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25 Crazy Easy First Birthday Party Foods to Serve

April 18, 2019 by Leslie 3 Comments

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Wondering what food to serve at a first birthday party? These 25 first birthday party foods make menu planning easy, tasty, and safe for the guest of honor!

A picture with the text "first birthday party foods" and a cupcake with purple frosting and a single pink and white candle

The first birthday.

It’s such an awesome milestone, and totally worth celebrating. With our three kids, we’ve done a variety of first birthday parties that ran from big bashes with the whole family all the way to a smaller party decorated almost entirely with supplies we had on hand.

And while I love the freedom to decorate however I want, for our first two kids, I struggled with choosing the best foods to serve at our party. I wanted as much as possible to be safe for the birthday boy or girl, but then again, I also want the adults to enjoy the food too.

The best thing that we did was create an easy framework for first birthday party foods:

  1. First, identify a main course that is perfect for adults
  2. Second, fill in with toddler friendly finger foods
  3. Third, plan the cake smash!

25 Easy First Birthday Party Foods to Serve

Main Course Ideas for a First Birthday Party

The main course is the most difficult to plan. You want options that the adults will love, but you also want to make sure you have foods that are safe for the little ones to grab, too.

I’ve listed below some of our favorite first birthday party foods that are great to serve for everyone as well as foods that are important to avoid due to safety concerns

Adult Friendly Main Course Ideas

  • Hamburgers
  • Barbecue sandwiches
  • Pizza

Toddler Friendly Main Course Ideas

  • Mini Pancakes
  • Small pasta (eg. pasta salad, Mac n cheese, etc.)
  • Crustless sandwiches cut with cookie cutters
A picture of a toddler at a birthday party with a giant lollipop

Finger Foods to Serve at a First Birthday Party

Once you’ve got the main course picked out, it’s time to fill in with finger foods and appetizers. Here are some tasty ideas that everyone should enjoy:

Fruit Trays and Fruit Salad:

  • Blueberries
  • Grapes (halved)
  • Cut up strawberries
  • Cut up watermelon
  • Very thinly sliced apples

Want to avoid spending hours on end preparing food for your party? Click here to download 10 Fast and Easy Party Recipes that don’t take more than 20 minutes of your time to prepare.

Birthday Party Snacks:

  • Cheerios
  • Goldfish crackers
  • Small cheese cubes (with supervision)
  • String cheese (with supervision)
  • Deviled eggs
  • Annie’s bunny crackers
  • Yogurt melts
  • Toddler puffed snacks
  • Animal crackers
  • Nilla wafers
  • Pudding
  • Mini muffins
  • Sugar wafers
  • Thin pretzels

Foods to Avoid

It’s important to make sure that babies and toddlers are supervised while eating. Please don’t walk away without making sure a responsible adult is watching your child during a party.

You can, however, make life a little bit easier on yourself by avoiding some common party foods that are choking hazards for little ones, such as:

  • Hot dogs
  • Whole nuts
  • Popcorn
  • Raisins
  • Sticky or chewy foods (like most candy)
  • Raw vegetables (try serving small cuts of lightly steamed or roasted vegetables instead!)

More Party Tips You’ll Love

  • How Much Food for a Party is Just Right (19 Guidelines to Follow)
  • It’s Fun to Be One! Birthday Party
  • 5 Fun Birthday Traditions for Families
  • S’mores Themed First Birthday Party
  • The Best Party Games for Toddlers

Now It’s Your Turn

With these 25 first birthday party foods, you can plan out an entire party menu, and know that your birthday boy or girl will be able to enjoy eating as much as everyone else. Next, you’ve just got to get the cake smash planned!

What do you serve at a first birthday party?
Do you avoid choking hazards for toddler parties?


Join me over at Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter,

for more fun ideas and inspiration!

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Filed Under: Appetizers, Sides, and Finger Foods, Baby and Pregnancy, Desserts, Drinks, Food, Kids Parties, Main Dishes, Parties, Party Planning Tips Tagged With: first birthday

About Leslie

Leslie is the passionate party planner in her family. Living with metastatic breast cancer since 2022, she is determined to find a way to continue making amazing parties for her kids that don't leave you exhausted. To do that Leslie combines the experience she learned working for a professional event planner with the reality of a busy family life to create party inspiration that the average mom can reproduce and be proud of.

Comments

  1. This Scribbler Mum says

    April 25, 2019 at 4:32 pm

    Great ideas! Definitely makes planning children’s party easier. #happynowlinkup

    Reply
  2. syedabatool says

    January 9, 2021 at 3:49 am

    Hey leslie your blog seemed nice so I have provided its link in my blog, I hope you are okay with it. Love Batool (a new mom and Blogger)

    Reply
  3. tc lottery login says

    June 13, 2025 at 3:49 pm

    These recipe ideas are amazing! I love how simple yet fun they are for little ones. Can’t wait to try some of these for my child’s first birthday party! Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply

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I love helping busy moms create DIY parties that aren’t overwhelming. Here you'll find crafts, recipes, and fun printables you can use to create a celebration you’re proud of that you get to enjoy too! Read More
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Hi there! I’m Leslie! I love helping busy moms create DIY parties that aren’t overwhelming. At Playdates to Parties, you'll find crafts, ready-to-use cut files, recipes, and fun printables you can use to create a celebration you’re proud of that you get to enjoy too!  {Read More}

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