33 no-tech, super-fun winter activities for kids

1. Easter bunny waffles

Waking up on Easter morning is a pretty magical experience as a kid. Add to the fun with these adorable, easy and actually kind of healthy waffles!

Ingredients:

• frozen waffles
• strawberries, sliced, for the ear, mouth and bow tie
• banana slices, for the eyes
• blueberries, for the eyes
• raspberries, for the nose
• shredded carrots, for the whiskers

Instructions:

1. Toast 3 waffles.

2. Slice one waffle in half and use it for the ears. Slice another waffle in half and use one part for the shoulders and then cut out two circles for the cheeks.

3. Add the strawberry slices and place them on top of the ears to fill in.

4. Assemble the face and bow tie.

Recipe from Fork and Beans

Baked French toast

Breakfast meets casserole in this delicious make-ahead dish. It's perfect for prepping the night before a busy day, especially if you have overnight guests.

Ingredients:

French toast

• Butter, for greasing
• 1 loaf crusty sourdough Or French Bread
• 8 whole Eggs
• 2 cups Whole Milk
• 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp vanilla extract

Topping

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
• 1 stick cold butter, cut into pieces
• warm syrup, for serving
• butter, for serving
• 1 cup fresh blueberries, for serving

Instructions:

1. For the French toast: Grease the baking pan with butter. Tear the bread into chunks, or cut into cubes, and evenly distribute in the pan. Crack the eggs in a big bowl. Whisk together the eggs, milk, cream, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Pour evenly over the bread. Cover the pan tightly and store it in the fridge until needed (overnight, preferably). Or you can make it and bake it right away—it's delicious no matter what!

2. For the topping: Mix the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and some nutmeg in a separate bowl. Stir together using a fork. Add the butter and with a pastry cutter, and mix it all together until the mixture resembles fine pebbles. Store in a plastic bag in the fridge.

3. When you're ready to bake the casserole, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the casserole from the fridge and sprinkle the topping over the top. Bake for 45 minutes for a softer, more bread pudding texture or for 1 hour-plus or more for a firmer, crisper texture.

4. Scoop out individual portions. Top with butter and drizzle with warm pancake syrup and sprinkle with blueberries.

Recipe from The Pioneer Woman

Hashbrown egg cups

If you're craving something savory, these hashbrown egg cups will absolutely hit the spot. Just consider leaving out the cayenne for those littler taste-buds.

Ingredients:

• 20 ounces refrigerated hash browns
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 tsp kosher sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• pinch cayenne pepper
• 8 large eggs
• 2 tbsp milk or half and half
• 4 sliced cooked bacon, crumbled
• chopped fresh parsley (optional garnish)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Generously spray a standard size muffin tin pan with baking spray, set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the hash browns, 1/2 cup cheese, salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne. Press the mixture into the bottom, creating a nest.
3. Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees.
4. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese, eggs, milk, and bacon. Pour into the baked hash browns, then return to the oven to bake for 12-15 minutes or until fully set.
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tins for 5 minutes before removing.
6. Garnish with a pinch of salt and pepper and freshly chopped parsley, if desired. Serve immediately.

Recipe from Life Made Simpleife Made Simple

Cucumber sandwiches

If your littles will be off hunting eggs, these quick and easy to grab sandwiches will be just what they need to keep them going.

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf of extra thin sliced bread
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• ⅓ of an English cucumber
• 3 tbsp finely shredded carrots
• ½ tbsp fresh chives, finely chopped
• ½ tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
• ¼ tsp garlic and herb seasoning
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. With a bunny and Easter egg cookie cutter, cut out an equal amount of bread for each sandwich and set aside.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, add cream cheese, shredded carrots, fresh chopped chives, fresh chopped parsley, and seasonings.
3. Combine all ingredients and mix well.
4. Cut an English cucumber in half and slice thin slices of your desired amount of cucumbers.
5. Spread the carrot and herb cream cheese on both sides of a sandwich. When spreading the carrot and herb cream cheese on don't forget to do the mirror side of the bunny.
6. Place your desired amount of cucumber slices on each sandwich and top with the other the matching bread cut out.

Recipe from Cherished Bliss

Ham and cheese crescents

This is the perfect recipe for a busy lunch. It only has three ingredients, and is so yummy!

Ingredients:

• 1 (8-ounce) can refrigerated crescent roll dough
• 16 deli ham slices (you can use carved ham leftovers)
• 8 slices cheddar cheese

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Separate dough into 8 equal pieces (they usually separate into triangles).
3. Place 2 slices of ham and 1 slice of cheese (folded in half) on the larger end of the triangle.
4. Roll the crescent up with the ham and cheese inside, and place it tip side down on a baking sheet (you can use a baking mat, or line it with aluminum foil for easy clean-up, too).
5. Bake for 15 minutes, until tops are golden brown.
6. Serve warm.

Bunny veggie dip

Eating veggies has never been so fun… or cute!

Ingredients:

• Bread loaf

Dip:

• 1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 1 container (16 ounces) sour cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 package Knorr Vegetable recipe mix
• 1 can (8 ounces) water chestnuts, drained and chopped

Veggies for dipping:

• carrots
• cucumbers
• cherry tomatoes
• celery sticks
• bell peppers
• broccoli
• cauliflower

Decorations:

• olives

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients and chill for about 2 hours.

2. Carefully cut out a circle from the top of the bread loaf for the bunny's head. Then, cut the opening bigger so that dipping was accessible.

3. Using your hands, hollow out the rest of the shepherd loaf so that it can hold the spinach dip. Save the chunks of bread that you pull out for chowing down on with your dip.

4. Cut the two ends off of a baguette and situated them as the bunny's ears.

5. For the face, used black olives cut in half as the eyes, and quarter a half of a black olive to make the nose.

6. Make the whiskers from thin strips of celery, and the mouth is a cross section piece of celery. Put a little dip on the back of each of the facial features to keep it adhered to the bread.

7. Pour the dip into the bread bowl, arrange the veggies, and serve.

Recipe from Nesting Coral

English muffin bunny pizza

These little bunny pizzas are perfect for serving your kids while the grown-ups eat their fancier dinner (though we totally get it if the grown-ups decide they just want to eat these, too).

Ingredients:

• English muffins
• Pizza sauce (jarred is great)
• 1/4 cup mozzarella shredded cheese
• 2 black olive pearls, sliced olives
• 1 piece of sliced pepperoni
• 1 stick of mozzarella string cheese
• 1 breadstick

Instructions:

• Spread some pizza sauce onto the English muffin (a few tbsp should be enough).
• Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the sauce.
• Add 2 sliced olives for eyes.
• Cut the piece of pepperoni into 1/4 pieces and position a piece for the nose.
• Bake the breadstick according to the package directions.
• Bake the pizza at 425 degrees F for about 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and is turning a little golden on the ends.
• When the breadstick and pizza are done, slice the breadstick in half.
• Grab a plate and place the pizza in the middle, add the halved breadsticks for your bunny ears.
• Pull some pieces of mozzarella off of the string cheese to make whiskers and serve

Recipe from Kid Friendly Things To Do

Instant Pot leg of lamb

Is there anything the Instant Pot can't do? The answer is a definitive no—including the fact that it can make your Easter dinner a complete (and easy) win.

Ingredients:

• 5 cloves garlic, divided
• 4 lbs boneless leg of lamb (or bone-in)
• 3 tsp Kosher salt, divided
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 cup chicken broth, low sodium
• 2 tsp red wine vinegar

(Optional) to thicken, mix together:

• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp cold water

Instructions:

1. Slice 4 of the garlic cloves lengthwise. Pierce the lamb in several places and push the garlic slivers into the cuts. Then sprinkle 2 of the tsp of salt and the pepper over the entire roast.
2. If the roast is coming apart from the bone being removed, tie it together with butcher's string.
3. Turn on the pot's sauté setting. Wait for it to get hot, then add the olive oil. Place the lamb roast in the pot and let it brown for several minutes. Then turn it over and brown the other side. Remove it to a plate.
4. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot, using a wooden spoon.
5. Add the wine and continue to cook, still scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot (called deglazing).
6. Add the rosemary and thyme sprigs, remaining teaspoon of salt, remaining clove of garlic (minced), chicken broth, and the red wine vinegar. Stir well. Then turn off the sauté setting.
7. Add the lamb roast back into the pot.
8. Press the pressure cook/manual button or dial. Then press the +/- button or dial to select 70 minutes (20-30 minutes for a rare roast). For a bone-in roast, select 85 minutes. This will yield a nicely fork-tender leg of lamb. If your roast is larger than 4 lbs, increase the time by 5 minutes.
9. The pot will take a few minutes to come to pressure. When the cook time ends, let the pot sit undisturbed for 20 minutes (20-minute natural release, 10 minutes for a rare roast). Then turn the steam release knob to the Venting position to manually release any remaining pressure/steam. Turn off the pot.
10. When the pin in the lid drops back down, open the lid. Carefully remove the roast to a platter and cover. Remove the herb stems from the pot.
11. Skim the fat off the top of the liquid in the pot, or use a fat separator to defat the liquid.
12. OPTIONAL: Return the liquid to the pot and turn on the sauté setting. Mix up a slurry of 1 tbsp cornstarch to 2 tbsp cold water. When the liquid is simmering, whisk in the slurry and stir until it thickens.
13. Serve the roast sliced, with some of the defatted sauce over it.

Recipe from Simply Happy Foodie

Slow cooker ham with brown sugar glaze

Ham is, perhaps, the most quintessential of Easter meal choices. And with the ease of a crockpot, this recipe will become your go-to favorite.

Ingredients:

• 1 boneless ham
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Instructions:

1. Spray the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray. Remove ham from packaging and place in a slow cooker set at low heat.
2. Make the glaze by combining the brown sugar, dijon, and vinegar in a small bowl. Pour over the ham. Cook ham at low heat for 5-7 hours or until thermometer reads 140 degrees F.

Recipe from This Delicious House

Brown butter garlic honey-roasted carrots

These carrots are so good you won't have to convince them to eat their veggies before dessert.

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb baby carrots
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 dashes ground black pepper
• 1/2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp chopped thyme or parsley

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Heat an oven-safe skillet and cook the butter on medium heat until it starts to form and turn into golden brown. Add the garlic and quickly saute before adding the carrots. Stir a few times, then add the salt, black pepper, honey and thyme or parsley.
3. Transfer the skillet and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the carrots become tender. Serve immediately.

Recipe from Rasa Malaysia

Birds nest cookies

These no-bake treats are the perfect easy Easter dessert (and oh-so-cute)!

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces milk chocolate chips
• 12 ounces butterscotch chips
• 12 ounces chow mein noodles
• 36 candy eggs

Instructions:

1. Place the milk chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a large bowl. Microwave in 30-second increments until melted. Stir until smooth.
2. Add the chow mein noodles to the bowl and toss until coated in the chocolate mixture.
3. Spoon 2 tbsp of the cookie mixture onto a piece of parchment and shape into a nest; top with 3 candy eggs. Repeat the process with the remaining cookie mixture and eggs.
4. Let nests set until firm, then serve. These cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

.

Easter egg fruit pizza

For a dessert that is delicious and healthy, this Easter egg fruit pizza checks off all the boxes.

Ingredients:

• 1 package sugar cookie mix (1 lb 1.5 ounces)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted & cooled
• 1 egg
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup strawberries chopped
• 3 cups fruit (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries) sliced

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and grease a 13″ pizza pan and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, add the cookie mix, melted butter, and egg and mix with a spoon until a soft dough forms.
3. Press the dough evenly onto the pan.
4. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Let it cool completely, about 45 minutes. Cut into an egg shape (I just used a butter knife).
5. In a food processor or blender, add the softened cream cheese, ½ cup chopped strawberries, powdered sugar, and vanilla and pulse until fully combined and smooth.
6. Spread the cream cheese mixture onto the cooled cookie.
7. Decorate with the cut-up fruit.
8. Slice with a pizza cutter and serve.

Recipe from Persnickety Plates

Easter chocolate lasagna

There's really no explanation needed here. It's chocolate layered with more chocolate. Done.

Ingredients:

Oreo crust:

• 36 Oreo cookies
• ½ cup unsalted butter-melted

Cream cheese layer:

• ½ cup unsalted butter-softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup Cool Whip

Chocolate pudding layer:

• 2 (3.9 oz.) packages chocolate instant pudding
• 2 and 3/4 cups cold milk

Topping:

• 2 cups Cool Whip
• 1 ½ cups crushed Oreo
• Peeps bunnies, Easter egg candies, and other fun toppings

Instructions:

1. In a food processor, finely crush Oreo cookies into fine crumbs. If you don't have food processor, place Oreo cookies into ziplock bag and crush the cookies with a rolling pin.
2. Using a fork mix crushed Oreo with melted butter, then press the mixture into the bottom of 9 x 13 inches dish. Place in the fridge to firm.
3. Beat cream cheese, softened butter, sugar and vanilla until it's light and creamy. Stir in 1 cup Cool Whip. Spread the mixture over the crust and place in the fridge.
4. In a medium bowl mix chocolate instant pudding with 2 and 3/4 cups cold milk. Whisk for a few minutes until the pudding starts thickening. Spread the pudding over the cream cheese layer. Place in the fridge for 10 minutes.
5. Spread 2 cups Cool Whip on top and sprinkle with crushed Oreo. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.
6. Garnish with Peeps and Easter egg candies.

Recipe from Oh My Goodness Chocolate Desserts.