Veggie Christmas tree platter with yogurt dip
Prep: 25 min · Makes: 6-8 children · For:
In December, everyone needs a snack that is not chocolate. This vegetable Christmas tree is quick, colorful and great fun to build. Somehow, broccoli tastes much better when it is a Christmas tree.
It works for a class party, a family get-together or as an appetizer for a children's Christmas dinner.
Tips
- Use a big board so the tree has room to look like a tree.
- Contrast is everything: bright red and yellow on dark green look the most festive.
- Make a forest: for a big party, build two or three smaller trees.
Little helpers
Even little ones can arrange the vegetables and choose where the ornaments go. Older children can cut soft vegetables, like cucumber, with a child-safe knife.
Ingredients
- 1 head of broccoli
- 1 cucumber
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1½ cups cherry tomatoes
- 2 carrots
- 1 cup plain or Greek yogurt, for the dip
- 2 tbsp finely chopped chives or dill, for the dip
- 1 tbsp olive oil, for the dip
- a pinch of salt, for the dip
- half a garlic clove, crushed (optional), for the dip
Method
- Make the dip: stir the yogurt with the herbs, olive oil, salt and garlic. Spoon it into a small bowl and chill.
- Cut the broccoli into small florets. Blanch them for 1 minute in boiling water and rinse under cold water if your children prefer them a little softer, or serve them raw.
- Cut the cucumber into thin rounds, the peppers into strips and the tomatoes in half. Cut the carrots into sticks.
- On a large board or platter, lay the broccoli in a big triangle to make the tree, wide at the bottom and pointy at the top.
- Add garlands of pepper strips and cucumber slices across the tree, and dot the tomato halves on as ornaments.
- Use a few carrot sticks as the trunk at the bottom and cut a star from a slice of yellow pepper for the top.
- Put the bowl of dip next to the tree, with the rest of the carrot sticks, and let everyone pick their own decorations to dip.
Questions
Can I prepare it ahead?
Cut the vegetables up to 4 hours ahead and keep them in boxes in the fridge with a damp sheet of paper towel. Assemble the tree just before serving.
Is it safe for toddlers?
Cut cherry tomatoes into quarters and carrots into thin strips, or steam them a little, for children under 5. Raw hard vegetables and whole cherry tomatoes can be a choking risk.
Can I use other dips?
Hummus, a mild guacamole or cream cheese with herbs all work well.
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