This post is sponsored by Nellie’s® Free Range Eggs. All opinions stated are my own.
Hello, friends! Thanksgiving is just around the corner and I am so excited to share these Kids Friendsgiving party ideas with you today, complete with a delicious caramel pear hand pie recipe and an adorable turkey craft using upcycled egg cartons we turned into cupcake toppers!
As our party backdrop, I incorporated a DIY balloon garland and added texture to it by attaching fall leaves I created using scrapbook paper and my cutting machine. To complete the look, I hung a felt garland and a Friendsgiving letter banner above my balloon garland.
For our Kids Friendsgiving tablescape, I paired blushed round papers with gold pear plates and thankful napkins.
For extra pops of color, we also created a cornucopia centerpiece using fresh flowers.
Now onto the party food…yummy!
Making these hand pies is easy, and the kids can join in on the fun. My daughter loves playing with cookie cutters and my son enjoys measuring and mixing all the ingredients together.
These delightful caramel hand pies make wonderful party treats and homemade gifts to friends and family during the holiday season. You can save yourself time by using store bought pie crust, but if you have the time, it’s totally worth it to make your own pie crust from scratch with Nellie’s Free Range Butter. Their butter comes from grass-fed cows and has a higher fat content than others, so it makes for an extra flaky, melt-in-your-mouth pie dough. Even if you use store-bought dough, don’t forget to add a pat of butter inside each hand pie to make it rich and delicious. And I always use an egg wash made with Nellie’s Free Range Eggs to get that beautiful golden brown color!
CARAMEL PEAR HAND PIES
Yield: 12 mini pies
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 rolls refrigerated pie crust
- 1-2 medium pears peeled, cored and diced
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 Nellie’s Free Range Egg
- 2 tbsp Nellie’s Free Range Unsalted Butter
- caramel sauce
- sanding sugar for sprinkling on top
DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 375. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon and ginger.
- Add in diced pears and toss to coat. Set aside for 10 minutes.
- Roll out the refrigerated pie crust and use a cookie cutter to cut out twenty-four 3-4 inch round circles (save the scraps to cut out decoration!). Place twelve on the prepared baking sheets.
- Place 1 tsp of caramel sauce then 1 tablespoon of pear mixture in the center of each dough round.
- Cut the butter into tiny pieces and place a piece on top of each pear mixture.
- In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg and brush just around the edges of the dough. Top with another dough round, and press the dough rounds together to seal the edges. Crimp the edges with a fork, then repeat for the other eleven hand pies.
- Use a sharp knife to cut tiny slits in the top of the dough to allow for the steam to escape.
- Brush the remaining egg wash over the tops of the hand pies.
- Sprinkle sanding sugar on top.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.
You can use leftover dough to make leaf decorations. I made them by hand as I don’t own small leaf cutters and used egg wash to glue the decorations to the tops of the mini pies before baking.
In addition, we served fall inpired chex mix snack cups. Look at those bites that resemble cornucopia
Craft time!
My kids had a wonderful time crafting their own turkeys! This craft will keep the kids happy and engaged during the party for sure!
DIY TURKEY CRAFT
What you will need for this fun craft:
- Nellie’s Free Range Egg cartons
- Acrylic paint
- Paint brush
- Mini cups (disposable or whatever you use for crafting)
- Pipe cleaners
- Tiny orange triangles made out of orange scrapbook paper or felt (nose)
- Googly eyes
- Scissors
- Glue
- Craft feathers
INSTRUCTIONS:
Cut out individual egg carton cups. Paint them in the colors of your choice. Let them dry completely.
Cut pipe cleaners to make the tiny turkey legs. Glue legs on the inside part of the egg carton cup.
Attach googly eyes and a nose to the cup using glue.
Attach feather on the back of the cup using glue.
We decided to use the little turkeys to create cupcake toppers. Don’t they look fun?
If using as a cupcake topper, glue a small toothpick to the inside of the cup as well.
I hope you enjoyed these Kids Thanksgiving party ideas!
Happy planning, my friends!
Styling & Photography: Andressa of Twinkle Twinkle Little Party
Partyware and Balloons : Bon & Co Party Studio Inc.
Friendsgiving garland and fall leaves: Twinkle Twinkle Little Party
Felt garland: Elizabeth & Lo
