10 Recipes for a Refined Sugar FreeKids' Party

[http://www.nourishinghub.com.au]

By: Simone Deny

Hello there,

Last month my daughter Bodhi turned 3, we celebrated with ahouseful of kids and adults and had a fairy and fireman party. It wasseriously as nuts as it sounds! I promised myself I'd keep it supersimple on the food front this year (juggling two under three and theNourishing Hub). I really did have good intentions, however, I havefinally come to the realisation I can't do simple and I should give upeven trying.

I made it my mission this year to make everything refined sugar free.I am not militant on being sugar free, I personally enjoy a piece ofchocolate or a decadent dessert on occasion but day to day we eatvery little sugar in our house. We have got used to things beingsweetened with fruits or natural sweeteners and don't miss thesugar laden treats these days.

I had two favourite comments during Bodhi's birthday party - oneparent looked at all the food on the table and said - 'Oh Lord the kidsare going to be climbing up the wall with all this sugar' - so obviouslythe food looked the part. At the end of the day - my hubby askedBodhi what her favourite part of the day and she replied 'eatingMummy's food' - bless the food must have tasted ok too :)

So here we go - this is what the Nourishing Hub served up for arefined sugar free party this year....

Raw Cacao Bliss Balls

This is one of my old faithful recipes and is full of nuts, seedsand super foods. These are great to prepare early and store in thefreezer until required.

Rainbow Fruit Platter

I can't claim to be the original inventor of this one - I saw a picture ofthis on one of my online travels and thought it was a wonderful wayto display delicious fresh fruit. I used: strawberries, mandarins,pineapple, kiwifruit and grapes.

Coconut Bounty Balls

Yes as you know these are my current favourite treat to make (as perthe blog last week) - maybe it's because everyone who eats them justloves them and can't believe they're not bad for you! Hubby has triedevery recipe I've shared and claims these are his ultimate favourite.The recipe uses Rice Syrup, which is an excellent low fructosereplacement to sugar.

Organic Popcorn

I'm not sure I would recommend popcorn or not! Our living roomcarpet looked like there had been a severe snowstorm after theparty, there was so much popcorn on the floor! If this isn't a worryI would suggest serving little cups of popcorn with a dashof Himalayan rock salt . Popping it with the kids pre party is alwayspart of the fun.

Mini FrittatasFrittata is such a go-to recipe in our house. Making mini Frittatas is aquick and easy way to offer a healthy savoury snack. You can puttogether any combination you like - in this recipe I used pumpkin,feta and spinach with smoked salmon (optional).

Sugar-free Zucchini and Chocolate Cake (Paleo/Gluten Free)

I have tried out an array of gluten free and sugar free cakeswith mixed success - some are too dry, too heavy, not sweet enoughbut I have to say this one ticked all the boxes for me. This recipe,from the Healthy Foodie, was a rich decadent chocolate cake - it wasvery moist and tasted delicious. I also loved the icing made usingdate paste instead of sugar. I omitted the coffee and the syrup frommy recipe. I made one and half batches for the two layered cake anddecorated it with bee pollen, goji berries and starfruit .

Homemade Pumpkin Hummus and Veggies

It's always nice to have some savoury snacks that adultsand children both like. If you're short of time you can use boughthummus but be sure to check it doesn't have preservatives or addednasties. My recipe here is quick and easy and makes a big batch.

Orange Jellies made with Agar AgarMy lovely friend Nicky, who is always an inspiration in the kitchen,introduced me to this recipe and made these for Bodhi's birthday.This is the recipe we used here but we left out the sugar - you canuse rice syrup or coconut sugar instead. Agar Agar is a gelatine likepowder made from sea vegetables - you can use it all kinds of rawdesserts and other recipes in place of gelatine.

Cacao Bomb Crackles

No party is complete without chocolate crackles and these taste justlike one from your childhood but a healthier version! This is a recipefrom Lee Holme's Supercharged Food for Kids book. - here isthe Recipe. You might remember Lee shared some her recipes withthe Nourishing in a previous blog.

Blueberry and Coconut BircherMy lovely sister made these for the party - made with oats soaked incoconut milk, apple juice, grated apple and blueberries (amongother treats). Ironically they were the only recipe with gluten inthem and she's gluten free :) This recipe will be on it's way soon Ipromise!

Grocery Essentials for a Refined Sugar Free Kids PartyStock up at the Nourishing Hub

Rice SyrupAgar AgarLoving Earth Organic Shredded CoconutPower Superfoods Raw Cacao or Loving Earth Raw CacaoLoving Earth Coconut Oil or Coconut Magic Coconut OilLoving Earth Coconut SugarPower Superfoods Cacao Butter

Recently on the blog....

Coconut Bounty BallsFree Radical Fighting Smoothie RecipeHow Purple and Blue Foods can Transform your HealthRaw Chocolate Brownie Recipe

Interview with Cinnamon Lane

This week I was fortunate to be interviewed on CinnamonLane (apologies for those who have already seen thison Facebook). If you haven't checked out their inspiring website yet -make sure you do. It's a stylish lifestyle website for Mumma's - andhas a wealth of juicy info to relish. Here is a little insight into my lifeand of course the Nourishing Hub - read more here

Have a beautiful weekend!

Simone @ the Nourishing hub X