I’m hyper-vigilant about keeping nuts away from our daycare, but avoiding them at birthday parties didn’t occur to me until recently.
Most parents are like me: well-meaning, but busy and forgetful. The result is that kids with nut allergies often can’t eat the cake or other treats at parties. As one mom put it, “most birthday parties suck for kids with nut allergies.” The kids are resigned to it, and have a surprisingly good attitude about the whole thing. But we can do better!
Here’s how to throw a nut-free birthday party that’s also suck-free. Mine is a pirate party, but you can easily apply these tips to any theme!
First, you’ll need to be careful with loot bags: any treat without the “nut-free” label is questionable. The easy way out of this predicament is to get toys instead of treats. For this party, I got inflatable pirate swords. They are soft, so no one got injured!
I also threw in some “gold” coins and a pirate telescope (a keychain kaleidoscope).
But let’s face it – kids like treats. For the pirate loot bags for my party, I used Dare’s new Bear Paws Minis, Wagon Wheels, and Bear Paws Morning Snacks.
They all have something called Wowbutter instead of peanut butter, but it tastes the same! How do I know? Uh, I may have also eaten a few of these. You guys, Wagon Wheels! It’s my childhood, in snack form!
The Bear Paws and Wagon Wheels are all baked in a nut-free, peanut-free facility, and they all have the big peanut-free icon on the packaging. If it weren’t for the icon, I honestly wouldn’t have guessed that they are not made with real peanut butter.
This is ideal for kids’ parties – it’s safe for kids with allergies, but the kids who normally chow down on peanuts will never guess the difference!
Finally, consider the cake at your nut-free party. Cakes from most bakeries have a “may contain nuts” warning, which means kids with allergies can’t eat them. As Julia Child said, a party without cake is just a meeting, and meetings blow. I may be paraphrasing. Make sure you buy your cake at a nut-free bakery, or even better – make it yourself!
Want to try the Dare products before you buy them for your next loot bags? Enter below to win a $75 prize pack, including all the Dare cookies and some back-to-school supplies, and check them out on Facebook for more info.
Dare Bear Paws and Wagon Wheels $75 Prize Pack
Full Disclosure: I am participating in the Dare Bear Paws and Wagon Wheels blogger program with enCompass Media and received product and payment as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinion on this blog are my own, as always. If I don’t like things, I don’t write about them.