To Veg, or Not to Veg?

 

Carrots, and snap peas, and tomatoes - oh my! The veggie tray - why is it, this old party staple continues to rear its ugly head? Don't get me wrong, I love veggies, but it's all about how they perform. I think that veggies always can play a leading role when it comes to your party's buffet table, but placing them on a tray just seems a little flat. Here are some ideas to make your veggies more Carrie Underwood than William Hung.

Display Those Stocks:
Instead of having all the carrots, celery, and cucumbers in a pile on a tray with dip in the middle, try this! Cut them the full length of the vegetable and put them in fun vases! Turn the veggie filled vases into part of your center pieces. Vegetables have lots of natural color that will bring bright pops of color to your table. Make sure that you have one vegetable per vase.

The Solo Act:
This is a fun idea that is ideal for smaller parties - but of course could be used in a more crowded setting as well. Fill the bottom of as many shot glasses you need with Ranch Dressing, or any other dressing you like. Take snap peas, carrots (either regular size cut into long sticks, or the cute small ones with the green still on the top), celery, cucumbers, peppers, etc. and cut them into long sticks. The length depends on how deep your shot glasses are. You want an inch or two of veggies to be above the rim of the glass. You can cut them as thick as you want but we have found the thickness of about a pencil to be a great size!

The Answer Is Crystal Clear:I truly believe that even the lamest party snack always looks better in crystal (not saying veggies are lame). I have many crystal bowls and candy dishes that truly make a statement when plating up dishes; whether it be the most expensive hors dourves or simple potato chips.

So - to veg, or not to veg isn't really the question. Now the question is - How to veg, or how not to veg.