Miniature Foods for a Children's Party
It's difficult to get children to stop and eat when they are distracted by the excitement of a party. When planning the menu, create fare that will catch the interest of your young guests. Select food items that are traditionally considered kid-friendly, such as meatballs and macaroni and cheese. Then shrink them down to miniature-sized portions. Child-sized foods provide visual appeal and spark the idea that this food may actually be fun to eat. Does this Spark an idea?
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Mini Porcupine Meatballs
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Meatballs appeal to kids because of their shape. Miniature meatballs can be exciting because of their size, too. Insert a toothpick into each mini meatball to increase the appeal. Create a meatball that combines all three of these factors and also resembles a quirky animal and you will have a nearly irresistible meal item.
These meatballs become "spiky" when you mix rice with the meatball mixture. Once cooked, the grains stick out, giving these meatballs their porcupine appearance.
To make porcupine meatballs, simply combine ½ cup of uncooked rice with 1 lb. of ground beef. Add other desired seasonings and shape the meat-and-rice mixture into miniature meatballs. Arrange the meatballs in a baking dish and pour a can of tomato soup over them. Bake in a 400-degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the meatballs from the baking dish and shake off any excess sauce. Arrange them on a platter and insert a toothpick into each meatball.
Mini Cheeseburgers
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Kids will enjoy child-sized versions of one of their favorite foods --- cheeseburgers. Miniature hamburger rolls are often available for purchase at the supermarket. Look for them on the same shelf as you would find traditional buns, or sandwich your burgers between two biscuits made from canned, refrigerated biscuit dough.
Prepare your favorite hamburger recipe and shape the mixture into miniature patties. Grill or bake these according to your recipe. Top the burgers with cheddar cheese squares and place them in the buns. Arrange miniature cheeseburgers on a cake plate or tiered server. Place squeeze bottles of ketchup and mustard, along with bowls of pickle chips, miniature tomato slices (sliced cherry tomatoes) and lettuce leaves that have been cut to size. Allow the kids to assemble their own burger toppings.
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Mac and Cheese Bites
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Create bite-sized versions of this traditional children's menu item. Kids will love to pop these into their mouths.
Prepare your favorite macaroni and cheese recipe that includes a cheese sauce. Instead of pouring the cheese sauce over the macaroni in a casserole pan, combine pasta and sauce together in a large pot. Add shredded cheese. Lightly grease a mini muffin pan. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese into each muffin cup. Spoon the macaroni-and-cheese mixture into the muffin pan, filling each cup to the rim. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese. Bake the bites in a 400-degree oven for approximately 10 minutes or until they begin to turn golden and sizzling. Remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool for 15 minutes before transferring macaroni and cheese bites to a serving platter.
Cake Balls
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Carry the miniature party foods theme right through to dessert time. Trade in the traditional party cake for bite-sized cake balls.
Bake your favorite cake according the recipe's directions. Once the cake is cool, crumble it into a large mixing bowl. Add a can of cake frosting and mix until the cake crumbs and frosting are thoroughly combined. Roll the mixture into the shape of 1-inch balls. Place the cake balls on a cookie sheet and freeze for at least one hour. Remove the cake balls from the freezer and dip in melted chocolate or white chocolate. Cover with sprinkles immediately, before the melted chocolate becomes hard.
If the party is a birthday celebration, purchase or bake an individual-sized birthday cake. This will provide a cake on which to place the traditional birthday candle. Place the miniature cake on a large surface and surround it with the cake balls.
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