Tis the season for food, friends and fun and let me emphasize food! Cookies, fruit cake, holiday dinners, buffets are part of what makes the season bright, right? How about if we add some produce in the mix as the base of an appetizer, as a garnish sprinkled on a flatbread, or as the dippers? Here are 4 appetizers that score high on taste with delish flavor combinations and nutrient amplifications. Unleash your inner creativity with decorations to add to the festivity.
PUMPKIN DIP WITH FRUIT DIPPERS
Ingredients
Reduced fat cream cheese- Neufchatel or Farmers- 3 ounce
Canned pumpkin- ½ cup
Applesauce, unsweetened- ¼ cup
Vanilla full fat Greek yogurt- 5 ounce container
Orange zest- 2 tsps
Brown sugar- 2 TBSP
Pumpkin pie spice- 1 teaspoon
Instructions
Use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese, add in pumpkin, applesauce, Greek yogurt, brown sugar, orange zest and pumpkin pie spice.
Adorn the pumpkin “tree” with boughs of fruit
Serve with:
Apple slices, skin on
Pear slices, skin on
Apple chips
MEDITERRANEAN DIP
Ingredients
Hummus- 1 container
Crumbled feta-1/2 cup
Chopped pistachios- ¼ cup
Diced roasted red peppers- ¼ cup
Chopped kalamata Olives- ¼ cup
Diced Cucumber, skin on- ¼ cup
Green onions, ¼ cup chopped
Instructions
In a shallow bowl, layer
Hummus
Red peppers
Cucumbers
Olives
Green onions
Pistachios
Feta
Serve with any of the following:
Pita chips
Lentil Chips
Chickpea chips
Raw veggies
And to take it up a notch, form the hummus into the shape of a tree, star, menorah and sprinkle with peppers, olives, green onions, cucumber, pistachios and feta
FESTIVE FLATBREAD
Ingredients
Ricotta, whole milk – ¾ cup
Juice from 1 orange
Grated orange peel- 1 teaspoon
Grated gingerroot- 1 teaspoon
Honey roasted pistachios
Pomegranate arils
Instructions
Spread a thin layer of ricotta on a dried fruit and nut crackers and sprinkle Pomegranate arils and pistachios on top
LENTIL, WALNUT RED PEPPER SPREAD
Ingredients
1 12 oz jar of roasted red peppers, drained well
¾ cup walnut halves
1/2 cup canned lentils, drained
1 garlic clove, minced
2 TBSP olive oil
1/4 cup bread crumbs, plain
1-1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 TBSP pomegranate molasses (or 1.5 teaspoons balsamic vinegar + 1 tsp honey)
½ tsp Sea salt
½ tsp red pepper flakes
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp smoked paprika
Instructions
In a food processor with a metal blade, pulse the walnuts, then add lentils and garlic and olive oil, add in remainder of ingredients. Pulse until blended . Unleash your creativity shaping the dippers like a tree
Cauliflower florets
Broccoli florets
Carrots
Radishes
Ring in the holidays with a ho-ho-ho and lots of yum, wishing you good cheer, great eats and a delicious , nutritious New Year. #haveaplant
