Snack

Fun Owl Bird Snack Recipe for Kids

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Somedays, our 3 kids remind me of little birds…one is contentedly “peeping”, while another is incessantly “chirping”, and of course there’s one that just noisily “squawks” if basic needs have not been met (sometimes constant cuddles with Mom strongly falls under this category!)

Let me just say, I love these darlings. Period. However… there are days when the constant noises of active and most-of-the-time happy kids becomes too much for my ears! (Am I right fellow parents?!)

My coping solutions to the noise?? Calming music for me (usually classical), and a good supply of nutritious snacks for these kiddos! Most of the time they can be easily distracted with food… because the majority of the time a contented tummy and full mouth doesn’t need to squack, right?!

About this Snack/Activity:

This snack was fun to make! It not only challenged the creative/artistic side of my brain, but was super tasty to eat too!

The kids and I had been learning about owls and nocturnal animals in homeschooling and this was a perfect mid-morning snack to go along with it! (The hubby was also home that day from teaching at the high school and was quite happy to get a snack that was more interesting than his usual)

Ingredients to Use:

  • Rice cakes were used for the body of the owl. Any large round one works, there are so many types and flavours! We like the plain ones best for this snack though.
  • For the base we used natural peanut butter, but you could also use other nut or seed butters, or hummus! Lather it on thick, this is the main protein part of this snack!
  • We used dehydrated strawberry chips for the owl ears, but you could also use fresh strawberries or another fruit and cut it to size. If you want to learn how to dehydrate your own strawberry chips like we did, you can check out THIS POST to find out more.

  • For the eyes, we sliced on fresh “banana dollars“. (My kids love their bananas!)
  • The wings were made using dehydrated peach slices, which could of course be substituted for fresh slices of peach. Apple or pear slices would work great too!
  • Raisins are the decorative part that tie it all in. You could also sub in cranberries, or other dried berries for this part.

Activities to do with this Owl Bird Snack:

Kids can not only have fun putting this tasty snack together, but they can also use the following resources for learning more about owls.

Craft Activity:

Cut out and paste shapes to create an Owl. You can download this free pdf HERE.

Educational Videos:

This is a a super fun video for younger learners, lots of energy, diagrams and some amazing facts discussed about owls.

This video is longer, at 14 + 1/2 minutes, and probably better suited for grades 1 and up. It is a very well done video by BBC Earth, and shows some baby owlets hatching! It also answers some questions such as “How can Owls fly so quietly?” and “How does an Owl’s hearing work?”
As a heads up: there are some mice that you see getting gobbled up!

How to Make this Owl Bird Snack:

Supplies Needed:

Ingredients:

Directions:

  1. Spread the peanut/seed butter or hummus on the rice cake nice and thick.
  2. Place the Strawberry slices as ears, banana slices as eyes, and peach (or other) slices as wings.
  3. Place the raisins for additional feathers, a beak, and in the center of the banana eyes.
  4. Eat!!!

Made this Recipe?

I’d LOVE to see your results!! Feel free to post to your social media account and tag Northbird using one of the links below or post in the comments!

More Desert & Snack Recipes:

Posts on “Discovering Birds”

Hi, I’m Jessie!

I’m a Wife and Homeschooling Mom living in a remote town in Northern Ontario, Canada. I love making wholesome meals for my family from scratch, homeschooling our girls and learning more about natural living.

Read more about my story HERE.

Subscribe to Northbird’s email list to get weekly posts on: tasty recipes, activity ideas for kids, natural living tips, and some genuine mom thoughts and encouragement!

Recent posts from Northbird:

Owl Bird Healthy Snack for Kids

  • Servings: 1 Owl
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

Jessica Burman, 2025 © The Northbird Blog. https://www.thenorthbirdblog.com

Supplies Needed:

  • Paring Knife
  • Cutting Board
  • Spreading Knife

    • Ingredients

  • Round Rice Cakes (Body)
  • Natural Peanut Butter, Seed Butter or Hummus (Colouring)
  • Strawberry slices, dried or fresh (Ears)
  • Round Banana slices (Eyes)
  • Peach, Apple or Pear slices (Wings)
  • Raisins (Feathers, Beak, Eyeballs)

    • Directions:

    1. Spread the peanut/seed butter or hummus on the rice cake nice and thick.
    2. Place the Strawberry slices as ears, banana slices as eyes, and peach (or other) slices as wings.
    3. Place the raisins for additional feathers, a beak, and in the center of the banana eyes.
    4. Eat!!!

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    This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. You can read my full disclosure HERE.

    Maple Syrup Taffy Twists

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    This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. You can read my full disclosure HERE.

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    Making Maple Syrup in My Early Years

    March. This month always brings me back to my childhood and the fun we had in making our own maple syrup. Warm days above zero, but nights that are still below freezing make the perfect push for the sugar maple trees to start running their delicious sap!

    Every year we would tap the 8 sugar maple trees on my parent’s property, and attach the metal buckets to collect the tasty sugar water. Once we had filled a large collecting bin (it only took a day or too at peak!), then we would get set up to start boiling it down into maple syrup.

    For those that don’t know this, it takes approximately 40 buckets of SAP to make 1 bucket of SYRUP.

    So that’s a lot of boiling to get all of the excess water to evaporate off!

    Some years we would be adventurous and try boiling it over the fire-for days on end. Being homeschooled, this was ok with us! We would pull over the picnic table near the fire and work on our bookwork in the chilly sunshine while tending to the fire.

    In the early years of doing this, we learned the hard way that when nearing the end of the process, one has to keep a very, VERY close eye on the pots or they would quickly turn to thick syrup, and burn if not stirred constantly. (So we usually finished them off inside on the stove!)

    My godfather, Ernie, had the best set up at his home in the bush. As soon as the sap started running, he had all his trees tapped, buckets ready, and an elaborate campfire area set up, complete with a large overhead tarp over his lawn chair and prepared woodpile.

    On those days it was hard to reach him by phone because he was always outside sitting at his fire about 90% of the day! He had a stack of books read through by the end of each syrup season.

    Sometimes when the days are so busy here, I think back on the simplicity of those times and wish I could sit by a campfire on a brisk but sunny day in March and make my way through a few good books!

    Which Maple Trees are used for making Maple Syrup?

    There are 13 different species of maple trees native to North America, and at least 130 known different species throughout the earth.

    Sweet maple sap can be collected from 3 known species to boil their sap down into maple syrup:

    • Sugar Maple/Hard Maple (Acer saccharum)
    • Black Maple (Acer nigrum)
    • Red Maples (Acer rubrum).

    The most commonly used maple tree is of course the “Sugar Maple” or Hard Maple.

    About this Activity:

    On our winter family holiday this year we once again went to an off-grid cabin for several days to rest and enjoy being in the bush for a few days. While there, we decided to make some taffy twists out of pure maple syrup.

    Even though where we live we don’t have any maple trees, it was a great winter activity to do as an inquiry about maple trees, sap, and discussing how sap can be made into delicious maple syrup. Being a Canadian family, this is, of course an important part of their education to learn about the main symbol on our flag!

    The kids had fun trying to roll the gooey maple taffy onto their sticks before it hardened. (My toddler also greatly enjoyed just poking holes in the snow-filled pan!)

    How to Make Your Own Maple Syrup Taffy Twists:

    Supplies Needed:

    Ingredients:

    Directions:

    1. Fill a large, deep roasting pan with clean, fresh snow. Avoid getting it from high traffic areas or under trees. Open areas are best, after a fresh snowfall. Pack it in well!
    2. With a small to med sized pot, pour in 100% pure maple syrup (we used grade A). Based on size of pot used, pour in until there is 1″-1.5″ of syrup on the bottom. (Too little, and it will easily burn, too full, and it may boil up and over!)
    3. Turn to medium-high, and keep wooden spoon in to help prevent boiling over, stir occasionally. Once it is hot, stir constantly and after it starts bubbling, check the temperature every 2 minutes.
    4. The target temperature is 115 ℃ , or 240 ℉. Timing of reaching this boiling point will vary based on both your stove and altitude level! But it took me about ten minutes of heating to reach this point.
    5. Remove from heat and slowly pour small ribbons of thick syrup onto the snow. Do a few at a time and set the extremely hot pot safely (not dumping it all on at once like I did!). You can always reheat it again if it hardens too fast before you are ready for more of it.
    6. Take wooden skewers and twist/roll the syrup ribbons up. It hardens quickly but is still pliable for several minutes.
    7. Set sticks in a cold area to finish setting (or they will slowly droop down the stick as they cool at room temperature!). A parchment covered baking sheet in the freezer would work perfectly to harden them off and keep their twisted form.

    Made this Recipe?

    I’d LOVE to see your results!! Feel free to post to your social media account and tag Northbird using one of the links below or post in the comments!

    More Desert & Snack Recipes:

    Hi, I’m Jessie!

    I’m a Wife and Homeschooling Mom living in a remote town in Northern Ontario, Canada. I love making wholesome meals for my family from scratch, homeschooling our girls and learning more about natural living.

    Read more about my story HERE.

    More Homeschooling Crafts & Activities to Check Out:

    Subscribe to Northbird’s email list to get weekly posts on: tasty recipes, activity ideas for kids, natural living tips, and some genuine mom thoughts and encouragement!

    Recent posts from Northbird:

    Maple Syrup Taffy Twists

    • Servings: Variable
    • Difficulty: Easy
    • Print

    This is a tasty winter activity to do with your kids: learning about maple syrup and turning it into your own sweet maple taffy twists!


    Jessica Burman, 2025 © The Northbird Blog. https://www.thenorthbirdblog.com

    Supplies Needed:

  • Small-Medium size pot, 1.5-2 quarts
  • Measuring cups/teaspoons
  • Candy/Meat Thermometer
  • Large Deep Roasting Pan, 2 inches deep (For packing clean snow into!)
  • Wooden Skewers, or Wooden Chopsticks, or some wooden sticks with the bark off.
  • Wooden Stirring Spoon

    • Ingredients

  • 1.5-2 cups Pure Maple Syrup (enough to cover the bottom of your pot 1-1.5 inches, so it doesn’t burn)
  • Clean, Fresh Snow!

    • Directions:

    1. Fill a large, deep roasting pan with clean, fresh snow. Avoid getting it from high traffic areas or under trees. Open areas are best, after a fresh snowfall. Pack it in well!
    2. With a small to med sized pot, pour in 100% pure maple syrup (we used grade A). Based on size of pot used, pour in until there is 1″-1.5″ of syrup on the bottom. (Too little, and it will burn, too full, and it may boil up and over!)
    3. Turn to medium-high, and keep wooden spoon in to help prevent boiling over, stir occasionally. Once it is hot, stir constantly and after it starts bubbling, check the temperature every 2 minutes.
    4. The target temperature is 115 ℃ , or 240 ℉. Timing of reaching this boiling point will vary based on both your stove and altitude level! But it took me about ten minutes of heating to reach this point.
    5. Remove from heat and slowly pour small ribbons of thick syrup onto the snow. Do a few at a time and set the extremely hot pot safely (not dumping it all on at once like I did!). You can always reheat it again if it hardens too fast before you are ready for more of it.
    6. Take wooden skewers and twist/roll the syrup ribbons up. It hardens quickly but is still pliable for several minutes.
    7. Set sticks in a cold area to finish setting (or they will slowly droop down the stick as they cool at room temperature!). A parchment covered baking sheet in the freezer would work perfectly to harden them off and keep their twisted form.

    Nutrition


    Per 1/2 cup of 100% Pure Maple Syrup: 131 calories; 0.1 g fat; 33.6 g carbohydrates;
    0 g protein.

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    Cocoa Coconut No-Bake Cookies

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    Disclaimer: these cookies are absolutely not healthy in any way! These are, however, the perfect quick solution to a chocolaty-cookie craving or last-minute homemade sweet snack for guests or potluck!

    This recipe was one of my grandmother Juanita’s, and based on how much the recipe paper was stained and crumpled, I suspect it was in use quite a bit!

    I hope you enjoy this tasty no-bake cookie recipe as much as my family has!

    How to Make Cocoa Coconut No-Bake Cookies:

    Supplies Needed:

    Ingredients:

    Directions:

    1. Mix white sugar, shortening and milk together in a pot.

    2. Heat over medium, stirring until dissolved and smooth. Bring to a boil and remove from heat.

    3. Add sea salt, rolled oats, coconut, cocoa, and vanilla. Stir well.

    4. Drop by large spoonfuls on parchment covered baking sheet. *See note below

    5. Let cool for several minutes to harden (about 15-20 minutes).

    6. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to five days.

    7. Recipe makes about 2 dozen cookies.

    Additional Notes:

    When batter is ready, work quickly while the mixture is hot so that it clumps together well. Pat with a spoon to press together. If the cookies are too small or too thin, they will just crumble apart. The cookies will harden within 15-20 minutes.

    PS: Any crumbles that do result are absolutely delicious on top of vanilla ice cream!

    Made this Recipe?

    I’d LOVE to see your results!! Feel free to post to your social media account and tag Northbird using one of the links below or post in the comments!

    More Desert & Snack Recipes:

    Hi, I’m Jessie!

    I’m a Wife and Homeschooling Mom living in a remote town in Northern Ontario, Canada. I love making wholesome meals for my family from scratch, homeschooling our girls and learning more about natural living.

    Read more about my story HERE.

    Subscribe to Northbird’s email list to get weekly posts on: tasty recipes, activity ideas for kids, natural living tips, and some genuine mom thoughts and encouragement!

    Recent posts from Northbird:

    Cocoa Coconut No-Bake Cookies

    • Servings: 2 Dozen Cookies
    • Difficulty: Easy
    • Print

    These no-bake cookies are the perfect quick solution to a chocolaty-cookie craving or last-minute homemade sweet snack for guests!


    By Juanita Lambert via Jessica Burman, 2025 © The Northbird Blog. https://www.thenorthbirdblog.com

    Supplies Needed:

  • Medium size pot, 2 quarts
  • Mixing Spoon or Spatula
  • Measuring cups/teaspoons
  • Baking sheets
  • Parchment paper

    • Ingredients

  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • 3 cups rolled oats
  • 1 cup shredded coconut
  • 5 Tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

    • Directions:

    1. Mix white sugar, shortening and milk together in a pot.
    2. Heat over medium, stirring until dissolved and smooth. Bring to a boil and remove from heat.
    3. Add sea salt, rolled oats, coconut, cocoa, and vanilla. Stir well.
    4. Drop by large spoonfuls on parchment covered baking sheet. *See note below
    5. Let cool for several minutes to harden (about 15-20 minutes).
    6. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to five days.
    7. Recipe makes about 2 dozen cookies.

    Additional Notes:

    When batter is ready, work quickly while the mixture is hot so that it clumps together well. Pat with a spoon to press together. If the cookies are too small or too thin, they will just crumble apart. The cookies will harden within 15-20 minutes.

    PS: Any crumbles that do result are absolutely delicious on top of ice cream!

    Nutrition


    Per 1 cookie: 171 calories; 7.1 g fat; 29.5 g carbohydrates;
    5.6 g protein.

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    Maple Bacon Sourdough Cinnamon Buns

    NorthbirdLeave a comment

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    This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. You can read my full disclosure HERE.

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    Who doesn’t love Maple-Bacon combinations?!

    Smoky and salty with earthy sweetness, it can’t get better than that! This delicious Sourdough Cinnamon Bun recipe has been changed and tweaked for a few weeks now, and after playing around for a few batches, the kids and my husband confirmed that perfection was nailed.

    I had never seen Cinnamon buns twisted like this until a few weeks ago and love how it adds a new flair to a classic recipe. They are soft and buttery and because they are rolled and twisted, there is more of the yummy cinnamon/butter/sugar mix dispersed through the roll. And did I forget to say BACON?!

    These take longer to make as it goes through a fermenting process with the sourdough starter. I like to mix it up in the morning and then finish them off before dinner so they are warm for desert! But you can also mix it up in the evening and finish them off the next morning when you have time.

    As long as the dough has between 8-12 hours to rise, and the sourdough starter is active when you start mixing your recipe (was fed 4-12 hours earlier, is bubbly and has doubled in size), then your sourdough cinnamon buns will fluff up nicely. If you are new to “sourdoughing” then all that may sound confusing to you! Below I’ll lay out the recipe step-by-step so it is easy to follow along:

    How to Make Maple Bacon Sourdough Cinnamon Buns:

    Supplies Needed:

    Ingredients:

    First Mix (8-12 Hours Pre-Bake)

    • 1/2 cup butter, cold, cut into small chunks
    • 2 1/2 cups flour ( have used all purpose flour and also light spelt flour)
    • 1/2 cup ACTIVE sourdough starter
    • 1 Tablespoon sweetener (honey or agave syrup work great!)
    • 1 cup milk or yogurt

    Second Mix (Add)

    Inside Spread

    Pre-Bake Bun Glaze

    Recipe Notes:

    New to Sourdough? This recipe calls for active sourdough starter that has been fed within the past 4-12 hours, and is bubbly and doubled in size. The “active” timing depends on your kitchen’s temperature and humidity, and also the feeding ratio of flour and water.

    There are sourdough starters that you can purchase online, or you can make your own from scratch (it takes about 10 days), or if possible, see if a friend can give you a portion of theirs. Sourdough starters that have been fed and cultured for years are pure gold to beginners!

    Directions:

    1. Mix butter, flour, starter, sweetener and milk/yogurt together in bowl until it comes together to form a sticky ball.

    2. Let sit well covered with plastic wrap, a plate, or beeswax cover for 8-12 hours at room temperature.

    3. Cook Bacon strips and (when cool) put in fridge until ready to use.

    4. When dough is done, mix salt, baking powder and baking soda together in a small cup.

    5. Pour on top of dough and gently mix it in.

    6. Knead dough gently on lightly floured clean surface until soft.

    7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

    8. Roll out into large rectangle approximately 12”x18” and 1/4-1/2” thick. (Yes, I am improvising with my Nalgene waterbottle because we had just moved and I couldn’t find the rolling pin!)

    9. Mix together melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and maple syrup together.

    10. Pour and spread evenly on top of dough. Spread with spatula so that it is completely covered.

    11. Sprinkle chopped walnuts and bacon pieces on top. 

    12. Fold the long sides of the rectangle together. Cut into 1″ strips with the folded part at one end.

    14. Twist strip, then start to spin from one side and tuck the edges in as you go.

    15. Tuck the end part underneath and pinch so it doesn’t come undone.

    16. Put pieces on cookie sheets with parchment paper, space out evenly as they will still expand!

    17. Whisk egg with 1 Tablespoon of pure maple syrup and brush on tops and sides of each Cinnamon Bun.

    18. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown on top.

    19. Cool on wire rack and enjoy! Store in airtight container in fridge (due to the bacon). A quick reheat makes the perfect combo with your morning coffee!

    Other Tasty Sourdough Recipes to Check Out!

    Subscribe to Northbird’s email list to get weekly posts on: tasty recipes, activity ideas for kids, natural living tips, and some genuine mom thoughts and encouragement!

    More Desert & Snack Recipes:

    Hi, I’m Jessie!

    I’m a Wife and Homeschooling Mom living in a remote town in Northern Ontario, Canada. I love making wholesome meals for my family from scratch, homeschooling our girls and learning more about natural living.

    Read more about my story HERE.

    Recent posts from Northbird:

    Maple Bacon Sourdough Cinnamon Buns

    • Servings: 16
    • Difficulty: Medium
    • Print

    Sweet and Salty Craving Satisfied! A Creative Twist to a Classic Recipe.


    This recipe calls for ACTIVE sourdough starter that has been fed within the past 4-12 hours, and is bubbly and doubled in size.

    Supplies Needed

  • Bowl
  • Mixing Spoon
  • Spatula
  • Measuring Cups
  • Teaspoon
  • Tablespoon
  • Plastic Wrap or Beesewax Cover
  • Rolling Pin
  • Cutting Board
  • Knife
  • Cooking Brush
  • Parchment Paper
  • Cookie Sheets
  • Cooling Rack


    • First Mix of Ingredients (8-12 Hours Pre-Bake)

  • 1/2 cup butter, cold, cut into small chunks
  • 2 1/2 cups flour ( have used all purpose flour and also light spelt flour)
  • 1/2 cup ACTIVE sourdough starter
  • 1 Tablespoon sweetener (honey or agave syrup work great!)
  • 1 cup milk or yogurt


    • Second Mix (Add)

  • 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda


    • Inside Spread

  • 1/3 cup melted butter
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 4 slices cooked bacon strips, chopped


    • Pre-Bake Bun Glaze

  • 1 Egg
  • 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup


    • Directions

    1. Mix butter, flour, active sourdough starter, sweetener and milk/yogurt together in bowl until it comes together to form a sticky ball.
    2. Let sit well covered with plastic wrap, a plate, or beeswax cover for 8-12 hours at room temperature.
    3. Cook Bacon strips and (when cool) put in fridge until ready to use.
    4. When dough is done, mix salt, baking powder and baking soda together in a small cup.
    5. Pour on top of dough and gently mix it in.
    6. Knead dough gently on lightly floured clean surface until soft.
    7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 
    8. Roll out into large rectangle approximately 12”x18” and 1/4-1/2” thick.
    9. Mix together melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and maple syrup together.
    10. Pour and spread evenly on top of dough. Spread with spatula so that it is completely covered.
    11. Sprinkle chopped walnuts and bacon pieces on top. 
    12. Fold the long sides of the rectangle together (see pictures above for help).
    13. Cut into strips with the folded part at one end.
    14. Twist strip, then start to spin from one side and tuck the edges in as you go (see pic).
    15. Tuck the end part underneath and pinch so it doesn’t come undone.
    16. Put pieces on cookie sheets with parchment paper, space out evenly as they will still expand!
    17. Whisk egg with 1 Tablespoon of pure maple syrup and brush on tops & sides of each Cinnamon Bun.
    18. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown on top.
    19. Cool on wire rack and enjoy! Store in airtight container in fridge (due to the bacon). A quick reheat makes the perfect combo with your morning coffee!

    Nutrition


    Per 1 Serving: 284 calories; 16.5 g fat; 22.7 g carbohydrates;
    4.5 g protein; 37.2 mg cholesterol; 143.6 mg sodium.

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