these pictures are from clara’s birthday party last year, but wanted to share with moms who might be planning for birthday parties…
we made the party 2pm-4pm to avoid serving lunch. all of clara’s friends and their parents are aware that clara is on a medical diet, so when we sent out the invitation, we let them know that there will only be light snacks served. Our goal was to allow clara to eat everything she wanted that was exactly the same as other people.
Menu
mixed berries
berries are the only fruits we give clara, so the choice was simple. we served mixed berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries)
princess theme sugar cookies
i made sugar cookies for the guests and keto version of sugar cookies for clara using the same cookie cutters
mini cupcakes for the guests
i made simple vanilla cupcakes with butter cream frostings at home, so i can get the same matching pink frosting for clara. i also made some keto mini cupcakes for clara using same recipe as the heart shaped cake below, just in case she wanted a cupcake too.
heart shaped cake for the birthday girl
using vanilla cake recipe, i baked the cake in a small heart shaped pan and made keto version of butter cream frosting(see below for the recipe) in the same color as the cupcakes. then it was decorated with princess candles, which can be purchased at Michael’s.
snow cones
shaved ice served with a few different DaVinci sugar free flavored syrups (we rented a snow cone machine since it was very hot for an october day, and we had kids running around outside, jumping on in the bouncy)
Recipe for Butter Cream Frosting
4T Butter, softened at room temperature (not melted!)
4T Splenda or Truvia (it will depend on how sweet you want it to be)
pinch salt
1.5t vanilla flavor (Frontier alcohol-free)
1/2T Heavy Cream
(optional: pink food coloring)
Beat butter until it is creamy. Add Splenla and mix in low speed. Add vanilla, salt and heavy cream and mix in medium speed. If your frosting is too thick, add more cream. If your frosting is too soft, add more Splenda.
Thanks! I’m learning that logistics are just as important as the food. We went to a friend’s birthday party where they served cheesecake, so I made a Nora-safe cheesecake for her. Unfortunately, I didn’t know that they made blueberry cheesecake so Nora still felt different and was sad. I could have added blueberries to hers if I had known, but the party was at the end of the day and she had eaten all of her carbs. I’ve learned to get all of the details and allow for contingencies, because the feelings of inclusion are as important as the taste of the food. She will love sharing her special food with all of her friends at her party.
I’ll check out sprinkles. I’ve heard that there are sugar free ones available, but we are wary of artificial sweeteners too, and some do get converted into sugars in digestion. So complicated!
We are enjoying your cookbook and just found the blog. Thanks for sharing. I hope you find ours (http://blogs.oregonstate.edu/modifiedketogenicdietforepilepsy/) and feel free to share. I have concocted plenty of recipes before finding your cookbook.
Actually, Dawn wrote the cookbook. I’m just contributing recipes to this website. =)
I typically use these two options for the sprinkles. I used the edible hearts just for that day. i hope it helps…
this allows you to make any shape sprinkle you want. for little circles, i just use the frosting tip to cut out the shapes. sometimes i use little star or heart shapes i got with zoku ice-pop kit. pretty much any small shape cutters you can find will work.
http://ketocook.com/2012/05/25/vanilla-cupcake-with-chocolate-cream-cheese-frosting/
this is best if you sprinkle just before serving. depending on the frosting, Truvia can melt or bleed color… it looks pretty that way too, but just to give you heads up.
http://ketocook.com/2012/04/26/chocolate-dipped-mini-cakes/
I am also planning a Luncheon Tea Party with light snacks for my keto-girl Nora’s 4th birthday next week. Great pictures! What are the sprinkles?
My idea was the same as yours: Serve all of Nora’s foods so that she sees everyone sharing in her special diet. She eats the same foods as the rest of us, but in different proportions (of course with exclusions and alternative baking materials). We will have all of her regular favorite foods out for everyone to enjoy, and birthday treats that all look the same.
I’m also wondering how you handled measuring Clara’s meal. Did you pre-measure and present it to her with the rest of the guests, or did you let her choose her foods then measure and adjust on the spot? I was thinking that I would pre-measure and keep her busy enough that she didn’t noticed other people choosing food. But I would love other logistical suggestions from someone who has been there.
I’ll make sure Tiffany sees this, she can answer this question better!
Dawn
The sprinkles are edible hearts i found at Michaels store. I wasn’t sure how to calculate it in, but it was so little, i left it out of calculation since she was getting more fat than usual with the cake.
I pre-measured all the snacks for her… but i did end up letting her have more than usual shifting around her portions for the day (skipped morning snack).
I prepared all the baked goods the night before, after clara went to bed. I put them away so Clara will not be able to see them. If she sees them, she would have demanded them =). My husband took her out for a couple of hours before the party so I can put the food out and prepare everything. The food was prepared inside the house and the party was set up in our backyard. So it wasn’t too hard since i didn’t serve any food until the tea time. Also, having plenty of other distractions for her helped, like jumpy house and princess Aurora who came to visit her. Since she was so excited about her birthday party, she wasn’t focused on eating. I hope this helps…