Valentine’s Day is coming up, which means so is (for many, the dreaded) classroom treat duty.
Fear not! Classroom celebrations have nothing on us. We share ALL the ideas for how to make the easiest classroom treats for any holiday celebration. From clever kitchen shortcuts to store-bought hacks, we’ll help you score points with the kids (and even their classmates!) while maintaining your sanity.
Or with Valentine’s Day coming up, at least saving some time for kid-free hanky panky — or you know, alone time on the toilet, which is not to be underrated, thank you very much.
Five is the Magic Number
The key to keeping it easy is also keeping it limited. There’s truly no reason to go crazy when it comes to classroom treats: Not only are there plenty of great options that you can make with a fairly small repertoire of recipes and store-bought hacks, but the kids are also happy to get their favorite treats over and over.
Trust us.
In this episode, we name at least five different things that you can do with each of these five simple foods, whether homemade or store-bought:
A box cake mix
A tray of brownies
A batch of Rice Krispies Treats
A bowl of chocolate for dipping things
Your easiest, favorite cookie dough
You ‘ll have to listen to the episode to get all the juicy details, but here’s a list with tons of resources, from products to recipes that we love, mentioned in our conversation.
Natural cake mix brands:
Miss Jones Baking Co (Conversation Heart Cake Mix Cookies by Miss Jones Baking Company, pictured above)
The best brownie bake-off part 1 and part 2 at Pancake Princess to choose the best recipe, once and for all. (Maybe!)
The easiest Valentine’s Day brownies.
The one trick to take your Rice Krispies Treats to the next level. Then listen to our ideas for how to make them celebratory for holiday celebrations.
A super easy, basic how to make cake pops tutorial. Listen for why Meghan also thinks you should know about this simple syrup recipe too.
Five 4-ingredient cake mix cookie recipes.
Fairy bread IS Australian (fairy bread photo above by Chelsea Kyle for Epicurious). This is how Stacie packed it for a Valentine’s Day-themed school lunch, but you can also make little sammys for a classroom party.
How to use graham crackers, melted chocolate, marshmallows, and your oven to make “s’mores” treats. Use holiday-themed or colored sprinkles that match whatever holiday you’re making the treats for to get your theme on. Stacie’s two versions:
A great example of how to hack a store-bought cake.
A whole mess of other easy Valentine’s Day treats recipes.
One example of how to dip ‘em to make festive holiday donuts.
Love Language
In honor of Valentine’s Day, this week’s lightening round is dedicated to family date night dinner ideas.
Meghan talks about her family’s favorite date-night mains, while Stacie talks about how she makes special dinners feel, well, special, in other ways — and why.
DIY heart-shaped pizza and/or pizza with heart-shaped pepperoni. (Can you stand the cuteness?!)
Sheet Pan Steak Frites (Pro tip: use frozen fries and quick-cooking flank steak!)
Steak with Chimichurri
A super extra special snack platter for dinner (paired with a movie night!)
A special — but easy! — dessert like Stacie’s Strawberry Nutella Puff Pastry Tart
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram (we’re @didntijustfeed you on both) to chime in on this week’s conversation:
WHAT ARE GOOD LOVE STORIES TO SHARE WITH KIDS, TWEENS AND TEENS?!
Any suggestions?! Meghan’s not so sure, but Stacie’s a romantic and holding out hope!