin-sized handheld macaroni and cheese serving that is easily enjoyed by guests. The good news is that you can choose boxed macaroni and cheese if you’re limited on time, or you can choose to make the homemade variety of this crowd-pleasing dish.
Meatball Sliders
Another great option for small hands and picky appetites is a slider. Sliders are small sandwiches that are traditionally made with hamburger ingredients. You can make your sliders even more fun and effortless by using meatballs instead of hamburger patties. If you’re short on time, you can easily pick up frozen meatballs from the grocery store. Making the meatballs from scratch is also something that works great for this recipe. You can opt for traditional, hamburger-style sliders with a plain meatball and cheese, or you can go with meatball varieties that include tasty sauces, such as teriyaki, barbeque, or Italian.
Cookie Pops
For some dessert ideas, it’s always a good idea to have something to serve along with cake. Chocolate chip cookies are always a tasty add-on, but a boring tray of cookies may not be what you’re thinking of. Instead, make them a little more exciting by popping your cookies on a stick and creating cookie pops. You may want to choose an allergy-friendly option, such as Hampton Creek Just Cookie Dough. Follow Hampton Creek on Facebook for even more allergy-friendly ideas. Your kids can even assist with this simple task.
Dirt Pudding
Dirt pudding sounds disgusting and may even look a little strange, but kids are sure to love this silly treat. Making the pudding for a large group is simple when you use an assembly line. Start with chocolate pudding in lined-up plastic cups. Then add your crushed cookie pieces, and finally start placing gummy worms throughout your creation. Your kids can help with the construction of this sweet selection.
For your child’s special day, you can make it even more fun by keeping the food simple and portable. Creating some of these recipes ahead of time with your family is easy, so you can focus on capturing the fun and excitement of this important birthday milestone.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
We love Pigs in a Blanket, and like the snack party foods here! I will have to try some of them out!
Pigs in blankets are always a hit for parties. I like the fruit on a stick.