Kids' party food on a budget - inspiration needed!

[wigglylines]

DD's 2nd birthday is coming up. At every one of DS's birthdays so far we've massively over-catered!

Money is tight this year, but still i'd love to conjure up a feast for the little ones.

The ages will be mixed, toddlers and older kids, and we're vegetarian.

I'd really appreciate any tips.

At DS's last birthday we did lots of sandwiches that went totally untouched! I'll make some this time, but not loads.

What else do the kids always eat at paries? (apart from chocolate / crisps, i mean, that bit's easy!)

Cheese and pineapple?
Party ring biscuits?

Don't go overboard, a few familiar items is better than a huge spread of exotic stuff.

Homemade dips - hummus, tzatziki guacamole. Homemade cheese straws. Mini pittas. Make your own pizzas as a game? (Not sure of the feasibility of that one!)
Courgette fritters, banana fritters?

Mini pizzas - a bag of bread mix is about £1 and will make loads of bases, tomato puree and grated cheese.

Crudites and ’hummus’ - tin of chickpeas about 50p, blended up with garlic, oil and lemon juice. Carrot and cucumber sticks.

Pasta salad, big bag of cheap pasta, I make it with a bag of frozen peppers and some cherry tomatoes sauteed with garlic and pinch of sugar. Mix into pasta with bit of oil.

Tesco value tortilla chips are nice!

What else do they eat at parties?? Not a lot!
Pizza, sausages, cheese chunks,
Fruit kebabs might go down ok for a healthy addition.
Generally children actually eat very little at parties especially children under the age of about 6.
Dips might work.

Bread sticks are always popular at our 'do's, with a cheesy dip of some kind or just by themselves, weirdly. (Bread sticks dipped in melted chocolate or icing and then sprinkles are also, unsurprisingly, popular. Not one for the health police )

I second cucumber and carrot sticks with hummus, cherry tomatoes are popular too. And marmite sarnies are quite cheap.

Instead of mini pizzas, make a big, rectangular pizza base and roll up like a swiss roll. Cut into slices and bake, to make pizza whirls/pinwheels. Chocolate cornflake cakes always go down well too.

Popcorn in paper cones. Cut your sandwiches out with novelty cookie cutters. Cheese balls (DD1s favourite!) Chopped up fruit in little bowls (can buy disposable ice cream tubs for very cheap)

Pinterest has good ideas lookee here.

Budget ideas.

We just did sausages in rolls with ketchup. Always went down well. No waste & actually cheaper. Veggie sausages if needed.
Jelly - homemade.

Some great ideas here, thanks :)

Cheese and pineapple - so reminds me of my own birthdays when I was little, got to do that :)

bayrans some really lovely ideas. DP's the cook, I'll pass them over to him and see what he says! I love the idea of make your own pizzas, but we're not doing the party at home, we have to bring pre-made food with us.

Mini pizzas, carrots, baby tomatoes, fruit - check :)

I love the idea of cutting out sandwiches into shape - but what put me off doing this the last time is the waste, I will feel wrong chucking perfectly good food away from round the edges.

Fruit kebabs, great idea, DD loves them.

I have all the makings for breadsticks with chocolate & sprinkles, from the last party - never got round to making them (or even eating the cooking chocolate, spuprisingly!)

Pasta salad - will kids really eat it at a party?

Onykahonie - ooh, that spiral pizza's an interesting idea.

Gosh - sorry I should have said it has to be cold food, we're not having the party at home.

JimmyCorkhill thanks for the Pinterest link, having a look now ...

Ragwort - did you know party rings aren't vegetarian?! (They contain beef gelatine).

Our local shop did a special offer on them for ages and we were on about out 4th packet before we released

I wouldn't bother with pasta salad.
I would just pick maybe 4/5 savoury options and then 2 sweet as a maximum. Plus a few crisps and cakes!

My tip is to give food boxes (or plates) with say two sandwiches, cucumber sticks, cheese chunks, cocktail sausages, a cupcake etc. IME if you cut a plate full of sandwiches it somehow never looks like enough so you make more and they all go to waste!

Food boxes could also be reused as party bags if they don't get trashed

Thank you so much for starting this thread, Wiggly! we've got a big party (adults and children) coming up soon and I've been fretting about food on a budget. Plus we're vegetarian........spooky! Are you psychic? If so, do you know where my star earring is? Can't find it anywhere

Party rings are now veggie!

www.foxs-biscuits.co.uk/talk-to-us/faqs/

Mrs Bettany that's brilliant news! I'm so DS will be thrilled!

I've just done crunchy chicken nuggets for ds3's 8th b'day party, which went down really well.
Chicken breasts cut into strips, dipped into beaten egg and rolled in crushed cornflakes seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
Fried till brown on all sides then put on tray in oven at GM6 until meat is cooked, about 15 mins more.
Went down a storm with kids and adults and cost about £4.50 max.

Also pizza slices done with fajita bread wraps as bases, spread thinly with leftover pasta sauce (or passata or tomato puree), with teaspoon of pesto added for adult version. Grated cheese on top, 6 mins in hot oven and sliced into 6 or 8.

Little milk I know what you mean about the sandwiches! That's where we went wrong last time. We spent a small fortune on an array of fillings including meat substitutes too.

Not this time. Cheese & tomato, jam, cream cheese. That's all the options!

BellMcEnd, your star earring you say.

Down the sides of your sofa?

DP says in the laundry basket.

Did you wear it to bed, have you tried down the back of the bed?

To avoid over catering give each party child a party lunch box containing:

1. A Carton of juice
2. A sausage roll/ dairylea Dunkers for veggies
3. A bag of crisps
4. A cupcake

honesty 2-3 year olds don't eat much especially if you're providing birthday cake and party bags to go home with. Also means you don't get parents helping themselves to the party food as its specifically given to the dcs

Individual food plates save so much money and mess, either buy the boxes but they can be expensive, or make up a paper plate and cling film.
I put in a couple of triangle sandwiches eg cheese one and marmite one, bag of hula hoops, party rings, bag of grapes/carrot sticks. Do this before you go and take with you.Those drinks you get in a box of 20 that you pierce the top with a straw. If you want to be hard core and hate waste, then have the cake.

Have the cake For pudding is what I meant!

OK, to recap I've got:

A few sandwiches. And I am going to cut them into shapes after all - there are some lovely ones on Pinterest it's just too tempting! We can use the leftovers for bread pudding or something.

A few wraps

Pizza pops - from Onykahonie's idea and also this on Pinterest

Home made cheese straws

Breadsticks & a dip

Breadsticks with chocolate sprinkles

Cheese & pineapple hedgehog

Veggie sausage rolls if I can find some decent & not expensive ones

Fruit / salad kebabs like this and this

Fruit shapes like this

Crisps, chocolate buttons etc, cake.

Squash to drink.

Is that OK or am I slipping into over-catering again? ...

The kids are a range of ages - DS is 6 and he has a couple of friends coming, also other friends and family with kids aged up to 7.