When I heard about making birdseed cakes / ornaments I knew I just had to try it out for myself.
You see, I’ve always wanted to decorate a tree for the birds in our backyard. I would love to string popcorn, raisins and cranberries into a garland to drape on the branches, and then add frugal edible avian ornaments just like these!
Just imagine making a batch and wrapping them up as gifts for bird loving friends & neighbors. It’s homemade, inexpensive and useful! Now on to the tutorial.
Materials:
Directions:
1. In the microwave (or on the stove) heat the water.
2. Dissolve the unflavored gelatin in the hot water.
3. Add corn syrup and stir till dissolved.
4. Pour flour into birdseed and mix well.
5. Pour water/gelatin/cornsyrup mixture into the birdseed/flour and stir well. It will start to get “clumpy”.
6. Cut some straws in half.
7. Fill molds with birdseed mixture and poke a hole through the middle with a chopstick. Then place a straw in the hole. Where the straw is will be where you can place a string through your ornament!
8. Place the whole thing in the fridge to dry/set. Overnight at a minimum. Mine wound up sitting in the basement fridge for a week because I got busy.
9. Pop the completed birdseed ornaments out of the molds and thread a string through the hole. Hang on a handy tree.
I’ve had these hanging for a few days now, and the birds have not found them yet. I can’t wait until I see some little feathered friends enjoying their treat!
Although I’ve posted this as a possible Christmas gift, they really can be used any time of year. I think that a good heavy rain would eventually melt through the gelatin/cornsyrup/flour glue. . . but we already had a drizzle that melted all the snow and the birdseed ornament is still holding together.
If you really wanted to give the birds a feast to remember, you could add some nuts, dried fruit and/or popcorn to the mix!
Don’t miss the rest of the “Make it for Christmas” posts!
This is a great school or Girl Scout troop activity. With all the peanut butter allergies these days, you can’t make the traditional PB on a bagel with birdseed smooshed on top. This would be a great alternative.
I just made up 3 dozen of these. My kids helped. We’ll give these away as Christmas gifts to relatives. Great idea – thanks for sharing! When I post about this on my blog in the next few days I’ll be linking back. 😉
Nancy-Good point about this being safer than peanut butter
Lisa-Great! I’m so glad you enjoyed the tutorial. Can’t wait to see what you write up. . .
I am making 150 of these as a wedding favor for my daughter. I am using a heart shaped cookie cutter with holes drilled in the top for the hanging string. By the way she is marrying a man whose last name is Bird and getting married in a bird sanctuary.
Karen-what a fabulous wedding favor! If you would like to send me a picture when you are done I’d love to post it.
Thank you so much! I made 46+ of these over the last few weeks to give as Valentine’s gifts for family, church friends we haven’t seen due to COVID and teachers of my teenage daughter and coworkers . Everyone loved them and a few had to check that they weren’t edible for them. Ha ha. I have a muffin tin that has 6 in the shape of hearts. I rubbed just a bit of canola oil in them, used big straws for the holes and followed you recipe exactly. I dried them quicker by putting the muffin pan in my dehydrator on 115 degrees for 4 hours. Around two hours I gently popped them out and let them continue on the trays so more air could get to them. I used a cotton/satin ribbon to hang them by. The last batch I wanted to use for us, so I used a 9 x 13 sheet pan and at around 2 hours, cut it in to 4 for the suet feeders we have. Thanks again!
How long with these last sitting at room temperature? (Stored.)
Thank you!!!
Honestly I’m not sure. I think that as long as they stayed dry & weren’t exposed to a lot of humidity they’d last quite a while. Especially if you sealed them in a zippered baggie etc.
Love this idea! My daughter and I are making a bunch of homemade Christmas gifts today and I’m posting photos as we go on my Facebook page. Messy but fun!
I tried your recipe today. I researched several different recipes, yours seemed to be the A) easiest and B) the most sticky to hold the seed together! I made lots of ornaments, hoping they will be suitable as gifts! I used twine, molding the twine into the center of each ornament…hopefully, they will hold together! Thanks!
How did it go, does this recipe hold up? I’m looking to make these this weekend, but am concerned about them holding together – a common problem on other sites.
I pressed the mixture into cookie cutters and let it dry for several days in the fridge…seems to work…I don’t know yet how they will hold up in NE Ohio weather, but I plan to give them out at an Ornament Exchange Brunch! Thanks!!!
I’m having my 6 and 3 year old nephews over tomorrow to make the oranments, and I am even more excited after reading the comments above. It is only 8 degrees here in MN, so I’m going to set them in a sealed container outside to set. Thank you!
i tried this today. i have a baby shower i’m making them for april 14th. do you think they will be ok to stay in a tub out in the cold until then? or when do you recommend making them? how early before the event? I’m super excited to see how they turned out!
Jillian-What a great idea to use them for Baby Shower favors! Moisture will not be good for these if they are just sitting out-but I would think inside of a tub (maybe in a garage or a shed) in the cold I would think they would be ok. . .
If wedding in April 2016.. will not the flour turn & spoil by then?
Thanks
I’m not sure, but I personally would wait till much closer to the wedding to make them.
What a great idea!
I am going to try it this week, but I plan on molding them the same size as the suet cakes – then there shouldn’t be any worry about the string holding or not.
thanks 😀
If you put the mixture on a baking sheet and let it set for a few hours then use Christmas shaped cookie cutters placing your “cookies” on another baking sheet with the straw inserted to finish the curing time you can decorate your outside tree in style.
I made them in rather large cookie cutters. The recipe makes about 8 if you push the mixture into the cookie cutters about an inch thick. One thing I did that I would change, is that I put the straw in a little too close to the top. Should have put it more in the center. I was thinking ornament more than how it would hold up. But they were easy and look darling. They were a little messy as the seed sticks to your hands. With kids, I would recommend doing it in an area that is easy to sweep up.
Has anyone tried these adding peanut butter to the gelatin mix instead of the surup?
Just a suggestion: for hanging the bird seed mixture… I have some outdated tahini & almond butter (organic too, shame, but not a waste) that Iwill mix with seed etc.
and tho I have not tried it yet …I have collected produce netted bags , I’ll use the ones with the smallest holes to fill & hang. I think that could work and also be easy to hang.
Pinned this over Christmas and finally got a chance to make these! Had all the ingredients – so easy!!! It is messy but worth it. I had been saving juice box straws and used them. I have a lot of feeders but am excited to see the birds in new locations! I highly recommend making this with children and it is a gift I would love receiving myself!
Sue-so glad you enjoyed the project and had fun! I’m sure the birds in your yard will thank you 🙂
Has anyone put them in the freezer, I wonder if that would be an ok place to have them set for a while…..
I haven’t tried the freezer. you could try a few there. But they will set up just in the air, it just takes longer 🙂
Do I need to spray the muffin tins before I press the mixture down?
Holly–It can’t hurt to spray or rub down lightly with oil.