I decided that I’ve had enough with the fake food dyes. My kids get super squirrely when they eat it and it’s in everything. It’s not necessarily the sugar- it’s the red dye. Fast forward to Bella’s birthday party. I decided I would be intentional about choosing items without dyes (and for a Barbie-que with unicorns and rainbows and mermaids). Note that I am not a pinterest type mom, I don't decorate, I hate crafts and I am not shopping on Amazon for junk.
I used recipes modified from 100 Days of Real Food to make the cake and cupcakes.
Check out my recipes here https://www.huronpointacupuncture.com/post/real-food-birthday-cake
I used Miss Jones Bakes frosting (regular frosting still has yellow dye added). Decorated it with Unreal m&m candies and a unicorn cake topper, the cupcakes had Kroger Simple truth sprinkles and Barbie cutouts. Thanks to a tip from a patient, I baked them and froze them ahead of time so they were easier to frost. These were pretty simple to make with real foods I had on hand, and they looked ok considering my skills and patience are limited.
The Barbie fruit tray was honestly easy. Cut off the bottom of a small watermelon, cut out the center, big enough to shove a Barbie through it, but the bottom on top to make a skirt, and throw some fruit around it. There wasn't a blueberry left on this tray at the end of the party.
Charcuterie tray. Started with lots of multicolored veggies. I found some great "fancy" cheeses, spicy salami and crackers at Aldi. Most of Aldi brand products don't have artificial dyes in them, but always read the package.
Mini sweet tray. Also found most of this at Aldi. Coconut macaroons (gluten free), strawberry wafers and strawberry yogurt pretzels- again both surprisingly without artificial food dyes, cherries, and Max Mallow birthday cake marshmallows (no sugar, full of collagen and MCT oil).
We grilled chicken (thanks to Country Style Marketplace for the chicken kabobs), had a big bowl of bean dip, and some chips. It was a huge hit and all of the parents appreciated their kids not becoming psychopaths from red #40. We skipped the regular treat bags and had sunglasses and slap bracelets from the dollar store.
Making the cakes ahead of time was awesome. The day of the party, there was very little that I had to do, outside of madly cleaning my house and yard. If I can do it, so can you! Start making small changes to cut out the processed food in your life for yourself and your family.
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