We first published this post last year, but we’re sharing it again now because we love it that much… and because I bet we all have a long evening or two that we’re looking to fill with some holiday fun minus the extra calories.
I love a fully decked out gingerbread house with their Candyland-like sweets. But, last year I had the urge to create a more natural looking gingerbread house, and that’s when we came up with this nutty treat for the birds.
We had a great time doing this project last winter. And fortunately, the kids were just as happy to make this creation for the birds as they are to make the typical sugar-coated version. Admittedly, I was also happy to not have the typical candy-laden gingerbread house taking up space inside. Whenever we’ve made them in the past, they sit around, get super hard, and then we eventually throw it away with a bit of guilt. Fortunately, with this cutie, there was no guilt – I was happy to have the boys make the gingerbread house knowing that it could go right out the door to be enjoyed by our feathered friends.*
Materials
- gingerbread house kit (I love the A-frames from Trader Joes)
- peanut butter
- simple bird treats for decorating; We used raw nuts, seeds, and cherrios. Dried berries would be a great addition.
How-to
- I like to decorate the house pieces separately before assembling. Spread peanut butter on the outside areas of the house that you want to decorate with nuts. Create beautiful designs with your nuts & berries. Or let your kids go all Jackson Pollock with those seeds.
- Assemble the house using peanut butter to hold the pieces together.
- Place the gingerbread bird house outside, preferably in a spot where you can watch to see who visits the house.
When we put this one out last year, it lasted for a few days, but then we think that it was carried off by a raccoon! This year we’re going to make another one, and I’m thinking about ways that we can keep it safe for the birds. I may put it on one of these bird feeder platforms and see what happens.
