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Simple meals by Dini Klein for kids’ birthday parties

Dini Klein and her family eating together.

Author: Dini Klein

Now that you’ve got your snacks prepped, it’s time for the main course! 

Pre-made sandwiches cut into shapes with cookie cutters and sealed with a toothpick are so fun. If you’re not going for a picnic vibe, I love a good pizza bar. You can prep all vegetables and toppings beforehand and use pre-made crusts to eliminate rolling out any dough. It’s all about making things work for you—plus, a pizza bar doubles as a meal and an activity. How about that 2-in-1? 

I sometimes make individual pot pies for dinner during the week, and whenever I do, we call them “cupcakes”. (Pro-tip in getting your kids to eat dinner: present them in a way that is exciting for them!) 

If that’s the case, then these pizza pot pies are the ultimate birthday party choice. These are super easy to prep and bake on the spot, and truly look fancier than they are. Check out this recipe:

I love using these Ramekins for this recipe!

Pizza pot pie

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 cups broccoli

1 cup green olives, sliced

½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese

3 cups tomato sauce

½ tsp salt

Flour for dusting

¼ cup olive oil

6 tbsp grated parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.

In a large bowl, mix together the broccoli, green olives, sun-dried tomatoes, mozzarella, tomato sauce, salt, and pepper until incorporated. Divide the mixture evenly between the ramekins.

Roll out the pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface. Cut out circles slightly larger than the ramekin size. Place circles over filled ramekins and press down to seal, pulling dough over the edges.

Cut small slits in the top of each to allow steam to vent. Brush tops of pizza dough with olive oil and sprinkle with parmesan. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Enjoy!

Don’t forget to give your guests something to munch while they wait for the main course! These snack ideas are simple and satisfying. And, of course, no birthday is complete without something sweet

Dini Klein is a food host, recipe developer, former private chef, creative junkie, wife and mama of three. Her recent cookbook, Prep + Rally, is her solution to getting wholesome dinners on the table throughout those busy weeks when juggling mommy-ing and work life feels almost impossible. 

Her knack for creating innovative food content has led to partnerships with brands such as Walmart, Starbucks, Weight Watchers, Popsugar, Barilla and more. She’s a Tastemaker on Tastemade where she develops food videos and recipes for their social channels and has had her videos featured on Roku, Amazon and Apple TV. 

With recipes published in numerous cookbooks and multiple live TV appearances under her belt, Dini is a culinary force to be reckoned with.

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