Thursday, February 9, 2017

Edible Owl Pellets


In preparation for a preschool program at work this week I made a batch of edible owl pellets this morning. I thought I'd share the recipe and process for making them with those of you here.

Please note that I was making for a large group so I used a larger amount of ingredients in this recipe than you might want or need to use at home or less than you might want or need if using with a co-op or some sort of organizational meeting. Don't be afraid to adjust ingredients or amounts used to suit your  own individual need.
Ingredients Used To Make Edible Owl Pellets
Ingredients:

- crunchy peanut butter
- honey
- coconut flakes
- mini chocolate chips
- raisins

Aluminum Foil
You will also need:

- a roll of aluminum foil (this will be cut and used to individually wrap edible owl pellets)

In fact, before you begin, you might want to pre-cut several pieces of aluminum foil into squares or rectangles (approximately 5" x 5") and have them stacked and ready to go. This will make things easier for you later on.

To make:

1. Mix equal parts crunchy peanut butter and honey. Stir well.
Equal Parts Crunchy Peanut Butter And Honey
2. Add 1 cup mini chocolate chips, 1 cup coconut flakes, and 1 cup raisins. Stir well.
Mini Chocolate Chips
Coconut Flakes

Raisins
Peanut Butter/Honey Base With Chocolate Chips,
Coconut, And Raisins Added
3. Using a spatula, roll a small amount of mixture into a pellet. (Individual pellets will measure approximately 3/4" in diameter x 2" long.)
An Edible Owl Pellet In The Making
4. Place pellet on pre-cut square of foil.
Edible Owl Pellet
5. Fold foil over pellet and wrap tightly (like a burrito).
Wrapped Edible Owl Pellet
6. Chill in fridge until solid (preferably overnight) and keep chilled until ready to use.
Edible Owl Pellet
Edible owl pellets are delicious! They can be used as a novelty treat at an owl birthday party, as a special treat following an in-depth owl study, or they can be used as part of an owl study and dissected before eating!

If dissected the following chart can help children identify bird or rodent parts represented by recipe ingredients.

peanuts (in peanut butter) = vertebrate
mini chocolate chips = bones
coconut flakes = fur
raisins = skulls

In the near future I hope to post more about owls. As I get posts up, I will cross reference links making it easier to aid in individual and unit studies. I will also add links to some other really cool and informative sites about owls. 

Until then...
~Rebecca