CertifiKID Field Report: The Fun Side of Parenting... Parties with Oriental Trading Company!

Today’s CertifiKID Field Report is here to give you some inspiration for celebration, and a recipe too. Party on, parents!

Whooping It Up for Fourth of July

Any good party has got to have some sweet surprises. Watermelon (on a stick) or Grown-Up Popcicles (cocktails on a stick) and even putting your own twist on Grammy’s famed potato salad can put some pop and spark into your 4th of July. How about wowing them with a Patriotic Whoopie Pie?

Wait … how are Whoopie Pies patriotic? Well, when you dress them up in red, white and blue, of course. Our recipe includes summer-fresh berries for a fun twist. The best part? It’s super-easy because you start with boxed mixes. Easy is always more fun. 

Ingredients

1 Box Yellow or White Cake Mix
½ Cup Vegetable Oil
3 Eggs
½ Cup Blueberries
½ Cup Strawberries
¼ Cup Water

• Heat your oven to 350°F. Grab two cookie sheets (one for each color) and line them with silicone baking liners or spray them lightly with cooking spray if you don’t have liners.

• Puree berries (separately) until smooth.

• In a large bowl combine cake mix, eggs and oil mixing on low speed until moistened.

• Divide mix into two smaller bowls and mix in the berries. Add water as needed until the mixture is about the consistency of sour cream. Smooth but not too runny.

• Pour batter into a 1 gallon resealable plastic bag or a pastry bag. Seal top and cut a hole about the size of a nickel into the bottom of the bag.

• 5 Pipe batter into 36 small circles onto cookie sheets about 1-inch apart to allow for spreading.

• 6 Bake 10 to 12 minutes until set being careful to not over bake. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets and cool completely on a rack.

Filling

1 Cups Confectioner’s (Powdered) Sugar
8 oz Cream Cheese
1 Stick Butter

Allow cream cheese and butter to come to room temperature. Combine in a medium mixing bowl then slowly add sugar by the ¼ cup until fully combined. DO NOT refrigerate before filling cookies.

Spread filling onto the flat side on one (cooled) cookie half. Top withe the second half and press down to spread the filling. A pastry bag is a big help here too. Serve and ENJOY!

Let these sweet treats take a place of honor next to your red, white and blue decor on a table. Oriental Trading Company can help with that! They’ve got plates, tablecovers, cups, crazy straws, and sparkly touches to make the whole thing sing.

TIP: scatter bead necklaces, patriotic leis, silly sunglasses and hats around the table. Double duty decor and party favors!

Add a craft to the day’s festivities to keep the kids entertained until the sun goes down and the fireworks go up. Oriental Trading Company has fun DIY ideas for all ages. Make 4th-themed “firefly” magnets, patriotic bling, a custom photo frame to remember the day, and more.

You don’t have to wait for our Nation’s big birthday soiree to start the fun. Oriental Trading Company has some seriously fun and FUNction stuff for a beach bash - hello DIY beach bags, flip-flops and kites! A day at the pool goes Old School with some Tiki Bar awesome. Mocktails in coconut cups for the kiddos and cocktails with tiny umbrellas for the mamas and the fellas.

One of the things that makes shopping for party supplies and DIYs at Oriental Trading Company so great is you won’t break the bank. Spend the big bucks on the big stuff then add a few touches from Oriental Trading Company and you’ll have a swanky soiree and budget left to start planning the next one.

It's summer party season... enjoy the FUN!

Tags: CertifiKID field reports, Just for Fun, Recipes

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