Need Food Ideas for a Birthday Party

Updated on March 26, 2008
J.C. asks from Kalamazoo, MI
18 answers

Hi All,

My daughter is turning one this weekend. (GASP!! Where has the time gone???) Anyway, her party is going to be Saturday. We are having it in the middle of the afternoon so we could get away with not having to serve a meal. We have planned to have finger foods, cake and ice cream. I need some finger foods ideas. The only thing I have come up with so far is cheese cubes. LOL I know there has to be other options that are somewhat healthy and don't require alot of prep work. (I work full time so really I will only have Friday evening and Saturday morning to do all the prep work) Does anyone have any ideas??

Thanks!!
J.

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

So What Happened?

Thank you everyone for your suggestions! We ended up doing BBQ meatballs, a fruit salad,some mini corndogs, jellybeans, cake and ice cream. (can you tell we went to the store when we were hungry???) The party went really well, we have a ton of food left over but at least its stuff we can freeze and use here or there.

Featured Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

T.N.

answers from Detroit on

I know the post was long logng ago, but....

Finger foods:
Pita Triangles or bagel chips with a dollop of hummous.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.H.

answers from Detroit on

For my sons first birthday thats what we did. Of coarse we had cake and ice cream. I cant remember what exactly we had, but my mom made her taco dip with doritos, chips and salsa or dip. I want to say my aunt made a cheeseball. You could also have a veggie tray or fruit salad, chex mix, etc. I hope that helps a little. My son is such a picky eater and wasnt eating much finger food at that age, so bascally he had oatmeal before, lol, and some cake and ice cream. He also had his own individual elmo cake.
Good luck preparing and Happy Birthday to Aria!! I hope she has a great party!

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.B.

answers from Detroit on

Go to the website allrecipes.com and you can look up appetizer recipes. I usually make the following for my parties and they are very easy and very tasty.

Sweet-n-Spicy Meatballs
1 bag frozen meatballs from GFS
1 jar Farmer Jack Sweet & Spicy sauce
Combine and cook on low in the crockpot for 4-6hrs

Cucumber Toasties
1 cucumber-sliced thin
1 pkg italian dressing mix
1 8oz cream cheese
1/4 cup mayo
1 bag of sliced french bread(Kroger)
dill
Mix italian dressing mix, mayo and cream cheese together and spread a thin layer on each slice of bread and top with a slice of cucumber and sprinkle with dill

Bacon weiners
1 lb bacon
1 package of coctail weiners or lil smokies
brown sugar

Cut bacon into thirds and wrap each weiner with a piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick and lay in a single layer on a cookie sheet and sprinkls with brown sugar. Refrigerate for 30min and then bake at 350 for 20-30 min

Hope these recipes help. Have fun at the party and make sure you take lots of pics to remember this very special day.
God Bless
C.

2 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.S.

answers from Detroit on

J., that is easy, a veggie tray is a good starter, along with the cheese cubes you can have a type of crackers and maybe a salami and also sweet and sour or sweedish meatballs, chips and dip, nachos and salsa, even oven heaters like pizza bites would be an idea, well good luck and congrats!!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.O.

answers from Detroit on

veggies and dip, fruit salad/tray, pasta salad.

A.W.

answers from Kalamazoo on

My son had meatballs at his first bday party. You can buy them frozen if you don't have time to make your own. Put them in a crockpot with some sauce of your choice and they stay warm the whole party and your bday girl should be able to eat them too. Serve the meatballs with hot dog buns and people can eat meatball subs or just set out some toothpicks for them. Spinach dip with rye bread is easy too. Buy a round of rye bread. The spinach dip recipe that I use is: 1 cup mayo, 1 cup sour cream, 1 block of frozen spinach and 1pouch of dry ranch dressing. Cook the spinach according to directions then mix and chill. The dip is also good on veggies and again your daughter can eat the bread and dip. Fruit platters are great and grapes need no prep work. I would do a couple of things like these and then just pretzels or chips in a bowl and your set!!!!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.C.

answers from Detroit on

My daughter turned one two weeks ago...we did chips and salsa, crackers and cheese, spinach (sp?) dip and bread (which I bought at the store). I also went to Gorden foods and bought a bag of frozen meatballs and little weiners with barbeque sauce and threw them each in a seperate crock pot. If you are a SAMS club member, I would really suggest getting their croissant tray for 24.99 (cut them in half as they are big) and it would serve 25!
There you have it...and entire meal for about 50.00 plus the cake and ice cream. Gordons also has 1st birthday party plates, and silverware cheap. Buy in bulk...whatever is left will be used for the many parties to come:-) Have fun...don't forget the goodie bags with some party favors (maybe some suckers too) for the other little ones there so they won't feel left out at present time. The Dollor store is perfect for cheap decorations and goodie bag items!!
J.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.H.

answers from Grand Rapids on

Hi, J.:

First of all, congratulations on your daughter's 1st birthday! I think it's such a joy to be able to celebrate milestones like that.

In terms of finger foods, I would say keep it simple, and offer some healthy snacks, too -- especially if you're having cake & ice cream. Here are some ideas . . .

Immediately, I thought of a simple veggie tray -- carrots, celery, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers w/ some dip (can make your own or buy it @ the store) . . .

How about a fruit bowl or platter? I'd have small bunches of grapes, chunks of pineapple and strawberries -- w/ some pretty, colored toothpicks to "spear" the fruit (kids especially like to do that!) . . .

And, maybe a bowl of small crackers to go w/ the cheese chunks. Kids love the goldfish crackers (esp. the colored variety) and they are easy for little hands to grasp/eat.

None of these options has to cost very much, and most can be prepared w/ minimal effort. Keep it simple and fun (though I like to recycle, the small, disposable plates work great for parties like this) and just enjoy the day.

Good luck and have fun!!

Yuliah

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.B.

answers from Detroit on

For my son's birthday party I created little lunch bags. I let him pick what he wanted for his friends to eat for lunch. While he was turing 4, I still think the idea could apply. He picked those Uncrustables PB&J's, bags of chips, Gummies and something else (I can't remember). The Uncrustables were great, all I had to do was take them out of the freezer a 1/2 hr before I needed them (they are good for 8 hrs). I used paper handled bags (like gift bags) and the kids used them for the treats they got from the party to take home. I also included a thank you card tied on the bag (so I wouldn't have to mail them later).
You could pack the bags with the finger food appropriate for your ages. Maybe not ALL the suggestions would work (because it's tomorrow). BUT I hope some help.
GOOD LUCK! Wish Aria Happy Birthday!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.L.

answers from Detroit on

Really easy and a favorite are those tiny mini sausages wrapped in 1/2 a crescent roll. The sausages/mini hot dogs are already pre-cooked and they sell them in the lunch meat section of any grocery store. Just buy a bag of those and one container of the Pillsbury crescent rolls. Wrap each mini dog in 1/2 crescent and bake for about 10-15 mins and you're done! Have a great party!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.D.

answers from Detroit on

I second allrecipes.com That site is awesome! I've had lots of success with the recipes off that site. Good Luck!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.W.

answers from Jackson on

For my Kids 1st birthdays we always served Veggie tray and dip fruit tray and dip Chips and Pretzles and Jello Jigglers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.O.

answers from Detroit on

Hi J.,

For the kids you can make little finger sandwichs of pbj, turkey and ham, or just cheese and use some cool cookie cutters to cut them out with. A nice fruit bowl is also great for kids with some of that yogurt fruit dip. For adults sloppy joes in the crock pot and some cheesy potatoes that you can make they day before and just throw them in the oven the day of.
Good Luck!
J.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.S.

answers from Detroit on

Get a big fruit tray from Costco....fruit is already cut up. Veggies & dip. Chex mix.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

L.H.

answers from Detroit on

Hi, Veggies & dip, fruit, chips & dip or any kind of spinach or bean dip is always a good and relatively easy thing to make. For more options check out kraftfoods.com. Good Luck with the party!!!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.P.

answers from Kalamazoo on

fruit and veggie trays are pretty easy you can get them already put together at meijers I think. and pigs in a blanket are really easy to make. If you need to know an easy way to make pigs in a blanket let me know. alsoif you go to felpausch they will make a slice of cake and frost it to match the big cake so she can have her very own little cake to dig into and mess up. It makes for some reall cute 1st birthday photos. Just make sure she's wearing something that you wont mind if it gets frosting all over it. Good luck hope I helped. Oh, if you have any questions you can email me at ____@____.com luck, hope I helped,
C.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

E.S.

answers from Detroit on

Gordon Food Service has lots of easy to warm up appetizer type of things. One easy to make finger food I love is pickle roll-ups. All you do is take slices of ham and spread cream cheese on them and them wrap it around a whole pickle. Slice it and use a toothpick in each one for easy handling. Good luck and Happy Birthday to your daughter!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.E.

answers from Saginaw on

You can do cheese slices and crackers, popcorn, vegtables and dip, chips and dip, fruits and dips. Or you can have raisns and cerly with peanut butter.. Enjoy and take alot of picutres.

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions

Related Searches