Non-Cake, Sorta Healthy Dessert for 1st Bday Party?

[GuavaGirl]

I'm having my boy's 1st birthday party tomorrow and I still don't know what to do for the dessert.  I've never liked the "give your baby a cake and watch them go nuts" tradition.  Plus, he's never really had sugar, wheat, or any grains (he just has fruit, all veggies, meat, some nuts and a little dairy.  No allergies, I just think the paleo diet is the healthiest, and he seems to love it.)

....so I just feel like I'd be giving him something that will most likely give him a stomach ache and make him feel like crap.  Dh kinda feels like I'm being the birthday grinch and in his family, it's almost as if you can't become another year older unless you have birthday cake.  :)

I would LOVE some suggestions.  (quick!)  :)

Thanks. 

[miami mommy]

I made Pumpkin Apple muffins with streusel topping for my DS's bday. He loved them, but didn't eat all that much, maybe a few mouthfuls, b/c I made sure he ate some regular food first. I thought it was a decent compromise between his regular low-sugar diet and a birthday cake with tons of sugar. 

[crunchy_mommy]

I'm on a restricted diet so for my birthday one of my friends took a birthday ring & filed the inside with all different dried fruits. The kids LOVED it -- they all crowded around it to eat from it, I thought it was one of the most clever ideas I'd ever seen and very yummy!

You could also do an apple crisp... Apples (or pears) and cinnamon with a topping made from almond butter & crushed pecans (made into a streusel-type topping) and bake...

Another idea -- a parfait with colorful fruit, yogurt, etc. in layers...

[healthy momma]

I do second the healthy muffin idea. We did that for DS 1st birthday. But if you want to stay away from grains how about a raw dessert of some kind? Yes, you'd probably have a little sweetener but it's usually honey, maple syrup, or agave which I do prefer over cane sugar. Raw pudding recipes that use avacados are fantastic! There are great "ice cream" and "cheesecake" recipes too. Or how about chocolate covered strawberries? Will your little one be happy eating something else while others eat cake? If so, just make a cake for the rest of the family and a little treat for him.

Here's a general site with raw desserts:

http://www.therawdessert.com/

Here is a raw apple carrot cake. Not one I've made but looks like it could be worth a try.

http://www.fromsadtoraw.com/Recipes/AppleCarrotCake.htm

Good luck! Oh, and I don't think you are the birthday grinch for what it's worth! ;-)

[allical1284]

I have a friend who made mashed sweet potatoes (I think she added some coconut oil and cinnamon), and then carved/shaped a mound of the sweet potatoes into the shape of a pumpkin (it was an October birthday).

It looked soo cute, and her daughter loved it.  She still got to make a mess and everyone laughed and took pictures.  

[HeliMom]

What about fruit parfait? You could make your own whipped cream or if you don't want to use dairy there are some nice  raw cashew cream recipes. You could cut  out the fruit in cute shapes using a metal cookie cutters. I  like 1 inch sized stars and hearts.  You can even color some of the cream with fruit juice or  dried fruit powder.  I think that's still yummy and indulgent but keeps more in line with the way you want to eat.

[mommy212]

I made pumpkin bread from scratch, with whole grains and no refined sugar. He loved it but no one else did lol! I have a very classic american style food family and they did not like the whole grain. :P You can also do baked apples by cutting out the core (not the bottom!) and fill with dried fruits or cream, if you are okay with that.

[myfairbabies]

For my dd's 1st bday, we just sliced bananas into a cake shape, and then mashed blueberries and strawberries on top. I figured most people just want to see the kids having fun and making a mess with something yummy. I have a friend that made a muffin and topped it with strawberry yogurt (if you have people that are going to throw a fit about it, just don't tell them what your kid is really eating. I had a friend whose family freaked and snuck the kid some cake later). My dd LOVED her "cake" since I made it with her favorite fruits.

[weliveintheforest]

for dd I made a raw avacado and banana pudding topped with fruit.  it was messy but tasty and pretty. 

my ds got low sugar mini cupcakes with plain whipped cream on top.

[slimkins]

When my son turned one, the only dietary restrictions we had were dairy. So, I did make him a healthier cake minus dairy. And for the icing, I used baby oatmeal (because it's finer), pear sauce, some vanilla and all natural food coloring. The icing looked like normal icing and he didn't know any different. It gave the effect, but he wasn't having a sugar fest! I know this doesn't really help you, because you aren't doing grains, but I just wanted to share that there are ways you can be creative. Where you get your healthy wishes, and to everyone else it looks like a pretty normal cake. I also bought the cutest little bunt pan form an antique store and used that for his cake. :)

Also, if you want something set, can you do a type of quiche or flourless cake?

[mkksmom]

I put pureed pears and some plain yogurt in the ice cream maker. Then I froze it into little cake shapes. I then used cream cheese and yogurt along with a touch of food coloring to make an icing. You could skip the food coloring or if your LO eats strawberries, use that. You could puree any fruit, freeze it in a little bowl and let that be a mini cake. My dd LOVED her "cake."

[texmati]

We did muffins over here as well. it went over really well.

[icy02]

I'm also going to do some kind of "healthy" no sugar muffins for DS2's upcoming birthday. We are dairy free so I am not sure what we will do for an icing. I wan't it to "look" like cupcakes :)

[icy02]

GuavaGirl: I just noticed your son's name is Eli James and I just had to say that my son's name is Elijah James :P

[carmen358]

We did a quinoa cake...used raw sugar and less than called for in recipe.

[Knitting Mama]

If you're not doing grains, you can still do something with almond flour (as long as nuts are okay). Going to test drive this cake recipe before my daughter's first birthday in a little over a month:

http://www.elanaspantry.com/carrot-cake/