Description
This turkey veggie tray is such a fun way to take basic veggies and dip and turn them into the cutest Thanksgiving appetizer or no-cook side. It’s easy, fresh, colorful and always a huge hit!
Ingredients
Scale
- veggie dip (pick your favorite – sour cream based, hummus, tzatziki, etc.)
- 2 pecan halves (or candied pecans)
- 1 mini orange or yellow pepper (for the wings)
- circle shaped piece of white or creamy colored cheese, see notes
- 2 candy eyeballs (or little slices of black olives)
- 1 baby carrot (for the beak)
- small strip of red bell pepper (for the snood or wattle)
- variety of raw veggies, see notes
- round board or platter (any size, mine was 14 inches)
- small shallow bowl for the dip
Instructions
- Grab your board: A round board or platter works best. I used a 14-inch round wooden board but any size works! You can make this as big or as small as you like!
- Add the dip bowl: Spoon your favorite veggie dip into a small shallow bowl. Place it near the bottom center of the board – this is the “turkey body”.
- Add the feet: Place two pecan halves (or candied pecans) right below the dip bowl for the little turkey feet. A tiny dab of honey or dip helps them stay in place if needed.
- Add the wings: Slice the top off a mini orange or yellow pepper, scoop out the seeds, then cut it in half lengthwise. Set each half on either edge of the dip bowl.
- Arrange the tail feathers: Start at the top of the board and work your way down, layering veggies in rainbow-style arcs. Overlap them slightly and mix up textures and colors. For mine, I started with a layer of cucumber slices in an arc around the top of the board, followed by strips of red, orange and yellow bell peppers, a layer of purple cauliflower florets and finally baby carrots and snow peas closest to the dip bowl.
- Add the turkey head: Place your circle shaped piece of cheese right above the dip bowl, on top of the veggies.
- Add the face details: Add two candy eyeballs (or small slices of black olives), a carrot beak (cut off the end of a baby carrot and slice out a small “V” shape), and a thin strip of red bell pepper for the snood/wattle.
- Enjoy: Your adorable turkey veggie tray is ready to serve!
Notes
- Cheese: Pick any white or creamy colored cheese that you can cut into a circle smaller than your dip bowl. This will be the head for your turkey. I used a thick slice of smoked provolone and cut it with a circle cookie cutter. You could also find a cheese that is already in the perfect circle shape or trace a round object as a guide with a paring knife.
- Veggies: All the veggies get arranged in rainbow-like arcs to form the tail feathers. Feel free to use whatever veggies you like! Just try to incorporate some fall colors like orange, red, yellow, etc. For my veggie tray, I used cucumbers, bell peppers (red, orange and yellow), purple cauliflower, baby carrots and snow peas.
- Prep time and yield will totally depend on the size of the board you are making, the level of detail you want to put into the arranging and whether you’re whipping up a homemade dip or grabbing one from the store. It’s so versatile and customizable.
- Step-by-step photos can be found in the post for reference.
