KidStir Subscription Box Review – October 2016

KidStir was created to help kids have a “happy and healthy food connection.” It is a monthly cooking kit with sending recipes, tools and fun food-related activities for kids to learn from and create with adult supervision.

This box was sent to us for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

The Subscription Box: KidStir

The Cost: $15.95 per month plus $3.95 shipping ($19.90 per month) with price breaks for longer prepaid subscriptions.

ACTIVE DEAL: Get 3 free Halloween cookie cutters with a new subscription
CODE: SPOOKTACULAR

The Products: A monthly cooking kit including recipes, tools, activities, and more.

Ships to: U.S. only

Check out all of our KidStir reviews and the Kids Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

This month’s theme was “Spooky Celebration.” We were provided with three recipes to help get our spooky on!

Each month, KidStir includes the following:

• 3 step-by-step recipes covering all food groups
• 2 kid-sized cooking tools and themed activity materials
• A digital and printed shopping list
• 3 fun games and puzzles
• An e-newsletter packed with recipes and printables
• 3 educational foodie pages
• Bonus with a prepaid 12-month subscription: A special cookbook binder to collect all your recipes

When you open the KidStir box, there is a card printed to the top of the box so you can see right away what you’ll be doing that month. We love this idea! Also, a printed card with the shopping list was included in the box. Most of the items are staples for us so limited shopping needed to be done. Kidstir has a fabulous website too with lots of great information and downloadable items. Check it out!

Other than the recipes, these items were included in the box. We received Spooky Stickers, a Freaky Freeze Mold to make ice cubes, and a Pasta Press.

Recipe #1: Witch's Brew

First, we did the Witches Brew, “apple cider with frozen skulls and bones.” This silicone mold is a-dorable!

We started by making the frozen skulls and bones which must be done the night before the cider to give them time to freeze. The recipe was easy: whipping cream, sugar and vanilla was mixed together and poured into the mold.

Next, we made the witches brew by mixing apple cider with spices. We only got one of the cross bones out of the mold without breaking it though. Those smaller pieces on mold never work (or at least not for me!) Cira loved the brew and we think this is a great idea for a kid’s Halloween party!

Here's our completed recipe with a skull and cross bone in the cider!

Recipe #2: Scary-Oli

For the second recipe, we took on the typically daunting task of making our own pasta aka “scary-oli”. I can’t say it was an easy or short task but everyone loved the end result. First, we made the pasta with flour, eggs, and salt. Cira did the kneading but I had to roll out the pasta and make most of the ravioli.

We mixed the filling (mozzarella, ricotta, garlic, olive oil, and basil) separately. It took a long time to make the pasta with the small plastic ravioli mold we received. Everyone liked the dish (I made my own sauce) but due to the time commitment for this one, I’m pretty sure we won’t be making it again.

Recipe #3: Yummy Mummies

Finally, we made the Yummy Mummies. We gathered the ingredients, mixed wet and dry separately and then stirred them together. Cira did this recipe with minimal assistance. The cupcakes turned out great! In fact, they were so good at this point I hesitated to add the icing. AND, I used 1/3 cup less sugar than called for in the recipe.

Next, we made the cream cheese icing by mixing cream cheese, butter, vanilla and powdered sugar. Cira gets the coveted job of cleaning the icing off the beaters. 

Yummy Mummy success! These are adorable and we’d definitely make them again.

Verdict: KidStir is a great subscription! Here is what I liked about it:

1. It provided fun planned activities for a child (or children) and an adult
2. Cira participated more than usual in the cooking tasks which I think was due to this being “her” subscription
3. The box/activities could easily be used with multiple children
4. The recipes are generally easy and tasted pretty good
5. Kidstir website is great! There are lots more ideas and fun downloadables under their DIY tab

Here is what I feel could be improved upon:

1. Similar to last month, I think there was too much sugar in some of the recipes (particularly the Yummy Mummies this month). There are simple ways to make these recipes healthier. Even if they want to keep the recipes as they are, Kidstir could suggest using less sugar or using a mixture of white and wheat flours. It’s easy to find recipes that taste good with a lot of sugar and vegetable oil but what I’d really like is a healthier version of these recipes with some new (or interesting) tricks for making them healthier.

As for the value of this subscription, I feel the $19.90 ($15.95 plus $3.95 shipping) is fair for what you get. The graphics are good, cardstock is used for the recipe cards, the two kitchen gadgets were decent quality, and the website is great. It doesn’t feel like Kidstir is trying to cut corners in any way. I’m happy that Kidstir gets me and my daughter in the kitchen cooking together and having fun.

What do you think of KidStir?