Kitchen science: Vegetables get their colours from different natural pigments, so a platter with red, orange and green is also a platter of different plants.
Let's make a turkey out of vegetables, with a dip for its body and a rainbow of feathers! This easy no-cook recipe is for ages 5 to 10 (grades K–4th), takes about 20 minutes and serves 6. Crumb, our tiny chef, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow along.
A turkey veggie platter turns a plain tray of raw vegetables into the Thanksgiving centrepiece: a bowl of dip for the body, fanned carrots, peppers, celery and cucumber for the tail, and a cherry-tomato head. A grown-up cuts, and a child arranges, which is a good job for the youngest cook in the family.
Ingredients
2 carrots
4 sticks of celery
1 red pepper
1 cucumber
3 cherry tomatoes
2 olive slices
1 cup yogurt (or oat yogurt)1 cup (240 ml) yogurt (or oat yogurt)
1 teaspoon dried dill
a pinch salt
Tools
A cutting board, A sharp knife (grown-up), A mixing bowl, A big spoon, A plate.
Steps
Wash your hands with soap for twenty seconds.
Rinse the vegetables under cold water and pat them dry.
Grown-up step: A grown-up cuts 2 carrots, 4 sticks of celery and 1 red pepper into sticks, and 1 cucumber into slices.
Stir 1 cup of yogurt, 1 teaspoon of dried dill and a pinch of salt together in a small bowl.Stir 1 cup (240 ml) of yogurt, 1 teaspoon of dried dill and a pinch of salt together in a small bowl.
Put the dip bowl in the middle of a big plate: that's the turkey's body!
Fan carrot and celery sticks out behind the bowl for tail feathers.
Tuck in the pepper strips and cucumber slices. Look at all those colours!
Set a cherry tomato in front for a head, with two olive slices for eyes.
Gobble gobble! Dip a veggie and crunch.
Safety notes
Sharp! A grown-up does this part.
Contains milk. Tap "Allergies?" on the Kitchen's front page and the swaps fill themselves in where there is one.
Raw carrot is hard and round-ish for little ones under 4: grate it or cook it soft.
Raw celery is hard to chew for little ones under 4: cut it thin.
Round, slippery foods are a choking risk for little ones under 4: cut them in quarters.
Kitchen science
Vegetables get their colours from different natural pigments, so a platter with red, orange and green is also a platter of different plants.
Make it your own
Add broccoli florets for green feathers.
Make the dip with hummus instead of yogurt.
Add a cheese-cube pilgrim hat for the turkey.
Questions about turkey veggie platter
What vegetables go on a turkey veggie platter?
Carrot sticks, celery sticks, red pepper strips, cucumber slices and cherry tomatoes make a bright set of feathers. Broccoli and snap peas are good extras.
What dip works best?
Any thick, cold dip. This recipe uses a salted yogurt and dill dip, which a child can stir in a minute. Hummus and a ranch-style dip also work.
Can I make it ahead of Thanksgiving dinner?
Cut the vegetables the day before and keep them in the fridge in a covered container with a damp paper towel. Build the turkey just before the meal.
Are raw vegetables safe for little ones?
Raw carrot, celery and whole cherry tomatoes can be a choking risk for children under 4. Offer them thin, small or cooked soft, and cut cherry tomatoes in quarters.