Fun Food for Kids: 16 Easy Fruit and Veggie Shapes That Get Picky Eaters to Take a Bite

Fun food for kids is the oldest parenting trick there is, and it still works. One mom turned a plain apple into a little swan, and more than 104 million people watched her kids gobble it up. You do not need her knife skills. These fruit and veggie shapes take about 5 minutes, a paring knife and a few cookie cutters, and many have a holiday twist for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is not about hiding vegetables. It is about making them look so fun that kids want a bite. Every slide has a simple how-to, and most of these fun food for kids ideas use fruit you already have. Grab the cookie cutters..

Fun Food for Kids, Starting With a Broccoli Christmas Tree

Kids eat with their eyes first. A broccoli tree with cherry tomato ornaments looks like a party, not a chore. Pediatricians at the American Academy of Pediatrics say picky eaters may need to see a new food many times before they try it, so keep portions small and skip the pressure. For little ones, cut grapes and cherry tomatoes lengthwise. Here is the tree..

You will need: 2 cups small broccoli florets, 10 cherry tomatoes halved, 1 yellow bell pepper, 1 short carrot stick, ranch or hummus for dipping.

How to make it: 1. Steam the broccoli 2 minutes, or leave raw, and cool. 2. Arrange the florets in a triangle tree shape on a plate. 3. Dot with cherry tomato “ornaments”. 4. Cut a star from the yellow pepper for the top. 5. Add a carrot trunk and a little dip.

The Viral Apple Swan, Made Simple

This is the trick behind the video with more than 104 million views. A grown-up cuts thin, nested wedges from an apple and fans them out like wings, then adds a little neck. It is the most famous fun food for kids online. It looks like magic, but it only takes 10 minutes and one sharp paring knife. Kids usually eat the “feathers” one by one. Ready to try the swan?

You will need: 2 red apples, 1 lemon (for juice), a sharp paring knife, a small plate.

How to make it: 1. Cut one apple in half and lay one half flat. 2. Cut a small V-wedge out of each side, then smaller wedges inside each one, nesting 4 or 5 layers. 3. Fan the wedges out like wings. 4. Cut a thin slice from the second apple and carve a simple neck and head. 5. Brush with lemon juice so it stays white.

Apple Slice Turkey, Fun Food for Kids at Thanksgiving

Turn a plate of apple slices into a turkey and watch the fruit disappear. Fan the slices out as tail feathers, use a pear or half an apple for the body, and add raisins for eyes. It is the perfect snack to keep little hands busy while the real turkey roasts. Would your kids make theirs with red apples or green?

You will need: 1 red apple and 1 green apple sliced, 1 pear half, 2 raisins or chocolate chips, 1 small piece of carrot, a little lemon juice.

How to make it: 1. Toss the apple slices with lemon juice. 2. Lay the pear half flat side down on a plate. 3. Fan the apple slices behind it like tail feathers, alternating colors. 4. Add raisin eyes and a carrot beak. 5. Serve right away.

Clementine Pumpkins With a Celery Stem

Peel a clementine, poke a tiny piece of celery into the top and you have a perfect little pumpkin. It takes 30 seconds each, and it is fun food for kids they can make themselves. Line them up on a plate for a fall party or tuck one into a lunch box with a note. Easy, cheap and always a hit.

You will need: 6 clementines or mandarins, 1 celery stalk, a small knife.

How to make it: 1. Peel the clementines, keeping them whole. 2. Cut the celery into tiny 1/2-inch sticks. 3. Push one stick into the top center of each clementine. 4. Arrange on a plate. 5. Add a few mini pretzels as “vines” if you like.

Strawberry Santa Hats, Fun Food for Kids at Christmas

These Santa hats are three ingredients and a toothpick: a slice of banana for the face, a strawberry for the hat and a dot of whipped cream for the pom-pom. They look adorable on a Christmas breakfast plate or a holiday party tray. Kids love building them assembly-line style. Who will make the most?

You will need: 1 lb strawberries, 2 bananas, whipped cream or vanilla yogurt, toothpicks.

How to make it: 1. Cut the green tops off the strawberries so they stand flat. 2. Slice the bananas into thick rounds. 3. Stack a strawberry, point up, on each banana slice. 4. Add a tiny dot of whipped cream on top. 5. Hold together with a toothpick and serve cold.

Grape Caterpillars on a Skewer

Thread green grapes onto a skewer, add a red grape head with two tiny dots for eyes and you have a wiggly caterpillar. Kids love to eat them bite by bite. For little ones under 4, cut every grape in half lengthwise to prevent choking, as pediatricians advise, and use a plate instead of a stick.

You will need: 2 cups green grapes, a few red grapes, wooden skewers (blunt ends for kids), a little cream cheese and 2 mini chocolate chips per caterpillar for eyes.

How to make it: 1. Wash and dry the grapes. 2. Thread 6 to 8 green grapes onto each skewer. 3. Add a red grape at the end for the head. 4. Stick on cream cheese dots and chocolate chip eyes. 5. For toddlers, cut grapes lengthwise and line them up on a plate.

Cucumber Snowflakes and Stars

A small cookie cutter turns plain cucumber slices into snowflakes, stars and trees. Suddenly the veggie nobody wanted is the coolest thing on the plate. Serve them with a little ranch or hummus for dipping. Fun food for kids does not need to be fancy. This is a great job for kids, because they can press the cutters themselves. What shape would they pick?

You will need: 1 large English cucumber, small cookie cutters (stars, snowflakes, trees), ranch dip or hummus.

How to make it: 1. Slice the cucumber into thick 1/4-inch rounds. 2. Press a small cutter into each slice. 3. Pop out the shapes. 4. Pat dry with a paper towel. 5. Arrange on a plate around a bowl of dip.

Watermelon “Jelly” Slices

The viral “jelly watermelon” trick has more than 22 million views. The easy version for home: cut seedless watermelon into thick triangles or cubes, chill them well and serve them ice cold. For fun, use a cookie cutter to make stars or hearts. It is fruit that feels like candy, and kids go back for more every time.

You will need: 1 small seedless watermelon, cookie cutters (optional), a few mint leaves.

How to make it: 1. Cut the watermelon into 1-inch thick slices. 2. Cut into triangles or press out shapes with cutters. 3. Chill at least 1 hour. 4. Arrange on a cold plate. 5. Add a few mint leaves for color.

Rainbow Fruit Skewers, the Easiest Fun Food for Kids

Fruit skewers make healthy snacks look like a party. Line up fruit in rainbow order: strawberries, cantaloupe, pineapple, honeydew, blueberries and grapes. Let kids build their own, and they will want to eat what they made. Use blunt sticks for little ones. Which color do your kids always eat first: A) red, B) orange, C) green?

You will need: 1 cup strawberries, 1 cup cantaloupe balls, 1 cup pineapple chunks, 1 cup honeydew balls, 1 cup blueberries, 1 cup grapes halved, short wooden skewers.

How to make it: 1. Wash and cut all the fruit into bite-size pieces. 2. Set out the fruit in bowls by color. 3. Thread one of each color onto a skewer in rainbow order. 4. Lay the skewers on a platter. 5. Serve with vanilla yogurt for dipping.

Banana Snowmen

Three banana slices on a pretzel stick, chocolate chip eyes and buttons, a tiny carrot nose and a strawberry hat: hello, snowman! These are a perfect cold-day snack or a fun breakfast side. Make them right before serving so the bananas stay white. Kids can decorate their own, which makes this fun food for kids twice the fun.

You will need: 2 bananas, pretzel sticks, mini chocolate chips, 1 small carrot, a few strawberries, a little lemon juice.

How to make it: 1. Slice the bananas into thick rounds and brush with lemon juice. 2. Thread 3 slices onto each pretzel stick. 3. Press in chocolate chips for eyes and buttons. 4. Add a tiny carrot triangle nose. 5. Top with half a strawberry for a hat.

Pancake Snowman, a Fun Food for Kids Breakfast

Three pancakes in three sizes become a snowman: blueberry buttons, banana eyes and a strawberry scarf. It is the easiest way to make a regular Saturday feel like a holiday. Use any pancake mix or your favorite recipe. Serve with a little syrup on the side for dipping. Who gets the biggest snowman?

You will need: 1 cup pancake mix plus the milk and egg it calls for, blueberries, banana slices, strawberries, a small piece of carrot, powdered sugar (optional).

How to make it: 1. Make the batter. 2. Cook one large, one medium and one small pancake per plate. 3. Stack them in a row like a snowman. 4. Add banana eyes, blueberry buttons and a carrot nose. 5. Make a strawberry scarf and dust with powdered sugar like snow.

Funny Face Plates

A plate becomes a face in seconds: orange and grapefruit slices for eyes, a lime round for a nose and an orange wedge smile. Use whatever you have, from cucumber eyes to a bell pepper mouth. Kids laugh, then eat. That is the whole secret of fun food for kids. Let them design their own funny face and see what they come up with.

You will need: 1 orange, 1 small grapefruit or blood orange, 1 lime, or any mix of fruit and veggie slices (cucumber, cherry tomatoes, bell pepper strips).

How to make it: 1. Slice the citrus into thin rounds. 2. Place two rounds as eyes. 3. Add a small round for the nose. 4. Use a wedge or pepper strip for the smile. 5. Add hair from shredded carrot or grapes if you like.

Bento Animal Rice Balls

Japanese moms are famous for cute bento lunches, and the easiest trick is rice balls shaped like animals. A plain ball of rice becomes a bear or a panda with bits of nori seaweed and a slice of cheese. Pack them with some veggies and fruit for a lunch box that comes home empty. For more ideas, see our kids lunch box ideas that actually come home empty.

You will need: 2 cups warm cooked short-grain rice, 1 sheet nori, 1 slice cheese, a pinch of salt, plastic wrap, a straw for cutting small circles.

How to make it: 1. Wet your hands and salt them lightly. 2. Wrap 1/2 cup rice in plastic wrap and twist into a ball. 3. Add two small rice balls for ears. 4. Cut nori eyes and a nose with scissors, and a cheese muzzle with a straw. 5. Press the pieces on and pack.

Pear and Sunflower Butter Mice

Half a pear, two almond-slice ears (or apple-slice ears for nut-free homes), raisin eyes and a licorice or pretzel tail make a cute little mouse. Spread a little sunflower seed butter underneath so it is filling. They are perfect for an after-school snack. Do your kids name theirs?

You will need: 2 ripe pears, sunflower seed butter or peanut butter, raisins, thin apple slices for ears, pretzel sticks or a strip of fruit leather for tails.

How to make it: 1. Halve the pears and scoop out the cores. 2. Spread a little sunflower butter on the plate. 3. Set each pear half flat side down. 4. Tuck in apple-slice ears and raisin eyes. 5. Add a pretzel tail.

Apple “Cookies” With Toppings

Slice an apple into rings, spread with yogurt or sunflower butter and let kids sprinkle on granola, raisins and a few sprinkles. They look like cookies but they are mostly fruit. It is a 5-minute snack that kids can make all by themselves, and one of the easiest fun food for kids ideas on this list. For nut-free schools, use sunflower butter.

You will need: 2 crisp apples, 1/2 cup vanilla Greek yogurt or sunflower seed butter, granola, raisins, a few holiday sprinkles, lemon juice.

How to make it: 1. Core the apples and slice into 1/4-inch rings. 2. Brush with lemon juice. 3. Pat dry. 4. Spread each ring with yogurt or sunflower butter. 5. Let kids add their own toppings and serve right away.

Sunburst Fruit Platter for the Holiday Table

Arrange fruit in a big sunburst on a round platter and the kids table becomes the best table. Long slices of melon, orange and papaya point out from the center, with berries in the middle. Put it out first and watch this fun food for kids disappear before dinner. Tip from pediatricians: offer new foods many times, in small amounts, with no pressure.

You will need: 1 cantaloupe, 1 small papaya or mango, 2 oranges, 1 kiwi, 1 cup raspberries or strawberries, 1 lime.

How to make it: 1. Cut the melon, papaya and oranges into long wedges. 2. Arrange them in a circle pointing out from the center. 3. Fill gaps with kiwi slices. 4. Pile berries in the middle. 5. Squeeze lime over the top and serve.