Let's build penguins out of olives, with white tummies and orange feet! This easy no-cook recipe is for ages 6 to 11 (grades 1st–5th), takes about 20 minutes (plus 30 minutes waiting) and serves 6. Crumb, our tiny chef, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow along.
Penguin olives are a Christmas party classic: a jumbo black olive with a cream-cheese tummy, a small olive for a head and carrot for feet and a beak. Children can fill, stack and press; a grown-up cuts the olives and carrots.
Ingredients
12 jumbo olives
12 small olives
4 tablespoons cream cheese
1 carrot
Tools
A cutting board, A sharp knife (grown-up), A butter knife, A plate.
Steps
Wash your hands with soap for twenty seconds.
Grown-up step: A grown-up cuts a slit down each of 12 jumbo olives, and slices 1 carrot into thin coins.
Spread cream cheese into each slit with a butter knife: a white belly!
Dab cream cheese on a carrot coin and stand a body on it: those are the feet!
Dab more cream cheese on top and set a small olive there for the head.
Push a tiny carrot triangle into each head for a beak.
Slide the plate into the fridge for 30 minutes, so everything sets.
Line them up and look: a penguin parade!
Safety notes
Sharp! A grown-up does this part.
Contains milk. Tap "Allergies?" on the Kitchen's front page and the swaps fill themselves in where there is one.
Round, slippery foods are a choking risk for little ones under 4: cut them in quarters.
Raw carrot is hard and round-ish for little ones under 4: grate it or cook it soft.
Read the label on packets for allergies.
Kitchen science
Cream cheese is soft but sticky, so it works like edible glue: it holds the head, the beak and the feet on a penguin made of olives.
Make it your own
Give each penguin a tiny hat made from a red pepper triangle.
Stuff the slits with a soft cheese spread of your choice.
Make a penguin on a cracker instead, with a small olive on top.
Questions about penguin olives
How do you make penguin olives?
A grown-up cuts a slit in a jumbo olive, you fill it with cream cheese for a belly, stand it on a carrot coin, set a small olive on top with a dab of cream cheese, and push a carrot triangle in for a beak.
How far ahead can I make them?
Make them up to a day ahead and keep them covered in the fridge. Chilling also firms the cream cheese so the penguins stay put.
Do I need toothpicks?
No. This version uses cream cheese as glue, so there are no toothpicks on the plate. That's safer for little hands and easier to eat.
Are olives safe for young children?
Whole olives are round and slippery, which is a choking risk for children under 4. Cut them into quarters for little ones, and check the olive packet for the word pitted.