Forget Halloween Candy! Try This Veggie Skeleton Platter Instead
For a lot of people, Halloween is all about candy — bucketsful and bucketsful of the stuff. You’ll have enough leftover candy to last until Christmas. But if you don’t have a sweet tooth, or you just fancy celebrating with a healthier Halloween treat this year, this hummus and veggie platter is just the thing. Who knew veggies made such a great skeleton? I made a mermaid skeleton (because the only thing cooler than a veggie skeleton is a freaking mermaid skeleton) but you can make whatever kind you fancy — a human, a cat, a raven, maybe even a unicorn. Why not?
Ingredients:
Serves 6
— 3 cups hummus (homemade or store-bought)
— a variety of vegetables, such as asparagus, carrot, cucumber, bell pepper and cauliflower
Instructions:
1. Spread the hummus in an even layer on a baking tray.
2. To make the mermaid’s tail, cut thin slices of cucumber into quarters and layer them over each other to create “scales.”
3. Create a spine and rib cage using your choice of vegetables.
4. Add arms in whatever position you like.
5. Cut two pointed ovals from slices of carrot to form the tip of the tail.
6. Create a skull — I used a piece of cauliflower. I created two small holes with a knife and added small pieces of black olive to create the eye sockets.
7. Add some hair — I used thin strips of carrot.
8. Add some fresh spinach “seaweed” underneath the mermaid.
9. Serve chilled, with extra veggies for dipping.
Spread the hummus in an even layer on a baking tray. If you’re not a fan of hummus, you could use any other kind of chilled dip instead.
To make the mermaid’s tail, cut thin slices of cucumber into quarters and layer them over each other to create “scales.” Press each piece lightly into the hummus.
Create a spine and rib cage using your choice of vegetables. I used asparagus as the spine, and strips of slightly curved bell pepper work really well as ribs.
Add arms in whatever position you like. I used more asparagus, which I snapped in half to create elbows. I think the asparagus tips make great hands!
Cut two pointed ovals from slices of carrot to form the tip of the tail.
Create a skull — I used a piece of cauliflower. I created two small holes with a knife and added small pieces of black olive to create the eye sockets.
Add some hair (I used thin strips of carrot).
Add some fresh spinach “seaweed” underneath the mermaid.
Serve chilled, with extra veggies for dipping. And there you have it! The perfect healthy Halloween recipe.
Do you have any brilliant Halloween recipes? Share your ideas on Twitter @BritandCo!
