Festive Desserts Kids Love to Make

No-Bake Thanksgiving Turkey Cookies and Smokin' Volcano Cookies

Nov 16, 2009 Vicki F. Chavis

Put together these Thanksgiving Turkey Cookies in a few minutes, no baking required. The Smokin' Volcanos need ten minutes to prepare and ten minutes in the oven - snap!

With the busy holiday season here, the kitchen does double duty. Not only are all the regular meals being prepared but the additional baking for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners can add quite a bit of extra stress on the family cook.

These two recipes are a fun way to celebrate with food. One is a no-bake dessert and the other is a quick prep-and-bake for a sweet surprise. The volcano dessert is reminiscent of a science project but it doesn't actually smoke, it just looks like smoke and lava. Whether the adults help or not, these recipes are fun for children to make and share.

Recipe for No-Bake Thanksgiving Turkey Cookies

Ingredients:

Double-Stuffed Oreo Cookies (dark choc cookie with peanut butter icing)
bag of candy corn
bag of Rolos
can of icing

Directions:

Separate Oreos to make the base for the turkeys. For example, if serving these to six children, take apart six cookies and use the half with icing for the base. The six remaining cookie halves without icing can be (and most likely will be) eaten while the turkeys are being put together.
Holding an Oreo cookie in your hand, place four or five candy corns into the double-stuffing of the cookie to fan out like a turkey's feather tail (see photo below). This must be done gently and may require a little extra icing from the can to help the candy corn stay in the cookie without falling out.
Once the candy corns have been placed in the cookie stuffing, stand the cookie (tail up) onto the cookie base in the icing. Leave room for the nose (the Rolo chocolate candy) to be placed in front of the standing cookie. Use the can of icing to help cement both the cookie and the Rolo by just using a dab as if it were glue.
Again, using the icing as if it were glue, glue on the eyes on the top of the Rolo (white tips of candy corn work well) and glue on a candy corn in front of the Rolo to look like the turkey's waddle or nose. You should have six handsome turkeys on a plate by now. These turkeys can be used as decoration during a meal and eaten for dessert.

Recipe for Smokin' Volcano Cookies

Ingredients:

2 large Granny Smith apples
2 cups boiling water
jar of favorite peanut butter
salted peanuts, crushed
4 egg whites
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 Tbsp sugar
lemon juice
optional: red gel icing for lava streaks or lava top

Directions:

Core both apples and cut crosswise into 6 round slices each.
In a large pan, cook the apple slices in boiling water for 5 minutes, covered. Remove from pan and place on paper towels to drain. Drizzle lemon juice on apple slices.
Spread 1/2 Tbsp peanut butter on each apple slice. Drop some crushed peanuts on top of peanut butter. Place apple slices on shallow baking dish, several inches apart.
In a small mixing bowl beat egg whites and cinnamon with electric mixer on medium until soft peaks form (the tips will fall over on themselves).
Add sugar to mixture slowly, beating on high until stiff peaks form (tips stay up straight). Spoon this egg-white mixture over each apple slice, making it look like a mountain by using the back of the spoon or a spreader.
Bake in a 400° oven for 10 minutes or until the topping is a golden brown. After slightly cooling, the red gel icing can be used for lava streaks on the volcano or can be put on the top of the volcano for a lava top. Makes twelve servings.

Enjoy making these creative desserts with your children. They have definitely been kid-tested and are as much fun to make as they are to eat!

For more fun recipes that are kid-friendly, check out the following ideas by this author:

Fun Food to Make for a Child's Party

Make Holiday Gifts From the Kitchen for Teachers

Party Food Recipes — April Fools

The copyright of the article Festive Desserts Kids Love to Make in Party Food is owned by Vicki F. Chavis. Permission to republish Festive Desserts Kids Love to Make in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.