Ideas please for cooking party for 9yo girls

[KristinaM]

DD wants a cooking party for her 9th birthday.There will be 8 guests who are all well behaved ( unlike DD ) and we have a fairly large kitchen.

However I am not very creative and I'm totally devoid of ideas to make this "fun". I assume they are too old for putting topping on pizza and icing ready-made sponge cakes?

I would like to buy some cooking related things for party bags but have no idea where to start...

HELP PLEASE

Rocky Road, or refigerator cookies?

Also, DS recently made some truflles which were basically shop bought cake crumbled up and mixed with cocoa, jam and vanilla essence. Then made into balls and covered in melted chocolate. Put them in little petit fours cases. They were yummy and we gave them to family at Xmas. I can look up the quantities if you would like.

What about sushi? Could be good fun making it and not too much trouble.

Peppermint creams or coconut ice?

Flapjacks.

Fajitas - always popular here. Cnould then also get them to make the guacamole and the salsa. Lots of chopping, but not too much that is difficult and, ime, children love them.

Not sure what your budget is for party bags, but you can often get bargain children's cookery books EXAMPLE HERE and that would give you (a) ideas of what to make and (b) an automatic party bag.

The other typical cooking party favour is a Wooden Spoon. Everyone loves them, somehow. Your own wooden spoon.

Pancakes? Would keep them busy for ages with minimal preparation. My DD did this at a friend's when she was about 9 and it was a big hit.

I have used Usborne children's cookery books quite successfully with groups of children.

We tend to do the baking, and the sweet making (which is very popular and also has the benefit you often don't need the cooker, so it's safer for groups of children).

Coconut ice mice have been very popular, also all sorts of fudge, plus pepperming/lemon/orange creams can go on in the background as an easy option.

or you can bake and then ice cakes. Easy but always fun. Get icing bags and loads of toppings.

www.usborneonline.org/catalogue/browse.asp?org=MEE09055&css=1&cat=1&subject=a&subcat=AC

Do pizza from scratch, dough and all - they love it - when DD was 8 DH dressed up as an Italian Chef - fake tache and all and spoke Italian to them and shouted a lot - they thought it hilarious and I have had lots of enquiries from other mums in our village about how much he charges! Although he is a serious guy who works in a bank and really isn't looking for a sideline, lucrative as it may be!

Cookies are also a good idea - get the to make them from scratch adding all kinds of goodies and round off with nicker bocker glories with fruit and icecream, sweets and squirty cream.

Or dipping fruit into chocolate.

Kebabs with a variety of vegetables and other things on them.

Making models out of fruit and veg. (and then baking and eating).

Carving your own chip shapes out of potatoes and then cooking.

I have a recipy or some really good biscuits:

I would do the first part before the dc arrive;

Set Oven to gas 5 and grease two baking sheets.

Put 3.5 oz (100g) butter, same weight sugar and same weight of golden syrup into a saucepan and melt slowly stirring with a wooden spoon.

Then leave to cool.

When the children get there, add 7.5oz (225g) of plain flour, teaspoon bicarb and ground ginger - 1 teaspoon or slightly more.

Mix with a wooden spoon and then divid the mixture up to give to the dc,

they will need to roll the mixture into small balls with their hands and then pop on the baking sheet.

Bake in the middle of the oven or 15 mins.

Take out the tray and the biscuits dont appear to be cooked (they are) and leave on the tray to cool for 5 minutes.

Then with a spatular move the biscuits to a cooling rack.

You could decorate with icing after they have cooled.

You can get packs of barbie icing that inside has diferent tubes of icing the dc can use to decorate fairy cakes or biscuits.

I actually make the mixture and cook the first batch - then roll the rest of the mixture into balls and pop in the fridge to keep for later in the week and have another fresh batch.

oh thanks so much they are all great ideas. off to collect boys from nursery now so will no doubt be back later with questions

i shoudl have said we have an Aga so that would be fine for pancakes, cookies or pizza i think. they are all lovely girls , they have been DDs friends since nursery, so i think they will be fine for chopping, using aga etc under supervision of course.

i was worried they would think it was boring. DD is the youngest in her group and not as sophisticated as some of her friends IYSWIM.

will check out links for party bags. budget reasosnable as we are not paying to go to cinema, bowling etc etc

kitchen & aga photos on my profile - its finished now

now back from nursery and have read suggestions properly. I'm very grateful - i was so worried that this was a bit of a lame suggestion and that it woudl be seen as a bit boring

ruby - wilkinsons online don't have spoons or cookie cutters and their nearest store is 100 miles away! Have you any other suggestions for cheap kitchen stuff? my usual local shop for cheap kitchen things woudl be woolworths

we must be posher than you as we only have a pound shop, not a 99p one

Maybe they could also make 'cocktails' - lots of fruit juice and bits around the glasses.

Mine also did a decorate-your-own-ice-cream which we called magic Sundaes, or something equally daft. All v successful

It won't be boring. My nearly 9yo would love it.

I used to be a childminder and no matter the age all the children loved it when we cooked.
We made pizza(dough in the bread machine, homemade chicken nuggets and heathly chips.
Nuggets are so easy -
Chicken breast sliced in medium chunks or those small fillets -
Dip in flour, egg and then real bread breadcrumbs.
Then cook for about 20 -25mins in oven.

Heathly chips are cooked in oven with fry ligth or olive oil like you would roast potatoes.

Fairy cakes always go down well and making a fruit sundee if you can get those special dishes.

Cooking books, recipe books that they can write in, aprons, cookie mix would all make good party presents,

you are all very reassuring

ok, i have been to the pound shop but no wooden spoons or suitable kitchen stuff, so i have ordered the cook book from the book people ( bink linked to it).Dh is now helping Dd design invitations so she can give them out tomorrow

apparently its a "cooking mama" party

invitations went out today at school and we already have two replies. and an auntie and big cousin to help in the kitchen [phew]

have ordered books online ( thanks binks) and got wooden spoons in tesco ( ditto). Just about to road tests ivykaty's biscuit recipe we're on a roll ...