Magic Reindeer Food is a fun holiday tradition for children. With the help of an adult, kids mix together oats and sugar crystals and sprinkle the reindeer food on the lawn on Christmas Eve. I’ve included the non-toxic, safe-for-animals Magic Reindeer Food recipe I’ve used for years, along with free printable Magic Reindeer Food tags.

Make Magic Reindeer food with your children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews, or to give as gifts to your child’s preschool or kindergarten class. The recipe is simple and can easily be scaled up or down.

What is Magic Reindeer Food?

Magic Reindeer Food is a popular holiday tradition for children. Kids (or adults) mix together uncooked oats and white, red, and/or green sugar crystals. On Christmas Eve, children sprinkle the Magic Reindeer Food on the lawn (or balcony).

Legend has it the sugar crystals sparkle in the moonlight, helping Santa and his reindeer find their way to your house. The oats and sugar sprinkles are a tasty Christmas Eve snack for the reindeer.

Making Magic Reindeer Food is a fun Christmas project for children (and kids of all ages).

Making Magic Reindeer Food is a fun and creative Christmas project for children because it allows them to use their imagination and it's fun mixing together oats and sparkly sugar. Even toddlers can mix together Magic Reindeer Food and spoon it into bags for themselves and as gifts for their friends.

Making Magic Reindeer Food is also a great way for kids to learn about the importance of taking care of animals during the holiday season.

When children sprinkle the food outside on Christmas Eve, they can imagine Santa's reindeer coming to eat it!

It's a fun bonding experience with parents or grandparents, or the super special adult who helps them! It makes wonderful memories they will carry with them in the future. Be sure to take lots of photos!!

What is the Magic Reindeer Food poem?

If you search the web you will find several versions of the Magic Reindeer Food poem.

This one (which is on the free printable tags) is my favorite:

Magic Reindeer Food

Sprinkle on the lawn at night,

The moon will make it sparkle bright.

As the reindeer fly and roam,

This will guide them to your home!

Sprinkle on the lawn at night,

The moon will make it sparkle bright.

As the reindeer fly and roam,

This will guide them to your home!

A longer version of the Magic Reindeer Food poem:

Sprinkle on the lawn at night,

The moon will make it sparkle bright.

As Santa's reindeer fly and roam,

This will guide them to your home.

Fill your bag with oats and spices,

Mix it up and make it nice.

Add a few sparkles if you please,

Then sprinkle it for the reindeer please.

Christmas Eve will soon be here,

It's time for Santa's reindeer.

So put out your Magic Reindeer Food,

And Santa's reindeer will be in a good mood!

We try to keep our pug safe which means not only removing the ribbon from his mouth after this photo, and also by not sprinkling toxic things in our yard (like plastic glitter or sequins) that are used in some reindeer food recipes. The recipe in this post is made from only uncooked oats and sugar crystals and would not harm Meatball if he happened to have a taste.

Is Magic Reindeer food safe for animals?

This recipe for Magic Reindeer food is a mixture of oats and sugar sprinkles (or granulated sugar). These ingredients are non-toxic and safe for animals. While it is not recommended to feed Magic Reindeer Food to animals, it is not harmful if they do consume small quantities.

Magic Reindeer food made using craft glitter, sequins, or other non-edible ingredients are harmful to wildlife and should be avoided.

Alternative to glitter in Reindeer Food.

Some recipes for Magic Reindeer Food on the web use glitter. Glitter is generally made of tiny pieces of plastic, so it can be dangerous if ingested by animals.

The only type of glitter that can be used in Magic Reindeer food is edible glitter which can be purchased at cake decorating or craft stores.

I prefer to avoid even food-grade glitter and instead use crystal sugar sprinkles which are easily found in the baking aisle at grocery stores. If you don’t have colored sugar crystals, simply substitute granulated sugar.

How does the Magic Reindeer Food disappear??

Magic Reindeer Food disappears when the reindeer eat it. Well, that's the charming story.

If kids sprinkle Magic Reindeer Food on a lawn without snow, encourage them to run around and fling it all over. Unless they are dumping a pile of oats and sugar in a small area it will virtually disappear in the grass.

If you have a white Christmas mom and dad might have to help the reindeer find the food if it is visible in the snow.

One solution is to pour the food in a small "reindeer bowl" and put it on your doorstep. Parents can easily dispose of the food after the kiddos are tucked in bed.

The Magic Reindeer Food recipe is simple to make with children and it makes great Christmas Eve gift for toddlers and preschoolers.

What is the Magic Reindeer Food recipe?

This recipe uses only two ingredients: uncooked oats and sugar crystals. Sugar crystals are found in almost every grocery store in the baking aisle. If you don’t have red, white, or green sugar crystals, simply substitute white granulated sugar.

I’ve included my recipe below, but know that measuring is not required. You can simply allow children to spoon some oats in a small bowl, top with sugar crystals, and mix with a spoon.

I prefer to keep this recipe super simple because it is easy for children to mix together and it is not toxic to animals.

Never use glitter or sequins or other non-food ingredients in Magic Reindeer food.

Yield: 4

Author: Jacqui at Plan A Healthy Life

Magic Reindeer Food Recipe (Safe for Animals)

Prep time: 5 MinTotal time: 5 Min

The reindeer "food" is made of a mixture of oats and white, red, and/or green sugar crystals. This recipe makes four bags of Magic Reindeer Food. The recipe can easily be scaled up or down.

Ingredients

Magic Reindeer Food Recipe (Safe for Animals)

1 cup uncooked oats
4-8 tablespoons red, white, and/or green sugar crystals (or substitute granulated sugar)

Instructions

Place oats in a small mixing bowl.
Add white, red, and/or green sugar crystals to the oats. Mix.
Spoon 1/4 of the oat and sugar mixture into snack-sized zipper baggies.
Print the Magic Reindeer Food tags, punch a hole in both the tags and the top of the zipper bag, and tie tags to the baggies with a pretty ribbon.
On Christmas Eve let children sprinkle Magic Reindeer food on the lawn, driveway, or balcony!

Notes

This recipe uses only oats and sugar crystals and is non-toxic and safe for animals. Never use glitter or sequins or non-edible ingredients, which may be toxic to animals, in Magic Reindeer food.

Per cup. Nutritional information calculated by MyFitnessPal

Free Printable Magic Reindeer Food Poem Tags

While a cute tag isn’t absolutely necessary, it is adorable. Definitely print the tags and attach to the Magic Reindeer Food baggies when giving reindeer food as a gift.

The PDF Magic Reindeer Food printable is totally free and there is no opt-in required. Just click on one of the tag images to download the PDF file, or click on the button below.

Download Magic Reindeer Food Printable Tags