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Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
Birthdays can be a hot button issue for the nut free community, especially when requiring a nut free birthday. Just thinking of them fills the minds of parents to food-allergic children with anxiety. Parents to children with allergies want their child included in school celebrations, but if the other parents don’t understand how to be inclusive in choosing allergen friendly, nut free snacks, a simple nut free birthday treat could put their child at risk of a severe allergic reaction.
And if they ask their child to refrain from celebrating with the rest of their peers, they’ll have to self-isolate every single time someone wants to celebrate a birthday. Even then, even if they self-isolate, they’d still have all of their friends running around with possible ways to expose them to cross contamination. That’s why it’s likely that if your child is sharing a classroom with a nut allergic child, the classroom will have protection in place via restrictions for what can be brought into that classroom as a shareable, nut free snack.
We do recommend that you always ask for approval from a parent of a severely food allergic child before sharing a snack with a class. We also need to point out that the products we endorse are always nut free at the time of publishing. But as recipes change, and so do manufacturing policies, we ask that you consult every label as the authority.
But if your classroom is already nut free or nut aware and parents are a little more informed on what is proper policy–if nut free snacks are allowed for birthday parties in school–read on.
1. Best Overall: Zee Zees Birthday Cake Soft Baked Nut Free Snack Bars
- Made in a dedicated nut free facility
- Allergen warning: contains wheat and soy
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
You can buy a 30 pack of these Zee Zees nut free Birthday Cake Soft Baked Snack Bars from Amazon. They're completely free from nuts, and have it clearly labeled on the front of their packaging.
Check out the nutrition label of these nut free snack bars and look at the bottom where it says “Allergens”. You’ll see that these snacks are not only nut free, but they’re also made inside a nut free facility. They’re such a winner! (If you end up liking this brand, the baked snack bars also come in 7 other flavors made in a dedicated nut free facility: berry apple crisp, blueberry lemon, campfire s'mores, cinnamon crisp, cocoa cherry, oatmeal cocoa chip, and strawberry crisp.)
I like the nut free birthday cake flavor because it has sprinkles and is reminiscent of a slice of nut free birthday cake. Having actual nut free birthday cake in a nut free classroom is probably going to be a big no-no because baked goods from a non allergen family household could really risk cross-contamination. In the context of a nut free classroom, these are even better than an actual slice of cake since they’re individually wrapped and made inside a dedicated nut free facility. The labeling is clear and friendly to nut free classrooms.
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2. Runner-Up: Enjoy Life Soft Baked Mini Cookies
- Made in a dedicated nut free facility
- School-friendly
- Free from the top 14 most common allergens
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
These Enjoy Life soft baked mini cookies are a great nut free snack to eat year round. Especially for lunch inside a nut free classroom. These cookies come in six different flavors and each provides individual packs of soft, chewy cookies. They’re school-friendly, and are actually free from 14 different allergens!
Enjoy Life is a great brand to get familiar with if you’re part of a nut free classroom or are close to someone with a nut allergy. The company makes allergen friendly foods and all of their products are free from the top 8 most common allergens, plus more. Being free from so many different allergens is a huge plus when trying to come up with a snack that would be appropriate and inclusive to an entire classroom of students.
- No nut or peanut products in ingredients list
- Allergen warning: contains eggs
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
These cream filled cakes by Katz are nut free, gluten-free, soy free, and dairy free. The variety pack created in this Amazon listing contains four different flavors. It comes with two cream filled cakes resembling a healthier, gluten free version of the popular sponge cake called a Twinkie. The Twinkie-reminiscent cakes come in two flavors: vanilla and chocolate. The other two types of cakes resemble a healthier version of the hostess cupcakes. Those cakes come into flavors as well: lemon, and chocolate. Each package contains 4-6 cakes. One purchase of the variety pack contains 20 cakes. That makes up 12 creme cakes and 8 cupcakes.
Important Note: This product can last unrefrigerated for up to one week, but should be frozen as much as possible to retain freshness. If you do decide to order these from Amazon make sure you don’t leave them on your counter after they’re been received. If you don’t want to order these from Amazon, it’s likely Katz products will be available to purchase at your local grocery store. View the Katz store locator where you can purchase this product from a store near you.
- No nut or peanut products in ingredients list
- Free from: peanuts, tree nuts, egg, and wheat
- Allergen warning: contains milk and soy (see SmartLabel by Kellogg’s)
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
Rice Krispies Treats are classroom friendly, because they’re individually wrapped. These particular treats come in fun packaging that has a little space for you to write fun little notes or the individual name of every student. This could be nice when sharing snacks with a classroom, or a nut free birthday party. Or, if that seems complicated, just buy the regular Rice Krispies and don’t worry about what to put inside the empty label as those are also nut free.
To read about Kellogg's allergen policy in reference to peanuts and tree-nuts, please visit their website and learn more about their labeling. As stated on their page Which Cold Cereals Are Tree Nut And Peanut Free?, “In most cases, our foods are not made on a shared line with other foods that contain peanuts and/or tree nuts. Where shared lines are required, the lines are cleaned thoroughly between production runs and peanuts and/or tree nuts are listed in the ‘May Contain' allergen statement.”
- No nut or peanut products in ingredients list
- Allergy warning: contains wheat
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
I like to be as upfront as possible. Most of the snacks on these lists will have clear nut free labeling. But, some products are simply nut free and free from nut ingredients. Please make sure to check with your particular school’s policy on what is required of you if you plan to bring a snack into a nut free classroom.
But, these nut free graham snacks are so fun! They’d also be a great snack to pack in for your own child's nut free birthday lunch. They're organic, contain no high fructose corn syrup, and contain no artificial colors or artificial sources. I love that they look like bunnies and I think they’re absolutely adorable. Do be careful if wanting to share as they contain wheat and wouldn’t be appropriate for a child with an allergy to gluten.
- Made in a dedicated nut free facility
- Allergen warning: contains wheat and soy
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
These Katz Cupcakes are dairy free, nut free, soy free, and gluten free. They come in five flavors: chocolate, chocolate sprinkle, peppermint crunch, vanilla, and vanilla sprinkle. The chocolate, vanilla, and vanilla sprinkle would make great choices for a nut free birthday treat inside a nut free classroom. As they are made inside a dedicated nut free facility, they’re easy to confirm quickly as being a safe, nut free snack for children with a nut allergy.
It's also so great that these cupcakes are also inclusive for students with food allergies to gluten or dairy. The nut free facility that these snacks are made in are also made inside a facility free from gluten and dairy. So there won't be any issue of cross-contamination for those two allergens either!
If you decide to buy these cupcakes for a nut free birthday party, it could be fun to buy a few different flavors to create your own variety pack. Completely up to you though!
Important Note: This product can last un-refrigerated for up to one week, but should be frozen as much as possible to retain freshness. If you do decide to order these from Amazon make sure you don’t leave them on your counter after they’re been received. If you don’t want to order these from Amazon, it’s likely Katz products will be available to purchase at your local grocery store. View the Katz store locator where you can purchase this product from a store near you.
- No nut or peanut products in ingredients list
- Allergen warning: contains eggs and corn
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
These nut free meringue cookies are nut free and also gluten free. They come in a super cute nut free birthday cake flavor, complete with rainbow colored sprinkles. They're also kosher! If you end up liking this brand they make 25 other flavors as well.
They’re free from nut ingredients, but the packaging of these meringue cookies doesn't clearly state “nut free” on the front of the packaging. Whether or not these cookies would be a good fit for your classroom will depend on the agreement and procedure of the nut free policy. The cookies are free of nuts, but if a policy indicates a specific type of labeling is needed in order to make identification of a safe snack more clear, this may or may not be the right fit for a shareable, nut free snack.
- Made in a dedicated nut free facility
- School-friendly
- Free from the top 8 most common allergens
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
These Rule Breaker nut free Birthday Cake Snacks are completely nut free, labeled as nut free, completely school-friendly, and labeled as school-friendly! I really like these and think they'd make the perfect nut free birthday snack for a nut free classroom. They’re allergen friendly and free from many common allergens, not only peanuts and tree nuts. When a snack is labeled as school-friendly, it means the company which manufactures the snack is aware of the top eight most common allergens and intentionally takes those allergens into consideration when creating the recipes for their products.
These school-friendly, nut-free snacks are made in a dedicated facility free from nuts, tree nuts, dairy, eggs, wheat, soy, fish, and shellfish. The main ingredient is actually garbanzo beans, can you believe it? In case you haven't noticed by now I'm a little obsessed with rainbow sprinkles! However, these snacks come in four flavors, so you have options. Birthday cake is my favorite to bring as a nut free birthday treat, but choose what sounds best to you!
This treat is also non-GMO project verified and comes individually wrapped.
- Made in a dedicated nut free facility
- School-friendly
- Free from the top 8 most common allergens
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
This might not be the best shareable snack for an entire classroom as it's not individually wrapped and instead it’s a loose granola. But, I decided to include it on the list anyway because I liked the product and think that it’s always nice to see something new that isn’t overdone. I could see this being used as a topping to yogurt, frozen yogurt, or muffins. It's likely that your nut free classroom will have a ban on muffins, cupcakes, or any other baked good that isn’t individually wrapped. If that’s the case, you can create a type of fruit bowl, or individual fruit bowls— like strawberry and banana bowls.
Bring this packet of nut free birthday granola with a jar of Don’t Go Nuts Roasted Soybean Spread (Amazon) to create a sort of fruit bowl buffet. The Don’t Go Nuts Soybean Spread is completely free of nuts, and is a non-GMO alternative for peanut butter. It's made inside a dedicated nut free facility and labeled school-friendly. Read more about this soybean spread in my article These 5 Nut Free Facility Snacks Will Transform Your Pantry.
If you pair it with this granola, which is also labeled school-friendly and free from the 9 most common allergens, then you can create a sort of parfait nut free birthday snack. If there are children in the classroom with a dairy allergy, you can bring a few non-milk yogurts as alternatives. Consider coconut yogurt, or soy yogurt.
If the challenge sounds fun, awesome! If it sounds complicated, no worries. Maybe keep this one filed away under a possible nut free birthday snack between close friends.
- Made in a dedicated nut free facility
- School-friendly
Last update on 2025-01-14 // Source: Amazon
This nut free birthday cake snack from Rule Breakers is exactly like their big blondie snack that I recommended earlier in this article. But in this version of the same recipe, the blondie snack is broken down into little mini bites. They’re basically the same thing but have an extra advantage among younger children as the smaller pieces are preferable with that demographic. Each package is individually wrapped which makes sharing this snack convenient. The nut free labeling comes printed on every pack. Each bag contains 15 bites and is resealable! They’re still nut free, still school-friendly, and are still made from garbanzo beans!
These nut free snacks are also vegan, gluten free, and free from GMOs. The best part is that they’re made inside a dedicated nut free and tree nut free facility that is also a dedicated facility free from dairy, eggs, wheat, sesame, coconut, fish, and shellfish. This makes them an allergen free snack for many other food allergic children too.
Things to Remember About Nut Free Birthday Treats
Make sure that even with nut free snacks you're still talking to your student’s teacher or to the parents of the food allergic child when deciding what to bring in as a shareable nut free birthday treat. Make sure if there’s any confusion, that you ask questions before assuming a particular snack is okay to pass around the class. There might be other allergen sensitivities that you need to keep in mind. We love our nut free product recommendations. But, do be sure to be your own biggest advocate by staying up to date with current labeling and facility policies. Recipes change over time. Always check labels.
Even when something is clearly labeled nut free, we want to encourage you to run your potentially shareable food by the parent of a food allergic child. There might be another allergy you’re currently unaware of in addition to their allergy to nuts. And, I guarantee the parents will really appreciate it. If it’s a new nut free snack they’ve never even heard of, it could be super fun to introduce them into a new rotation of their shopping list!
There are lots of ways to celebrate birthdays without using food at all. If you’re interested in learning more about celebration ideas that don’t include food, take a look at our article on 11 Ways to Celebrate School Birthdays Without Food. If parents are having trouble understanding how to identify allergen friendly snacks, sometimes the best thing to do will be asking for no food to be used in birthday celebrations in your nut allergy 504 Plan. When a food allergy is life threatening, there isn’t really isn’t room for making mistakes.
There are probably restrictions on what you can bring. Birthday snacks are probably required to be pre-packaged and labeled as nut free or made inside a dedicated nut free facility. Whether a food allergic child wants to join in with their friends to celebrate their classmate’s birthday, or whether a child without a food allergy wants to share a nut free birthday treat with their non nut-allergic friends, it’s nice to be aware of some snacks that are allergen-friendly and inclusive to everyone.
Like what you see? Get in touch with us on social media! Our Instagram handle is @gonutfree. Let us know if you’ve discovered a new nut free snack today. And tell us, how do you like to celebrate your birthday? Do you have your own favorite nut free birthday treat?
