Garden Bugs Fruit & Veggie Appetizers

platter of garden bugs fruit & veggie appetizers

 













Appetizer

Total Time: 45 mins

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: n/a

Yield: 8-10 servings

Dish: Serving Tray or Platter (try the All a Flutter or Garden patterns!)

 

Ingredients

Vegetable Bugs

  • 2-3 Celery stalks, cut into various lengths for different bugs
  • 1-2 mini cucumbers, halved lengthwise with seeds scooped out, cut into various lengths
  • 1/2 cup cream cheese
  • 10 cucumber slices
  • 1 cup cherry and/or grape tomatoes (various colours)
  • 1 bunch chives, cut into 1” lengths
  • 5-7 black olives
  • 10 whole cashews

Fruit Bugs

  • 2-3 celery stalks, cut into various lengths for different bugs
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut/seed butter for peanut allergies)
  • 1 cup red and/or green grapes
  • 3-4 strawberries, sliced
  • 1/2 cup blueberries
  • 1 apple, sliced
  • 1/4 cups mini dairy-free chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup corn puff cereal

Tara's Notes:


  • This is a great recipe for kids, but you might need to help them with the sharp parts!
  • Use a toothpick to help pierce holes for inserting winds, legs and antennae
  • Celery "bodies" work for both fruit and veggie bugs, but I recommend keeping other body parts in the same category (fruits with fruits, nuts, choco chips // veggies with veggies or nuts) for each bug
  • Have fun & let your imagination flow when making these critters!

Directions

    1. Begin by preparing the eyes for your fruit and vegetable bugs so you can allow them to set-up in the freezer while you prep other ingredients.
      Vegetable bugs: Use a straw to cut out black olive pupils. Alternatively, you can chop black olives into small pieces and use those for the pupils instead. Pipe small dots of cream cheese onto a plate and top with black olive pupils. Place in freezer.
      Fruit bugs: Version 1 – Pipe small dots of cream cheese onto a plate. Top with mini chocolate chips.
      Version 2 – Use peanut butter or cream cheese to “glue” mini chocolate chips to the corn puff cereal. Place in freezer.
    2. Prepare fruit and vegetables. Refer to photos for a visual guide showing the many ways you can prepare the ingredients.
    3. Help your bugs stand upright by slicing a flat edge on the bottoms of mini cucumbers and celery sticks.
    4. Using a piping bag or spoon, fill celery stalks and/or mini cucumbers with cream cheese for veggie bugs, and fill celery stalks with nut butter or cream cheese for fruit bugs. 
    5. To create the bugs...
      Snails: Start with a round fruit or vegetable for the shell. Stick chilled googly eyes onto the tomato, cashew, or grape “heads”. Insert chives or thin-sliced apples (with skins on) for antennae.
      Caterpillars: Stick chilled googly eyes onto cherry tomato or grape “heads”. Add chive or apple antennae. Make the body with a line of cherry tomatoes, grapes, blueberries, or corn puff cereal.
      Dragonflies and butterflies: Stick chilled eyes onto grape or tomato “heads” or place corn puff cereal eyes into nut butter. Add chive or apple antennae. Use sliced strawberries or halved cucumber slices for wings. Use corn puffs, blueberries, grapes, or tomatoes for the body.