This cute turkey veggie tray is the perfect fresh appetizer for Thanksgiving! It’s a great healthy option that’s so fun to make with kids.
This post is sponsored by BUBBL’R.
Turkey Veggie Tray
I love including a fresh vegetable option at any get together, and that’s especially true during the holiday season.
As much as I love all the special holiday foods, they’re all really heavy, and it’s nice to have a light and fresh finger food option.
You could just make a regular vegetable tray, but I think it’s just so much more fun to make a festive veggie turkey platter!
I’ve partnered up with BUBBL’R to bring you this fun and festive Thanksgiving appetizer. I love enjoying it with a cold can of their cranberry grapefruit sparkl’r. It’s the perfect energizing and refreshing drink to sip while you prep the Thanksgiving feast! You can find out where to buy BUBBL’R here.
How to Make a Veggie Tray that Looks Like a Turkey
It might look a little intimidating, but I promise this platter is actually really simple and fun to assemble!
Start by making two rows of the cucumber rounds. They look the best when you overlap them, so make sure you have enough slices to do that.
I sliced mine with a food processor, and I think it made a big difference. All of the slices were the same thickness and the cuts were flat, which really helped.
Next, you’ll make a half circle of baby carrots, followed by half circles of yellow and red bell peppers.
Scoop the dip into half of a green bell pepper and assemble the features with the red bell pepper bottom, the candy eyes, the carrot beak, and the carrot legs. I like to use a little bit of the cheese dip as a glue to hold the eyes, beak, and legs in place.
After you’ve assembled the turkey body, fill in the extra space between the body and the bell pepper slices with the broccoli florets.
There are a few features that make such a big difference in how the platter looks.
The first is the candy eyes, if you can find them I’d definitely buy some for this recipe.
The second is the red bell pepper bottom that’s used for the face. If you can find one that has a bottom made up of three relatively even circles, it will look better once it’s all assembled.
The last one is the carrot details. I cut the tip off of one and notched out a piece to make the beak. For the legs I cut one carrot in half lengthwise, then notched out a few triangles to make the feet, and cut along the inner line to make the legs skinnier than the feet.
Can You Make this Platter Ahead?
Definitely! You can make and assemble the entire platter up to one day in advance. Just be sure to wrap it tightly with plastic wrap.
Alternatively, you could slice all the veggies up to two days in advance and assemble the entire tray right before serving.
Veggie Tray Dip
If you’d prefer to serve this vegetable tray with a dip instead of the herb goat cheese spread, I’d recommend any of these. They’d all taste great with it!
- Ranch Dressing
- Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Cauliflower Hummus (for a low carb option)
- Chipotle Sauce
- Tzatziki
- Green Goddess Dip
If you opt to serve this with a sauce or dip instead of the herb goat cheese spread, can I recommend using the spread with toasted slices of baguette? It’s incredible as a spread for bread and it’s a great way to use up any leftovers you have.
I’d love to hear what you thought of this recipe in the comments or on Instagram! @KeyToMyLime #KeyToMyLime
Click here to pin this recipe for later!
Turkey Veggie Tray
This cute turkey veggie tray is the perfect fresh appetizer for Thanksgiving! It’s a great healthy option that’s so fun to make with kids.
Ingredients
Veggies:
- 1 English cucumber
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 medium bag baby carrots
- 1 crown broccoli
- 2 candy eyes
Goat Cheese Dip (Optional):
- 6 ounces soft goat cheese (room temperature, roughly 170 grams)
- 1/3 cup diced parsley, basil, and chives (the exact ratio of the mixture is up to you, but these are my favorite herbs for this dip)
- 2 Tablespoons minced shallot
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste)
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (cold, use only 1/3 cup if you prefer a stiffer consistency)
- 1 pinch fine sea salt (optional, I like a slight addition of salt, but it isn’t necessary)
Instructions
Veggie Platter:
- Wash and dry the vegetables. Cut the bottom of the red pepper off and set aside (this will make the turkey face). Slice the cucumber into rounds and the red and yellow pepper into thin strips. Cut the top off of the green pepper and scoop out the insides (you may have to cut off a little bit of part of the bottom to get it to sit level).
- Cut one carrot in half lengthwise and then cut each half into a leg shape. Cut the end off of another carrot and then cut a notch out to create a beak shape.
- On a medium to large platter, arrange the vegetables. Start with two rows of the cucumbers, then a row of carrots, then the red and yellow peppers, and finish with a row of broccoli. Scoop the dip into the green pepper and place it on the bottom center of the platter. Arrange the red pepper face, the carrot beak, the carrot legs, and the candy eyeballs. Since the goat cheese dip is relatively thick, I like to use it as a glue to hold the eyeballs, legs, and beak in place.
Goat Cheese Dip:
- In a medium bowl, mix together the goat cheese dip ingredients. Taste, and adjust salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
You can make this platter up to one day ahead, but you’ll need to wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and store it in the fridge (this won’t work if your fridge tends to freeze things the back of it because you’ll end up with frozen cucumber). Alternatively, you can slice the veggies up to 2 days in advance and then arrange them just before serving.
If you want a lighter option, you can skip the goat cheese dip and make a dipping sauce instead! I also love this with ranch, cilantro lime sauce, hummus, and chipotle sauce.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size:
1/20Amount Per Serving: Calories: 61Total Fat: 4.1gCarbohydrates: 4.2gNet Carbohydrates: 2.7gFiber: 1.5gSugar: 2.4gProtein: 2.5g
Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
Try making this turkey veggie tray for the perfect fresh and healthy Thanksgiving appetizer!
5 thoughts on “Turkey Veggie Tray with Cheese Ball Dip”
print please
Hi Kim, To print the recipe, there is a “print” button within the recipe card (just underneath the thumbnail sized picture). Hope that helps! -Alexa
So easy and beautiful on a large oval platter. I used cream cheese to anchor 2 black beans for the eyes and a store bought artichoke spinach dip. Thank you!
Great idea! No need for me to look for/buy candy eyes. I also like the idea of a store bought artichoke spinach dip. (I also like the original recipe).
Made it. I peeled the cuke skin off. It was a huge hit.