Really Easy Cookies for the Birds!
Birdseed Heart Cookies
This is such a simple recipe for birdseed cookies. All you need is gelatin, birdseed and water. The mixture simply air dries and becomes a hard birdseed cookie.
I found the recipe and wonderful directions at Bargain Hoot. Please see instructions here for a her ideas on how to shape and add twine hangers to these cookies.
The recipe I came up with is very similar, it just uses less gelatin than the original one I found. It held together quite well once the bird cookies dried.
Birdseed Cookie Recipe:
- One gelatin packet (one of those small ones, I guess there is about two tablespoons of gelatin in one)
dissolve into: - 3/4 C water
mix in: - 2 to 2 1/2 C amaranth and millet (or other birdseed of your choice) With larger seeds I found I needed to add more seeds to the mixture
The resulting mixture will be pretty wet at first. Let it begin to gel for a while, stirring occasionally before you use cookie cutters or your hands to shape the mixture into cookies on a sheet of aluminum foil or parchment paper.
The cookies can air dry over night. The paper will make it easier to flip the cookies part way through the drying.
Decorate your Birdseed Cookies
We decorated the tops of ours by pressing raisins and pumpkin seeds into the birdseed mixture while it was still in the cookie cutter.
My kids were able to participate in making these by mixing and decorating. If I was in a more patient mood they could have helped with filling the cookie cutters too.
Their favorite part, however, was hanging our birdseed cookies out for the birds!
You can find more outdoor play for kids here:
- Gardening with Toddlers
- 10 Fun Fall Activities in your Backyard
- Best Outdoor Toys for Preschoolers and for Toddlers
64 Positive Things to Say to Kids
Subscribe to Download your FREE printable of 64 Positive Things to Say to Kids
I made some using giant egg-shaped cookie cutter for Easter.
We had a lovely bird day yesterday with my two little girls. Thanks for the idea x
I love these Alissa! Homemade bird feeders are seriously one of my favourite crafts to make with the hooligans! Thanks so much for sharing with us!
How many cookies does your recipe make? Just curious… What a fun idea! Can’t wait to try it!
Wow! We really are plugged into the same wave length. We made bird seed cookies too! It has been so fun to watch the birds eat them, I wish I could get a picture!
These are so cute! I am going to make a few to hang from the tree in our yard. Thanks for the great idea!