Dinosaur Themed Party Food

When it comes to throwing that dinosaur themed party for your dinosaur obsessed kid, one of the many questions we get asked is how to customize the food to fit the dinosaur party theme. It’s not easy to find dinosaur-shaped sandwiches and snacks at your local grocery store, but you don’t need to spend a fortune to make sure your dinosaur-themed party buffet cuts the “Mesozoic mustard.”

For example, dinosaur-shaped cookie cutters are inexpensive to buy and can be used to create prehistoric animal-shaped cookies. However, don’t limit yourself to just the sweet items on your buffet when it comes to using cookie cutters. We have used the plastic and tin types of cookie cutters to create savory dinosaurs in the shape of a dinosaur. With a cookie cutter, it’s simple and easy to make your own dinosaur-shaped sandwiches.

Using soft bread (we found that a quality white or whole wheat bread works best); and a number of simple fillings like spreads: peanut butter, jelly, chicken or honey paste, dinosaur-shaped sandwiches and light snacks can be created simply by using the cookie cutter to cut the slices once the sandwich. A firm nudge on the sandwich with the cookie cutter is all that is required, but keep a pair of kitchen scissors or a sharp knife handy in case you need to cut any chunks. This is a simple and straightforward way to decorate your dinosaur party plate.

Most of the dinosaurs known from the fossil record were vegetarians, so don’t forget to put a lot of salad for young dinosaur fans. They are used to seeing strange plants like cycads and tree ferns alongside dinosaurs in their picture books and you can use this to encourage them to eat your veggies. A mixed green salad containing delicacies like arugula and a little watercress can resemble the most exotic of ancient prehistoric plants. For added flavor, you can put a handful of washed dandelion leaves in the salad bowl. Dandelion leaves are edible, but don’t forget to wash them and use them sparingly, as they are diuretic. The ‘jagged’ edges of the leaves are a great prehistoric addition to any salad, we’ve even called them T. rex jaws, it’s fun to watch the young party guests trying to find a green T. rex jaw and put it in your plate at mealtime.

Take a cocktail stick and a sheet of colored paper, make a label for the sandwiches using simple dinosaur vocabulary. A quick look inside your child’s dinosaur book should provide plenty of names for inspiration, for example we have created “Jurassic Jam” and “Hypsilophodon Honey” sandwiches in the past. The cocktail stick can be used to stick the label securely on the sandwich plate, but don’t forget to blunt the end that points up, we don’t want any of your little monsters to prick their fingers.