EDITED TO ADD: I know have these cute tags to go with these! Click HERE to grab ’em:
I kind of love these. They are so simple, but so sweet. I first saw them as a wedding favor idea. What a great idea, right?? I would love to get something like this at a wedding. (As a side note, a good friend of mine from college is getting married this summer, and I am now obsessing over wedding details.)
Anyway. Here’s the recipe:
- 3/4 a cup of flour
- 1/2 a cup of water
- 1 envelope unflavored gelatin (2.5 teaspoons)*
- 3 tbsp corn syrup
- 4 cups birdseed
Spray a spoon with cooking spray and then mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, a la this
Yummy.
Next, spray the inside of your cookie cutter with cooking spray, and place it on a parchment lined baking sheet. Fill it with the birdseed mixture. Be sure to really pack it down. In retrospect, I wish I would have sprayed another spoon with cooking spray and used the back of it to help pack it down. It would have made for two smooth sides, instead of one.
Once you have your cookie cutter full, use something (we used a chop stick) to make a hole. Then, holding down the birdseed, pull off the cookie cutter. I had to respray the cookie cutter after every four and with a 2 1/2 inch cookie cutter, I made 12 feeders. I thought this would be something really fun to do with Gavin, but . . . I was wrong. It was a messy activity, and they are really fragile when you take off the cookie cutter. But this would probably be perfect to do with an eight or ten year old. That being said, Gavin did the chop stick part and really enjoyed it.
Let them firm up over night, and then they are ready to hang or give away.
This was my favorite part. When I told Gavin I was going to hang one up outside, he told me that he wanted to come with and that we should hang it on Elliot’s tree.
“This is for Elliot, Mom.” Oh little moose, you melt my heart. We love you, E. And we never stop thinking about you.
* In my grocery store, I found this in with all the Jell-o mixes. Though I spent a good chunk of time looking for it with the canning stuff.
Carla at Preschool Powol Packets says
That. Is. Adorable. I love it! I’m sharing it on my PreschoolPowolPackets FB page next! And such a sweet Gavin! Thank you so much for linking up at Teach Me Tuesday!
Lisa says
Thanks!!
inspiredbyfamilymag.com says
LOve it! Just pinned it to our holidays pinterest board. ~Mari
Lisa says
Thanks Mari!
LisaG says
Made these with my two boys, 5 and 6 years old. The boys loved making them and they came out great. Everyone that we handed them out to today raved about how cute they are and asked how to make them. Thank you!
Dee says
Help, please!!!!! I made 60 of these for favors for a shower this weekend. I hung mine outside. It lasted well on a hot, humid day, however, we rain overnight & my heart fell to the ground. Tried a second heart, same result. Has anyone else had problems like this? Did I do something wrong?
Dee, unfortunately, I had the same problem with these. They are super cute, but don’t last through the rain. The good news is that the birds will still enjoy them even if they are a lumpy heart on the ground.
Aggie says
I have a heart shape whoopie pie pan think I could grease it and let them sit in there overnight?
I would think that would be fine, Aggie! I would just spray the pan with cooking spray to make sure they pop out.
Evie says
Just want to thank you for sharing so many wonderful & creative ideas with us.I have tried out some of your recipes this year & have given friends your site so they could also see what a creative and happy young lady you are.Keep up doing all that you are doing. Thanks again :)
Oh Evie! How did you know that I needed a comment like this today. Thank you so much. This one is getting saved for anytime I need a pick me up. Thank you :)
Jen D. says
HI!
I made these last night with my 2 kids and their 3 friends all ranging in ages from 2 to 6! They loved it! To make it less messy i had them scoop the mixture into the cookie cutter with a spoon, then cover it with wax paper before pushing it tightly into the cutter! They turned out great! They are so excited to hang them in our trees today! Thanks!
So glad you enjoyed them Jen!
Laurie says
Can you use bacon fat instead of gelatin?? And maybe let it sit in freezer for a few hours? I just bought a bag of birdseed and have a jar of bacon fat that was gonna use to make bird feeders with pine ones.
You can give it a try Laurie, but honestly, I would be worried that the bacon fat wouldn’t hold it together, you know? Like wouldn’t make it set. The bacon fat works perfect on pine cones for the sticky factor, but the reason gelatin is used here is because it actually has to set up. I hope that makes sense. If you decide to give it a go anyway, be sure to come back and let us know if it worked! Alternatives are always helpful.
Barbara says
Hi! So excited to try this in our class. I help college students and older with disabilities. You said 2.5 tea spoons for the gelatin? I got the unflavored kind but it says each one package is one oz each . Glad I checked instead of using the whole thing for each one!