Healthy Kids Party Food
Kiwi kids birthday parties are often associated with heated pastries, boiled cheerios, flaky pastry and low grade quality meat products all heavily loaded with tomato sauce and washed down with sugary fizzy drinks.
Party food for kids can be wholesome, nutritious, colourful, exciting and most importantly delicious.
When it comes to choosing food options for your child’s birthday party, get them involved and choose fresh, seasonal ingredients in a variety of colours. You can celebrate knowing that you are strengthening your child’s health.
Lemon almond cupcakes sprinkled with coconut
Choosing Your Party Food
Consider the seasonal food at the time of your child’s party. If it is in the cooler winter months there is an abundance of citrus fruits which leads itself to zesty tarts, curds and muffins. If you have a summer baby there are plenty of berries and stone fruits for strawberry dishes and fruit kebabs.
Find recipes based around what is seasonal at the time of the party. What recipes have similar ingredients, such as coconut oil and lemons, or almond meal and strawberries. Think of sweet and savoury options with plenty of finger food options to make it easier for small hands to eat as well as the cleaning up of dishes afterwards.
Raspberry Chocolate Torte with chocolate ganache, raspberries and coconut cream
Presenting Your Party Food
Just because you’re choosing wholesome, nourishing food options for your party food, it doesn’t mean the food has to be boring. Because it’s a special occasion, present the food in a colourful, exciting way. Garlic hummus with yellow and red capsicum – add some strategically cut olives and rice crackers and you have a cute little lion. Make cupcakes in small colourful cupcake cases. Cacao coated rice puffs can become “dirt with worms” with some added snake lollies. Create paleo lollies from fun moulds. Dip fruit on skewers into melted chocolate and add coconut, seeds, nuts. Let your imagination go wild or have fun searching on Pinterest to get your creative juices flowing.
Lion hummus face
Party Drinks
Drink options don’t need to come from a carbonated plastic bottle, it can come easily and freely from your kitchen tap. Water is important to the mechanics of the human body and all of our cell and organ function depend upon water.
While your child is running around outside, playing games, socialising with their friends, their growing and developing brain is getting dehydrated. This can lead to fatigue, difficulty focusing, digestive problems and getting grumpy.
The only drink you need to serve is WATER and guess what, it’s FREE! To make it more special for the occasion you can serve it in fun cups, glass jars, or a special drink dispenser with lemon, mint, frozen fruit cubes or create a natural juice from berries, water and a little honey for something sweet. Although you’ll be surprised how children are usually happy with just plain water – and if it’s the only option there won’t be any arguments for anything else.
Birthday Cake
Chai Carrot Cake with lemon mascarpone icing
Even with a healthy selection of wholesome food on offer at a party, often the birthday cake is the place where all limits are off when it comes to refined, processed sugars and flours. Nourishing cakes can still be delicious and sweetened with honey, maple syrup and coconut sugar. Find a nourishing recipe that your child will love – would they enjoy a beetroot chocolate cake? Raspberry chocolate torte? Carrot cake? Lemon based sweets? What is currently in season that could lend itself to a beautiful birthday cake?
There are a bountiful of nourishing cake recipes available ranging from incredibly easy to more difficult techniques, and also a wide range of ingredients can be used for sweet desserts such as avocados, bananas, beetroot, carrots, berries, nuts, lemons, some more expensive than others. Find what works for you and let nature inspire your decoration, or any theme that you may have for the party. Are there plenty of beautiful flowers available? Or greenery that could inspire a jungle themed cake?
Keep It Simple
At the end of the day, keep it simple. Enjoy the process, get your child or children involved and have fun with food!
Real food from nature is already colourful, exciting and full of flavour. Present it in a fun way for such a special occasion and celebrate the fact that you are nourishing your child’s health and marking another special milestone in their lives.
“The health of our children beings with the lifestyle habits we create today and our efforts will be rewarded with vibrant children. Few things are as important as providing our children with quality food – in fact, their health, happiness and development depend on it.” – Dr Jennifer Barham-Floreani