Healthier birthday parties for kids

Many of us want our children to have healthy habits, especially when it comes to food. But what to do on children’s birthdays? How to celebrate in abundance and flavor, but with healthy recipes?

If we are one of the parents who want to raise our children by providing them with natural food, with real, organic and local food as much as possible, birthday parties can become our nightmare: the tables of typical parties are full of processed foods filled with from additives, dyes, sugar and low-quality fats such as potato chips, candy of all colors of the rainbow, cakes that look like coloring books, hot dogs, pizzas, hamburgers, etc.

As parents, we wonder what to do now. Can’t celebrate a birthday with healthy food?

Healthier birthday parties for kids

If our children are invited to a party, we can try several strategies:

• with the youngest children we can offer them before going out to the party, a snack or a healthier snack so that they are satiated and instead of sitting down to eat junk food, prefer to play with friends.
• with the older children We can talk and explain to them that many of the foods they will find at the party are unhealthy and that they should try to choose the best options, such as some dried fruit, raisins, popcorn, chocolate spread or sponge cake.

A fundamental thing is to avoid the ban, as this would make children feel very uncomfortable, frustrated and would certainly play against us.

In special cases, for example, if our children are vegan or gluten free, we will have to prepare a special lunch for them and notify the hosts.

The situation is simplified a little when we are the ones who organize the party. In any case, it would be good to respect the conventional diet of the rest of the children, trying to offer healthy versions of typical foods. For example, before offering a quinoa salad, it is better to opt for a pasta salad, or we can prepare some burgers with vegetable protein instead of preparing the tofu as is.

One of the trendy snacks is cupcakes, children are very attracted to them for their sweetness, texture and especially for the colorful decoration. That’s why we share this recipe as an option for healthy birthday parties.

Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes with Pink Cream for Healthy Birthdays

Preparation: 20 minutes – Cooking: 25 minutes – Soaking: 6 hours

These vegan cupcakes are simple sponge cakes, accompanied by a smooth cashew cream. If we want, the recipe can be prepared in the form of a cake. They are ideal for celebrating healthy birthdays.

Ingredients (24 cupcakes):

• 440g spelled flour
• 400 g of whole cane sugar
• 6 teaspoons of baking powder
• a bit of salt
• 480 ml of vegetable drink
• 160 ml of mild-tasting oil
• 1 spoon of vanilla extract

For the cream:

• 210g raw cashews, soaked for about 4 hours
• 120ml canned coconut milk
• 5 tablespoons maple or rice syrup
• 4 tablespoons coconut oil (can be deodorized)
• a little lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• a bit of salt
• 1 tablespoon beet powder (or freeze-dried raspberries or strawberries) (optional, to color the cream pink)

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Line the cupcake pan with your papers.
2. In a bowl mix the flour, sugar, yeast and salt. On the other hand, mix the oil with the vegetable drink and vanilla extract. Add to dry mixture and mix well.
3. Fill 24 cupcake liners, place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Let cool.
4. To make the cream, you need to soak the chestnuts for about 6 hours. Place cashews in a bowl, cover with water and leave at room temperature for 6-8 hours. Drain and discard the soaking water.
5. Add all the ingredients for the cream to the blender and blend until completely smooth. If you want to give it a pink color, add 1 tablespoon of beet powder, which can be found at health and herbal stores. Add powder until you get the desired shade. You can also use 2 tablespoons of freeze-dried strawberries or raspberries, grind them into a powder and add them to the cream.
6. Feel the taste. Pour the cream into a bowl and refrigerate for 45 minutes. Beat and return to the freezer, freeze another 45 minutes and beat again. This will make the cream softer.
7. Decorate the cupcakes and serve.

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