Wedding Food for Kids
Your wedding is a day to celebrate your love with your nearest and dearest. And that usually includes a few kiddies along for the party! If you do choose to invite children along, it’s a great excuse to get a little creative. There is more to kids’ meal options than chicken fingers, grilled cheese, and french fries. You can do small plates of your existing wedding menu, but kids really appreciate a little more excitement on their plate.
It’s also important to think about making sure the kids have enough to eat. Nothing worse than hungry children! You want your wedding guests to have a good time, and that wouldn’t be possible if their little ones are hungry and refuse to eat. So make sure you talk to your caterer in advance to understand what options they have available and how you can include kid-friendly food into your day. To help you go into that conversation prepared, here are some of my favorite kids’ meals that are sure to delight parents and keep the kids entertained.
One extra thing to note, with a high instance of allergies in kids, it’s a good idea to use food ID cards so that they know what they’re getting.
Here are great meals for a kid-friendly menu for your big day.
Wedding Food for Kids
Buffalo Cauli Mac n Cheese
506 calories
As we know, kids love mac and cheese. So the best way to make sure the kids will like the food, is to include something we know they love.
Ingredients
2 cups Veggie noodles/rice, cauliflower “rice”, raw - 76 calories
2 Tbsp Cream cheese, whipped (Tbsp) - 66 calories
¼ cup Cheese, shredded, cheddar - 114 calories
2 Tbsp Cheese, Parmesan, grated (Tbsp) - 50 calories
1 Garlic salt, dash - 0 calories
5 oz Chicken breast, boneless, skinless, raw - 190 calories
2 tsp Buffalo sauce - 10 calories
Instructions
Spray pan with an oil spray. Cube chicken.
Cook for ~8 minutes on low-medium heat.
Add in cauli rice for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until you see some browning.
Add in the rest of the ingredients, stirring continuously until all mixed in.
Dairy free? Use dairy-free cheeses or swap this meal out for something else you’d prefer. No chicken? Use tofu, a meat substitute, or beans.
BBQ Chicken Mini Pizzas
477 calories
Pizza - another thing we know kids love.
Ingredients
2 Tbsp Barbeque sauce - 30 calories
⅓ cup Cheese, shredded, mozzarella - 112 calories
1 Tbsp Cheese, Parmesan, grated (Tbsp) - 25 calories
5 oz Chicken breast, boneless, skinless, raw - 190 calories
2 Small tortillas, whole wheat or low carb - 120 calories
Instructions
Slice chicken intro strips.
Spray pan with an oil spray. Cook chicken for ~10 minutes, flipping occasionally until cooked through.
Top tortillas with sauce, chicken, and cheese
Bake in a toaster oven for 6-8 minutes at 350 degrees, until cheese has melted (or microwave in 10-second increments).
No dairy? Use a dairy-free cheese or use a dairy-free pesto instead of the BBQ sauce and cheese (available at most stores).
No chicken? Use tofu or beans. Gluten-free? Use gluten-free tortilla, e.g. corn.
Sliders on Lettuce Wraps
348 calories
Mini sliders can be served when grown-ups eat hors d’oeuvres, or even during cocktail hour, so they don’t get hungry while their parents are enjoying a wedding cocktail.
Ingredients
4 oz Ground turkey, 93% lean, raw - 172 calories
½ Avocado, small - 116.5 calories
½ oz Cheese, sliced cheese, full fat/ regular - 55 calories
2 Lettuce leaves for lettuce wraps - 4 calories
1 Salt, dash - 0 calories
1 Pepper, dash - 0 calories
Instructions
Mix turkey with salt & pepper.
Divide into two mini patties.
Spray a pan with an oil spray. Cook for ~4 minutes on each side, covered with a lid.
Place burgers, avocado, and cheese evenly in lettuce wraps.
No cheese? Use extra avocado.
Note 1: 1 oz cheese = typically 1 slice. So 1/2 oz cheese = 1/2 a slice. Cut this 1/2 a slice into 2 pieces for the 2 burgers.
Note 2: even though there are 4 burgers in the picture, this recipe makes 2 burgers.
Pumpkin Popcorn
217 calories
This can be a perfect snack while the grown-ups are eating hors d’oeuvres, or having a wedding cocktail during cocktail hour. The kids will have something to eat as well, so they’ll be happy too!
Ingredients
4 cups Popcorn, popped, plain - 124 calories
⅛ cup Sunflower seeds, hulled - 93 calories
1 tsp Pumpkin seasoning - 0 calories
1 Cinnamon, dash - 0 calories
Instructions
Pop popcorn from kernels or use a pre-popped version (choose a calorie-equivalent amount).
Mix in seeds and seasoning.
No seeds? Use nuts. Roasted & salted nuts or seeds is fine.