So Many Kids in the Kitchen is 1 year old, and oh what a year it has been. Anu, Ava, Ella, Maxwell, Mia, and Nora have become role models for kids everywhere, especially kids who want to eat healthy, sustainable, and kind plant-based meals. They make cooking seem like an adventure with impressive rewards. The little chefs teach their peers how to turn whole plant foods into delicious and nutritious dishes to share with family and friends. On their first birthday, we can all celebrate by putting our party hats on and trying some of their birthday recipes.

You might even want to use their recipes for your own birthday celebration. Sometimes plant-based kids wonder how their non-plant-based friends will like their birthday party food. Remember that a fun birthday party is about being together and celebrating the birthday girl or boy. It is about playing games, singing songs, doing crafts, and having fun with the treasured people in your life. Of course, you can go all out with themed decorations and entertainment, but friends and family are what make a party memorable. It is true that food is an important part of the celebration. Fortunately, plant-based food can be even more appealing and delicious than regular party food. Here are some tips to make your plant-based, eco-friendly party one that all your friends will enjoy and remember!

  1. Make the most of munchies! Parties usually feature snack foods in bowls for everyone to enjoy. Great choices for a plant-based party are kale chips, popcorn, pretzels, baked chips (make your own in an air fryer!), nuts, seeds, crackers and nut cheese, and fruit platters or fruit skewers (you can use a big grapefruit to display the skewers on). Of course, you may need to modify choices depending on allergies your friends might have.
  2. Put together a fun main course. Kids’ parties often feature hot dogs or pizza as the main dish. You can do the same if you have your heart set on it. For example, you can do hot dogs with homemade buns and veggie dogs, with all the usual trimmings. If you are making pizza, simply use veggie pepperoni and veggie mozzarella cheese. Of course, you may prefer to get creative and make spring rolls, sushi, vegan sausage rolls, pinwheel sandwiches, tacos, or nachos. You can have fun with the accompaniments – peanut sauce for the spring rolls, ginger and soy sauce for the sushi, guacamole, mild salsa, and cashew sour cream for the tacos or nachos. Add in veggies and dip to round out the meal.
  3. Go crazy with the cake! There are absolutely NO limits on plant-based birthday cakes. Anything that can be done with animal products can be done plant-based. You can buy a special cake mold and make a super-hero cake, or you can build a castle cake. You can make chocolate cake, vanilla cake, blueberry cake or carrot cake. You can even make a rainbow cake using whole food ingredients. Explore your options on the internet and you will be dazzled by the beautiful cakes you see. Below is a simple chocolate birthday cake recipe using whole foods. Even the icing is a whole foods recipe. Have fun with the decorations – you can use fruit roll ups, nuts, coconut, dried fruits, shaved dark chocolate, or plant-based treats.
  1. Fill the party favor bags with goodies that are fun and usefu. . Loot bags are a birthday party tradition and little party goers always look forward to seeing what is inside the bag! Some great additions to the bags are stickers, temporary tattoos, bubbles, rubber balls, noisemakers, pencils, erasers, crayons, mini slinkies, mini frisbees, kazoos, bookmarks, yo-yos, playing cards, mini board games, puzzles, keychains, jacks, marbles, mini flashlights, or jewelry. You may want to include treats as well – individual servings of pretzels, popcorn, fruit snacks, natural lollipops, or non-dairy chocolate. Of course, a homemade treat such as a power ball or cookie would also be a welcome addition.
WFPB Chocolate Fudge Cake
Makes 12 servings
  • 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup unbleached flour
  • 1 cup date sugar*
  • 2/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 3/4 cups non-dairy milk
  • 1/2 cup non-dairy yogurt or unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup nut or seed butter
  • 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips or small chocolate chunks (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Oil two 8-inch round cake pans, one 9 x 13 in pan if making a sheet cake, or 2 muffin tins to make 20-24 cupcakes. In a large bowl, stir flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a blender, combine nondairy milk, yogurt, nut or seed butter, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract. This can also be done without a blender using a whisk and a medium-sized bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir just until just blended (do not over stir). Turn cake dough into pans. Bake 8-inch cakes for 25-30 minutes, sheet cake for 30-35 minutes, and cupcakes for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool and ice with chocolate nut butter frosting and decorate as desired.

Chocolate Nut Butter Frosting
  • 1/3 cup cocoa powde
  • 2 cups soft dates (steam dates if hard)
  • 1/2 cup nondairy mil
  • 1/2 cup nut butter (e.g., hazelnut, cashew, almond, or peanut)
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Cook dates in water. Blend all ingredients in a high-powered blender or food processor until smooth. Use as frosting for chocolate cake.

Cake picture credit Vegan birthday cake | BBC Good Food Middle East (bbcgoodfoodme.com

This article was written for a PCRM Food for Life Instructors group called So Many Cooks in the Kitchen. This group meets online to provide amazing cooking and nutrition demonstrations that are free to share globally. For wonderful whole food, plant-based cooking shows, tune in to their monthly broadcasts. https://somanycooks.com/about/

Brenda Davis, RD is a plant-based pioneer and author/co-author of 13 books on plant-based diets. She is co-Author of Nourish: the definitive plant-based nutrition guide for families, Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive and Express Editions and Kick Diabetes Essentials. www.brendadavisrd.com