Happy Birthday to Boston Children’s Museum! Birthday parties are so much fun, and they often come with lots of treats and special gifts. Birthday cakes, however, can be filled with calories, sugar, and fat. You could say that it’s just an occasional treat, so it’s okay. But if you are looking for some alternatives to cakes or other baked goods, here are some ideas for healthier but still fun and yummy treats for birthday parties and everyday snacks! We will also be talking about this topic during Tasty Tuesdays in August:
1) Yogurt Bowl.
Offer your birthday party guests some options, including plain yogurt, flavored yogurt, and some nuts and fruits. Children can mix up different flavors and colors of yogurt, decorate with various toppings, or squeeze some yogurt out of a piping bag for additional decoration. You can also turn this into a friendly yogurt decorating contest as part of the birthday party activities!
2) Gelatin Dessert.
Make gelatin in a big pan or bowl. You can add some fruit to make it more colorful, healthful and flavorful. You can even cut it and serve it just like you would do with a cake! You can buy pre-flavored mixes, like Jell-O, but to make it healthful, you can buy plain unflavored gelatin and add milk, 100% juice, and an appropriate amount of honey or sugar.
You can also make a layered gelatin dessert to make it more fun! To make it layered, you can first make a thin layer of gelatin, and once it’s hardened, add a different flavor on top of the first layer. Make sure the liquid is warm; otherwise, the layers might not stick to each other.
3) Watermelon Cake.
Take the skin off of a watermelon that’s cut in half, so it looks like cake. You can put yogurt frosting around the watermelon, and top it with various fruits and nuts.
Have healthful treats and come celebrate our birthday! Also, feel free to share your ideas of how you can make birthdays fun and healthful for everyone.
The Power of Play 