space party + moon mix

 The party planning was successful! Not to mention, over, whew. But my birthday guy is still resting up from his big party. Hopefully he’ll be ready for his actual birthday tomorrow, complete with a school treat and a low key celebration with Mommy, Daddy and the little sister. I know the approaching date always gets me nostalgic and reminiscing about this time 5 years ago. But for now, I have a few photos to share from his out of this world space party (corny, I know. I can’t help myself).

For the party, I attempted cake pops, and let me tell you, they are a lot more difficult than they look. Bakerella is a cake pop whisperer and she does unbelievable things with these adorable little treats. I can only hope that one day, I can make a simple, solid color cake pop without wanting to tear my hair out. Until then, I will admire her work with the respect and awe that it deserves. I’m not worthy…I’m not worthy…

 

Planet Pops: planet-y cake pops (see above)
Moon Mix: super, duper snack mix (recipe below)
Space Cream: ice cream sundae bar
Star Sticks & Dip: veggies & dip
Galaxy Punch: Amazing raspberry and strawberry lemonade from The Pioneer Woman. For my strawberry version, simply swap strawberries for raspberries. So, so good.
Meat-E-Or Meatballs: Turkey Meatballs from Gina @ Skinnytaste. In my version, I left the cheese out (for allergy reasons) and served it on the side. I also mixed in some other herbs: rosemary and chives directly into the meatballs. I baked mine on a sheet tray in the oven 350 for about 25 minutes. Then, I let them cool and froze them until party day.
The morning of the party, I popped them into the crock pot with the sauce (as written in Gina’s recipe) and let them simmer away on high for 5 hours, and then on the warm setting for the party. They were amazing!

 Various toppings for the ‘space cream’. We had toasted coconut, mini m&m’s, crushed Oreos, teddy grahams, sprinkles, gummy bears, cherries, chocolate and caramel sauce (in bottles decorated as rocket chips (you can sort of make them out in this photo) and whipped cream, of course.

All in all, the party was a huge success. They kids stayed up way past their bed time, had too much sugar, and were, in my unbiased opinion, the most fun bunch of kiddos around. I am looking forward now to a rest, and then planning up for my little lady’s party.

One of the most popular treats at the party was our Moon Mix. This is a snack mix that I have now made countless times, and never the same exact way twice. It’s more of a method than a recipe, but I will tell you exactly how I made the space party version.

Spread the following ingredients evenly on a baking sheet and bake in a 300 degree oven for about 5 minutes until warm:
1-6.6oz package of gold fish crackers (about 3 cups). We found these super cool, and very appropriate space adventures gold fish. I would stick with savory flavors and steer clear of the graham/sweet varieties.
3 cups of crunchy corn, rice or wheat cereal (we used a Crispix type cereal, but Chex or Life work as well)
1 cup of oyster crackers
1 8 oz package of cracker sticks (we used wheat thins sticks) or about 4 cups