Food and Drink Ideas
We’ve put together some great ideas for the kids to munch on at the party.
General tips
- Ensure that there are nut free alternatives available
- For younger children it is better to plate their food individually rather than letting them select from a central plate.
- Hot food should be allowed to cool slightly first and always test it before serving.
Traditional party foods
Frog in the pond
- Make up blue or green jelly as per the directions on the packet.
- Pour the jelly into clear plastic cups and refrigerate.
- Once jelly has set insert a chocolate frog into the centre of the jelly.
- Serve with small spoons.
Fairy Bread
- Butter bread (white or brown).
- Spread coloured sprinkles over the bread.
- Cut into triangles and serve.
Popcorn
- Note: Popcorn can be a choking hazard, only serve to children that are capable of properly chewing their food.
- Heat about 1/3 cup of vegetable oil in a large pan.
- Add ½ cup of popping corn and cover with a tight lid.
- Allow to cook until you hear only a few “pops”. Shake the pan a few times during the cooking to allow even heat distribution.
Fairy Cakes
- Using our Butter Cake Recipe make the desired quantity of cakes and decorate to your liking.
Iced biscuits
- Purchase plain biscuits. By adding icing and decorations they become a party treat. Faces are always a hit.
- Icing
- 1tbs softened butter
- 1 cup sifted icing sugar
- I-2tbs boiled water
- 1-2 drops of desired colouring
- Sweets for decoration
Cocktail Frankfurters
- Bring pot of water to the boil and turn pot off.
- Place cocktail frankfurts into water and leave for a few minutes to warm through. Do not allow them to boil or they will explode.
- Remove and serve (Usually with a good dollop of tomato sauce).
Healthy Alternatives
Chocolate covered fruit
- This is a very indulgent way to serve fruit, but a great hit at a party.
- Cut fruit into bite size pieces. Strawberries, banana’s and rock melon are ideal.
- Melt milk chocolate (one block should be more than adequate).
- Dip fruit pieces into chocolate and remove.
- Place onto grease proof paper and refrigerate.
- Serve straight from the fridge.
Fruit on a stick
- This speaks for itself. Cut fruit up into bite size portions and pass them onto a skewer or icy pole sticks and serve. Remember to cut the pointy end off the skewer.
Pots of yoghurt
- You can buy individual pots of yoghurt from most supermarkets.
- These can be served straight from the fridge or freeze for an extra treat.
Fruit faces
- This is a little time consuming but a great way to get kids to eat their fruit at a party. You can also make it into a game by asking the kids to eat “the ears”, “now eat the lips” etc.
- You can use any fruit you like to arrange the faces on each child’s plate.
Pikelets
- This recipe makes about 20 small pikelets. Blend all of the following ingredients.
- 1 egg
- 1 cup self raising flour
- 2/3 cup of milk
- 1 tbs of sugar
- Oil for cooking
- Drop a small amount of mixture into pan. When the pikelets start to form bubbles it is time to turn them over. Cook until both sides are golden brown.
- These can be prepared in advance. Serve with butter, jam, honey or any of your favourite toppings.
Lebanese Bread Rollups
You can use any filling with these. Here are a few suggestions:
- Ham, cheese, avocado and mayonnaise.
- Banana and honey.
- Strawberry jam
- Hard boiled egg with mayonnaise
- Tuna and Mayonnaise
Place the filling over the bread (not quite to the edge) and then roll up.
Cut into 5cm pieces and place on a plate and they are ready to go.
Hot Foods
Mini Face Pizza’s
Here’s what you’ll need:
- For the base you can use pita bread/English muffins/mini Lebanese bread/pre made pizza bases/bread rolls.
- Tomato Paste
- Shaved ham (Hair)
- Pineapple (Nose)
- Capsicum (Smile)
The quantities are really up to you.
Spread the base with tomato paste and place toppings to make a face. Your imagination is the only limitation.
Home Made Chicken Nuggets
- Cut chicken thigh fillets (4-5) into bite size pieces. Remove traces of fat.
- Prepare 3 bowls; 1 bowl has plain flour, 1 bowl has beaten egg, 1 bowl has breadcrumbs (these can be prepared at home- just process a few slices of bread until crumbs are made).
- Heat oil in a fry pan on a moderate heat.
- Dip chicken pieces into flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs.
- Pan fry until cooked (golden brown) and drain on kitchen paper to absorb any fat.
- Season with a little salt and serve.
- You can prepare these in advance and reheat on an oven tray at about 180C for around 10 minutes.
Home Made Sausage Rolls
To make 24 bite size sausage rolls you will need:
- 500g of sausage mince from your butcher
- 1 grated brown onion (so they can’t see it)
- ½-1 cup of breadcrumbs
- 1 egg lightly beaten
- Frozen puff pastry about 2-3 sheets cut in half
Method:
- Mix all of the ingredients together (except pastry) and then form the mixture into sausage shapes that are about the length of the pastry sheet.
- Place onto the pastry and fold/roll the pastry over the sausage.
- Press the pastry edges together with wet fingertips to seal.
- Cut these into roll into bite size pieces and place on a greased oven tray.
- Now brush the pastry with a little milk (to help them brown).
- Cook for about 20-25 minutes on 180C.
Allow these to cool a little before serving, tomato sauce is always a hit with these.
Mini Hotdogs
You will need:
- Chippolata sausages
- An equal number of dinner rolls to sausages
- Grated Cheese
- Tomato Sauce
Ensure the sausages are well cooked (but not burnt) and allow to cool slightly.
Insert the sausage into the roll and sprinkle with cheese and a squeeze of sauce.
They’re ready to serve.
Chicken Drummettes
You will need:
- Mini drummettes (24) available from your deli or butcher
- ½ cup honey
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Method:
- Mix the honey, soy sauce and oil together in a large bowl.
- Place chicken into the bowl and leave to marinate in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.
- Heat the oven to 180C and bake in an oven tray for about 30 mins.
- Turn the chicken pieces once during the cooking.
- These can be served hot or cold.
Goody Bags
No party is complete without a goody bag on departure. At least that’s what the kids say. Here are a few ideas of what you can put into one.
- Lollies (of course)
- Fruit sticks
- Individual biscuit packs
- Cheese sticks
- Sultanas
- A piece of fruit
- A small toy or novelty item like crayons or pencils.
Drink Ideas
Fruit smoothies
- Using a blender mix milk, pre-cut fruit and a scoop of ice cream.
- Variation:
Instead of ice cream use natural yoghurt or ice cubes.
Banana’s, strawberries, blueberries, and rockmelon are perfect for this.
Freshly prepared juices
- Using your food processor with Juicer attachments you can make up some fantastic combinations:
- Carrot and Apple
- Watermelon (with mint)
- Apple and Strawberry
- Banana and Mango
Water
- It’s free and it’s healthy.
Soft drinks
- Try to use sugar reduced or maybe use a mixture of fruit juice and soda water to make up this party treat.
For more information see Kids party ideas or Parenting .
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