Animal themed food ideas

[rizzo0904]

Having a birthday party for my son and it's a zoo/safari/animals kind of theme. Help me come up with some ideas please!!!

So far I've got monkey bread and elephant ear cookies for dessert...and an elephant shaped cake...gotta have cake!

I'm going to make pigs in a blanket as an app. And I know I can use animal shaped cookie cutters for sandwiches and things like that.

The main course isn't theme-y...homemade lasagna, meatballs, salad, bread, etc....it's cold up here...need some comfort food!

Thanks for your ideas.

[nemo]

Here's a link to Asian garnishing cutters. I have a dragon and a fish. The dragon looks great cut out of red bell pepper and the fish out of lengthwise sliced carrot. There are lots of tiny regular cookie cutters in animal shapes. If the kids like Ranch dressing, you could have a menagerie of cutouts around a bowl of it (or any dip you prefer) for something crunchy and vegetable. Firm, dark-colored, raw vegetables seem to work best. I've been meaning to try jicama and swipe them with a cut beet to see if that would stain them sufficiently to identify the shape.

http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com/a...

[eclecticsynergy]

Dinosaur Eggs (Herb Encrusted Baby Potatoes)
http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?/...

You could make a big nest for them out of of crispy roasted kale...

[Emme]

just a bunch of thoughts...
Ants on a Log?
Make pizzas with stripes of mushrooms and yellow peppers to look like bumble bees?
peanut butter and jelephant/jellyfish paninis (PB/J)
french flies
buffalo wings
call the meatballs "alligator eyeballs"
for adults, crab cakes ;)

and i always think of kitty litter cake... kids love it.

[Anarkya]

Jello with gummy worms in it.

Melon shark.
http://justsomethingifound.tumblr.com...

[porker]

Kids always seem to like dinosaur nuggets
http://fuckyeahdinonuggets.tumblr.com/

[LaLa]

For something similar we did a sub sandwich cut into a slither motion with eyes and a tounge that was forked...very cute.
Aminal crackers diped in carmel or choclate.

[rizzo0904]

Thanks for the great ideas....love the deviled eggs one!

[aurora50]

rizzo0904, why don't you post pictures of what you end up with?
That would be great!

[greygarious]

Vermicelli (translation: little worms)
Porcupine meatballs http://southernfood.about.com/od/meatballs/r/bl51023b.htm
"Turtle" burgers http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7430...
Meat loaf formed like a snake

[aurora50]

If you wanted to serve deviled eggs, you could dress them up as bugs or whatever - with pimentos, sliced olives, you get the idea -

[monavano]

Goldfish crackers