Little Chefs Pizza Party
Kids love hands-on experiences no matter what age they are. This mini-cooking class party teaches simple and fun pizza-making skills to budding chefs. And the best part? They get to eat their lessons for lunch!
- Ideas for Invitations: An easy way to make a party invitation is to cut a large circle out of heavy paper then cut it into six pizza-shaped wedges. Use felt-tipped markers, colored papers, or scrapbooking stickers to decorate the paper wedges to resemble pizza slices using cut-outs of things like mushrooms, olive rings, tomato slices and pepperoni. Write the party details on the reverse side.
- Decorations & Party Favors: Use a classic red-and-white checked tablecloth to decorate the table where the kids will sit and eat. As kids arrive, give each of them a paper chef’s hat and an apron. Using waterproof colored markers, have the kids write “Chef____ (their first name)” on their hats and aprons. (Or you could do this yourself before the party so each child gets their personalized cooking “outfit” upon arrival.) Once all the chefs are attired, gather them in the kitchen for hand-washing and their step-by-step pizza making class.
- Pizza Making Set-Up: Ideally you have enough kitchen space for each child to work on his or her own pizza (assess your space before making the guest list so you can be sure you’ll have enough room for all the kids to work). If necessary, set up kid’s tables or card tables to accommodate all the guests. To protect the floor and speed clean-up, tape down sheets of butcher paper or old newspapers under the tables, but don’t get too hung up on keeping the kitchen spotless—these are kids, after all!
Once the kids have settled in, hand out individual-sized foil pizza pans (write the kids’ names on the bottom of the pans with a permanent marker for easy identification after baking), a small ball of prepared pizza dough (store-bought or made by you), and have ready trays of toppings, sauces, and shredded cheese. Also make sure each child has a towel.
For the cooking class, show them how to pat the dough into their pans or roll it out with a rolling pin and spread sauce over it (Prego® sauces are perfect for kids’ pizzas), then let them go to town with the toppings! After their pies are assembled and in the oven (make sure a grown-up is in charge of the oven), get the kids together to make one large pizza for dessert: Provide a big brownie that’s been baked in a large pizza pan, then supply frosting, chocolate sauce (or other flavors), chocolate chips, marshmallows, candies, etc., and let the kids create their party’s grand finale.
- Take-Home Gifts: Purchase small pizza boxes from your local pizza parlor to give to the kids for taking home any leftover pizza or dessert.
Use of any sharp utensils should be supervised by an adult.