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15 Sheet Pan Recipes For Easy Birthday Party Prep

by Ashley Jones
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When it comes to planning a birthday party, one of the biggest factors to consider is the food that will be served. Everyone has different tastes, but serving food that is easy to make and easy to eat is key. Thinking about the time you have to spend in the kitchen prepping food for a party and then cleaning up afterward can be overwhelming. Thanks to these 15 sheet pan recipes for easy birthday party entertaining, you can relax knowing that these recipes only require the use of one solitary pan.

This list includes a bit of everything on the party food front. Sheet pan recipes ranging from easy-to-assemble appetizers including sheet pan nachos and crispy sweet potato fries, to main courses like sheet pan lasagna and sheet pan fajitas that will easily feed a crowd are included. Some recipes do require serving from the sheet pan onto a plate for guests to eat with a fork, but many of these sheet pan recipes can be served right from the pan and your guests can use their fingers to pick them up. Easy peasy! Although birthday cake will undoubtedly be served (possibly with ice cream, because that's the best way), also featured are several dessert ideas that will have your birthday party guests falling in love with your stellar culinary skills faster than the guest of honor can blow out their birthday candles.

1Fruity Pebble Treats

For a more fun and colorful twist on traditional rice cereal treats, this recipe by Sugar and Soul uses everyone's favorite fruity cereal to make these Fruity Pebbles Treats. You can make these treats to serve to guests at a birthday party, or package them up and send them home in a goodie bag to enjoy as a reminder of all of the fun that they had.

2Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas

I'm from Texas, where almost every party I have ever attended serves fajitas. It's easy to allow guests to build their own tacos with fajita meat and all the roasted vegetables that come with a pan of fajitas. If you want to party like a Texan, serve these sheet pan chicken fajitas from No. 2 Pencil at your next birthday gathering.

3Loaded Smashed Red Potatoes

One easy way to serve a sheet pan appetizer to your birthday party guests is to make the food bite-sized. These loaded smashed red potatoes from Gimme Some Oven are perfectly portioned for party snacking and feature cheese, bacon, and avocado on top for an added flavor punch your guests won't be able to resist.

4Sheet Pan Bacon & Peach Nachos

This sheet pan nacho recipe from Climbing Grier Mountain is admittedly fancy-ish, but having a pan of delicious nachos ready for guests to grab at their leisure is a birthday party must. Baked with bacon, peaches, and mozzarella cheese and topped with basil-lime aioli, these nachos are perfect for your next get together.

5Easy Lemon Bars

Although birthday cake is probably on the menu for any birthday party, having another dessert option around is never a bad idea — especially when that dessert is a refreshing lemon bar like these by DIY Candy. The creamy filling and chewy cookie crust are a delightful combination that your party guests will go crazy over.

6Sheet Pan Greek Nachos

Nachos are the ultimate party snack, and that is even more true when they are made in a sheet pan for easy baking and serving. These sheet pan greek nachos by Damn Delicious are ideal for serving during birthday parties for adults and kids alike where your guests can take a few pieces of pita baked with chicken and topped with fresh veggies and tzatziki sauce.

7Easy Puff Pastry Strawberry Tart

Strawberry jam, mascarpone cheese, and whipped cream combine to make the filling that is slathered over the top of a baked puff pastry and topped with fresh strawberries to create this strawberry tart by My Baking Addiction. Make it and serve it right in your sheet pan so that your guests can enjoy a fresh, summery dessert at the next birthday party you host.

8Sheet Pan Spinach Quiche

Quiche is one of those party staples that makes entertaining easy. This particular sheet pan spinach quiche recipe by Brooklyn Supper is topped with spring alliums, which means it not only tastes great, but it looks gorgeous, too. Quiche is easy to cut and serve and can be enjoyed warm or cool, which means you don't have to worry about the timing of when it comes out of the oven in relation to when your birthday party guests will arrive.

9Banana Sheet Cake

This banana sheet cake by Dessert For Two can easily pull double duty as a birthday cake by adding a few candles. Made right on a sheet pan, this cake is basically banana bread slathered in cream cheese frosting, which means it will likely please even the pickiest party guests.

10Chicken With Rainbow Vegetables

Having a fancier grown up birthday party and want to jazz up your menu in an easy way? This recipe for sheet pan chicken and rainbow vegetables by Well Plated can be made up right in a sheet pan and served up on a platter with self-serve options for your guests to create their own meat and veggie bowls with brown rice, quinoa, or fresh salad greens.

11Sheet Pan BBQ Chicken Pizza

This recipe for sheet pan BBQ chicken pizza from Foodie Crush is great for birthday parties for kids or adults. Barbecue sauce-coated rotisserie chicken tops pizza dough that cooks right in your sheet pan, so that you can slice and easily serve to party guests.

12Oven Roasted Sweet Potato Fries

Having food on hand that birthday party guests can literally grab and eat with their fingers are ideal when planning party food. These oven roasted sweet potato fries from Gimme Some Oven bake right on a parchment-covered sheet pan to give you an easy-to-make snack for party-goers.

13Meringue Cookies

Although these meringue cookies by Princess Pinky Girl look like something from a gourmet bakery, the fluffy cookie creations are actually relatively easy to make right on your sheet pan at home. Eggs, cream of tartar, sugar, and salt combine to create gorgeous cookies that your birthday party guests can enjoy.

14Sheet Pan Lasagna

Lasagna is perfect for feeding a crowd, and making it in a sheet pan gives you an easy way to make this recipe for sheet pan lasagna by Simply Scratch. Layers of cheese, noodles, tomato sauce, and ground beef create a hearty dish that your birthday party guests will absolutely adore.

15Sheet Pan Cauliflower Nachos

For a healthier take on easy-to-serve nachos, this Damn Delicious recipe for sheet pan cauliflower nachos will have your birthday party guests begging for the recipe. Southwestern flavors of jalapeños, cilantro, and paprika make this healthy nacho recipe a flavorful hit for entertaining a crowd.

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