So your child’s party is almost here and you’ve decided the cater it yourself. But what should you provide? In our latest blog we cover some of the most popular kid’s party foods including healthy, savoury and sweet snacks.
1. Healthy
First of all, although we know which foods our children would prefer to eat all day, we also know they need to balance that out with some healthy options! Three great healthy party food options are fresh fruit and vegetable sticks / crackers with dips and cheese.
Fresh fruit is a great kids party food. The kids like the refreshment and sweetness whilst we like that they are actually eating something good for them at a party! Fresh fruit is easy to prepare and serve and there are so many options for what to include. Our Little Monkey’s personal favourites are watermelon and pineapple.
Another healthy option is vegetable sticks or crackers with fresh dips. You can go the super quick and easy route and provide store bought prepared vegetable sticks, crackers, cheese and dips or if you have a little more time you can prepare your own vegetable sticks and dips and cut up some cheese.
Lastly, a small sandwich is another great healthy option. Cheese, ham, egg, salad, or one of the countless other variations, there are plenty of options. Prepared beforehand, they are quick to serve and unlike cooked foods are cool and may be preferred on a hot Perth day.
2. Savoury
Okay so we’ve covered the food we would like our kids to eat but we all know what THEY would prefer (and if we are honest so would we!). Savoury party foods don’t need to be fancy or involve huge amounts of work. The best foods (especially according to our kids) are the super easy oven baked foods or even just a packet of chips.
Chicken nuggets, party pies and sausage rolls are classic savoury party foods and remain so for good reason! Cocktail sausages or even mini pizzas are other options which are also devoured without hesitation. Just like the vegetable sticks you can go the quick and easy way and purchase the frozen party foods in the supermarket or you can make them yourself. Either way, all that’s left once you have them is to throw them in the oven and then serve with some tomato sauce. They are also super quick to cook and so can be cooking whilst the kids are playing. Unlike, fresh fruit or a vege dip, you may want the kids to sit down whilst they eat savoury cooked foods or at the very least use a plate!
A more instantaneous party snack is a bowl of chips. Generally, a couple of bowls with different options works best. Cheezels are a party favourite with salt and vinegar or original chips also being popular. They are so quick and easy, your only issue is to watch for the inevitably required top ups!
3. Sweet
Of course, the most popular type of food at any kid’s party are the sweets! Whilst the kids love them, they are not great at knowing when enough is enough. Try to limit the amount of sugary food on offer to prevent any sugar overloads. The choices for sweet treats are numerous but classics such as a bowl of mixed lollies, cupcakes, fairy bread and of course the all important birthday cake are the go to winners for a kids party.
A bowl of mixed lollies are, in a similar vein to a bowl of chips, an easy and instantaneous option to provide something sweet straight away. However, also like the bowl of chips, they may need topping up from time to time.
Cupcakes and the quintessential Aussie classic fairy bread can also be served straight away. Once again you have the option, depending on your time capacity, to make these yourself beforehand or buy from the store. Fairy bread is also great for your kids to join in and help you prepare.
The most important sweet of a kid’s party however, is the birthday cake! We’ve been to a fair few kid’s parties now and no matter what, kid’s always expect a birthday cake. There are many choices in terms of flavour, type and design when it comes to cakes. You can buy a Coles / Woolies Mud cake special, make one yourself or even hire someone to make something extra special but make sure you have one!
We’ve found the serving of the birthday cake is not only a great time to stop everyone to gather and sing Happy Birthday and give thanks to everyone for coming but it’s also a good signal that the party is almost over and is winding up soon and just like the party – this blog is almost over!
We hope you have enjoyed our kid’s party food blog and have found some inspiration. Do you have some go to kids party foods or some recipes you would love to share? Leave us a comment below!
Don’t forget that whether you need tables to serve the food on, chairs for the kids to sit with a plate of food or want a kids table and chair set, we at Little Monkeys Party Hire can assist you!
Thanks for reading.
Love the Little Monkeys Party Hire Team! xxx