Family-Friendly St Paddy’s Day Party

This week, my kids were excited to celebrate St Paddy’s Day with a party we hold every year.  We love any excuse to throw a party at my house and St Paddy’s Day is no exception!  This week, we indulged in a few leprechaun tricks, created an Irish-inspired dinner menu, and watched a Disney Channel classic – The Luck of the Irish!  It’s our tradition to watch The Luck of the Irish on St Paddy’s Day while I try my hand at preparing some traditional Irish fare.  Follow along as I share with you some of the ways we throw a family-friendly St Paddy’s Day party!

Leprechaun Tricks

Leprechaun tricks are a fun way to get your kids in the spirit for your family-friendly St Paddy’s Day party.  Think Elf on the Shelf – but more mischievous!  There are TONS of great ideas on Pinterest for ways to prank your kids (usually involving the color green because…St Paddy’s!).  Some of our favorite ways to play leprechaun tricks on our kids include serving up some green food and drinks for breakfast.  With a little food coloring, you can present your kids with some green scrambled eggs, green applesauce, and even green milk!  While I typically try to avoid using food coloring in my cooking, we make an exception on St Paddy’s Day because it is so much fun for the kids. 

Another fun leprechaun prank involves dying the toilet water green (and leaving tiny green footprints on the toilet seat) as evidence of your tiny mischievous visitor using the bathroom facilities during his pranking spree.  We also like to leave a message from our leprechaun right on the bathroom mirror.    

Don’t forget to set up a leprechaun trap with your little ones in order to catch the impish visitor!  There are some fun ideas on Pinterest to check out for inspiration, or just let your kiddo’s imagination run wild.

Dinner and a Movie

My favorite part of St Paddy’s Day is cooking up an Irish-inspired menu to enjoy while watching The Luck of the Irish.  This Disney Channel original movie focuses on a teenage boy who discovers his Irish heritage while facing off against an evil leprechaun who has stolen his family’s lucky golden charm.  This movie is fun, light-hearted, and full of Irish cultural references which complements our family-friendly St Paddy’s Day party perfectly. 

Download a printable version of our menu here:

Our Irish Fare

Easy Crockpot Irish Stew

The main component of our Irish-inspired menu is a hearty Irish stew!  I have been perfecting this recipe for years, and my family really enjoys it.  I cannot claim it is an AUTHENTIC recipe (Italian girl, here!) but it incorporates all the staple ingredients of a good stew including beef, potatoes, carrots, celery, and a good amount of Guinness!  You can check out my recipe HERE!

Raglan Road’s Irish Brown Bread

With a great Irish stew recipe already on the menu, I wanted to take the opportunity to experiment with new Irish recipes to serve up alongside it.  I knew our stew needed a good bread for dipping, so I set out to find a traditional Irish soda bread recipe.  Imagine my surprise, when I stumbled upon an Irish Brown Bread recipe STRAIGHT from Disney Springs’ Irish eatery – Raglan Road!  We had the pleasure of dining at Raglan Road during our last trip to Walt Disney World. The amazing food, Irish dancers, and traditional Irish music made this a favorite stop on our vacation. I always love preparing official Disney World recipes whenever I can, so I didn’t hesitate to serve up this Irish Brown Bread as part of our family-friendly St Paddy’s Day party.  You can find the recipe and step-by-step instructions from Disney’s Master Chef Kevin Dundon HERE.  Score!   

Creamed Cabbage

Now some people may disagree with me here, but I don’t think any St Paddy’s celebration can be complete without a good serving of cabbage!  I remember as a child, I HATED the smell of steamed cabbage being prepared for our annual St Paddy’s Day dinner with my best friend’s Irish family.  Fast forward 20 years, and I found myself bartending at a local Irish pub.  One of their popular menu items was creamed cabbage, and we all had to sample it.  It…was…AMAZING!  After giving cabbage another shot, I’ve become a big fan.  As a nod to my history working in an Irish pub (and falling in love with cabbage), I decided to try making my own creamed cabbage.  

I found this recipe for Creamy Cabbage from These Old Cookbooks.  At first, I was suspicious.  The recipe seemed TOO EASY.  Utilizing only 5 ingredients and a mere 15 minutes of cooking time, it seemed too good to be true.  And did I really expect my kids to eat a big scoop of cabbage willingly?  Especially after my own childhood aversions?!  Well, I threw this recipe together and gave it a taste.  DELICIOUS!  I was thrilled with how the final product tasted.  Now the true test…what would my kids think?  Well, I’m happy to report that the kids were fans as well!  My four-year-old gobbled hers up and informed me that she LIKED IT.  Win!

Lucky Charm Marshmallow Treats

For dessert, I kept things simple and whipped up some Lucky Charm Marshmallow Treats from Moms and Munchkins.  Think Rice Crispy Bars – but with Lucky Charms!  While not traditional Irish fare, the leprechaun hat and rainbow marshmallows provided St Paddy’s flare to fit our St Paddy’s party perfectly.  I think next time, I will try coloring the marshmallows green before combining with the cereal to look even more festive!

Sláinte!

I hope you enjoyed some of our ideas for a family-friendly St Paddy’s Day party!  It’s a lot more fun to celebrate holidays with your family when you create your own traditions.  Hopefully, some of these ideas will inspire you to create your own traditions for a family-friendly St Paddy’s Day party! 

Do you have any favorite leprechaun pranks you play on your kids?  Tell me about your family-friendly St Paddy’s Day traditions you share with your family in the comments!

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