Chefs get the party going

Cooking parties are a great alternative for children’s celebrations – for parents and their offspring

‘I DIDN’T want a bouncy castle again for my birthday,” says Eleanor McHugh who instead had a cooking party in her home, “because it was something new and I love to cook.”

With her siblings and friends, Eleanor (9) prepared a feast of pizza, garlic bread, salad on a stick and chocolate octopus biscuits, and every last crumb was eaten by her and her guests.

“The great thing about Mini Chefs was that the chef, Maureen, handled everything from the invitations to the clean-up at the end. She brought the ingredients and utensils as well,” says Eleanor’s mum, Siobhán.

The only thing Siobhán had to do was keep the children entertained as their food was cooking and then served up for them to eat.

There is a good variey of menus on offer and, most importantly, the children enjoy themselves as they work with home-made and natural produce.

“I knew it had to be fun because it was for children and also it was hands-on and must be easy for them. Most of my business is through referrals and to get a recommendation off a mum is a great thing for me,” says Maureen Donnelly, who started Mini Chefs 10 years ago.

A self-confessed foodie who used to do catering for friends, Maureen had found herself with a baby and needing to be able to work from home.

“I had hosted a party of 70 for a friend’s 30th birthday and afterwards she said to me you should do this for children, and I thought, why not?

“I want it to be as much fun as possible for them and it is about the basics of home cooking and because they make it themselves, it tastes so much better, and the ingredients and food I bring are more than enough for what is needed.”

All the parent has to supply are paper plates, “so there is no washing up”, soft drinks and the birthday cake – the rest is done by Maureen.

Maureen involves every child invited including those with food allergies. She has seen an increase in the number of children who come with their medication in case of an emergency due to an intolerance or allergy.

“Two of the children at our party had special dietary needs and we were able to adapt the menu to their needs, and it meant that each of the children could have an equal part in the celebration,” says Siobhán, who lives near Drogheda. “It was great to offer the children healthy home-cooked food rather than the usual fried food and sweets.”

Mum-of-four Maria Greene, from Dundalk, has had eight parties hosted by Maureen. “She has a great way with the children and they listened to her more than they did to me,” she says.

“They ate it all and I watched my wee one five-year-old Ruby who doesn’t really eat cheese, put it on her pizza and then she ate it. We always have the option of going to a play centre, but this is something different and the kids love it.”