Make holiday gatherings extra fun with this festive Christmas Tree Veggie Tray! It's a great holiday appetizer that you can prep ahead of time, then assemble just before the party. I've got tips and step-by-step instructions to make it super easy!
You will LOVE this holiday party appetizer. And all of your guests will, too!
- It's a great make-ahead party recipe. See my tips below for prepping the entire dish ahead of time!
- You can use almost any veggie you want. Let your creativity flow and create fun patterns in the shape of a Christmas tree with a variety of yummy vegetables!
- Guests will delight in how CUTE this party tray is! Sure, you can throw some veggies onto a plate in any form or fashion. But in just a couple of minutes, you can create a simple veggie tray that makes people smile!
- This is a SUPER EASY party appetizer the whole family can help make. This is a fun holiday appetizer that the kids can totally make on their own! If you have younger kids, you can slice up the veggies and let the kids place them on a platter in the shape of a Christmas tree.
Table of contents
Kitchen tools and equipment
For this recipe, you just need a few basic kitchen tools:
Cutting board - The main kitchen tools you'll need to make this Christmas tree veggie tray are a sturdy cutting board and knife.
Vacuum Sealer - If you are prepping the veggies ahead of time, you can use a FoodSaver Multi-UseHandHeld Vacuum Sealer along with Preserve and Marinate Containers or Vacuum Seal Bags to help them stay fresh, longer!
Ingredients to make this holiday veggie tray
Be sure to properly wash all of the vegetables before prepping and assembling the Christmas tree veggie tray.
Tomatoes - Use cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes for the top of the tree.
Broccoli - Broccoli is perfect for this because the veggie already looks like little trees! If you plan to prep the veggies ahead of time and assemble just before the party, be sure to blanch the broccoli first, then dry before vacuum sealing for refrigerator storage. This is true for any cruciferous vegetable you want to vacuum seal. See my notes about blanching in the recipe card below.
Bell Peppers - Use a combo of sliced red, yellow, and orange bell peppers for the middle row. Then use sliced green bell peppers for part of the row below it.
Cucumbers - Slice cucumbers for the center portion of the green vegetables row.
Snap Peas - Place these whole next to the cucumbers.
Carrots - Peel and slice one or two medium carrots for the tree trunk.
Step-By-Step Instructions: How to Make a Christmas Tree Veggie Tray
Place tomatoes in a star-shaped bowl at the top of the platter. Or, if you don't have a star-shaped bowl, place the tomatoes onto the platter to form either a star shape, ribbon shape, or to form the top triangle of the tree.
In the next row, place the broccoli immediately beneath the tomatoes to form a row.
Below the broccoli, place the red, yellow, and orange bell pepper slices to form a row that extends in width just slightly beyond each side of the broccoli row.
Below the bell peppers, place the green bell peppers, cucumber slices, and snap peas to form a tight row that extends just slightly beyond each side of the bell pepper row.
Stack the carrot slices below the green veggie row, in the middle, to form the tree trunk.
Easy make-ahead party appetizer
This is an awesome time and sanity-saving recipe for the holidays because you can prep all of the vegetables in advance!
If you are prepping the veggies ahead of time, you can use a FoodSaver Multi-UseHandHeld Vacuum Sealer along with Preserve and Marinate Containers or Vacuum Zipper Bags to help them stay fresh, longer!
The FoodSaver Multi-Use HandHeld Vacuum Sealer is a compact, portable, vacuum sealing machine. I love how it hardly takes up any space, yet still locks in freshness like the larger FoodSaver machines. It makes meal prep SUPER convenient!
I've written about how much I love my FoodSaver Preserve and Marinate Containers before, and this new FoodSaver Multi-Use HandHeld Vacuum Sealer makes me love them even more.
If you've ever been guilty of throwing away vegetables that went bad before you could use them, I highly recommend checking out this system. Being able to prep veggies and have them stay fresh for longer is a game changer!
Whenever you are ready to assemble the veggie tray, simply move the sealing knob on the Preserve and Marinate Containers over to the Open (Marinate) position. You'll hear the sealed air escape, and then you can lift the lid.
Remove the veggies and assemble them according to recipe instructions.
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Recipe FAQs
Yes! If you are making this the day of, feel free to use any veggies you have on hand. Celery, zucchini, baby corn, and olives are just some other ideas you can use.
While most vegetables aren't actually toxic to eat raw, there are some that many people prefer eating fully cooked. Vegetables like potatoes, brussels sprouts, artichokes, eggplant, and butternut squash are usually best prepared fully cooked before serving. You could save those for an all-roasted vegetables tray.
Stick with either all fresh and blanched then chilled veggies, OR an all roasted veggies tray. Mixing and matching fresh crisp veggies with hot roasted veggies is a recipe for disaster.
What to serve with a Christmas tree veggie tray
Serve this festive vegetable tray with your favorite dip! Some easy recipes for you to try:
More easy holiday recipes
Christmas Tree Veggie Tray
Ingredients
- ½ cup tomatoes
- 1 cup broccoli florets, blanched (see NOTES below) and dried
- assortment of bell peppers (red, yellow, orange, green), sliced
- cucumbers, sliced
- snap peas
- 1 cup sliced carrot sticks
Instructions
- Place tomatoes in a star-shaped bowl at the top of the platter. Or, if you don't have a star-shaped bowl, place the tomatoes onto the platter to form either a star shape, ribbon shape, or to form the top triangle of the tree.
- In the next row, place the broccoli immediately beneath the tomatoes to form a row.
- Below the broccoli, place the red, yellow, and orange bell pepper slices to form a row that extends in width just slightly beyond each side of the broccoli row.
- Below the bell peppers, place the green bell peppers, cucumber slices, and snap peas to form a tight row that extends just slightly beyond each side of the bell pepper row.
- Stack the carrot slices below the green veggie row, in the middle, to form the tree trunk. Serve with dairy-free spinach dip, smoked salmon artichoke dip, or hummus.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is a general estimate. Actual nutrition details may vary depending on the exact foods & brands you use to make this recipe. It does not take into account any substitutions, toppings, or optional ingredients.
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This post is sponsored by FoodSaver. All opinions, photos, and recipes are my own.
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