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Skip the store-bought platters and make this Santa veggie tray instead! Itโs a healthy and delicious way to add a little extra holiday cheer to all of your Christmas get-togethers.
Getting in your daily dose of veggies doesnโt have to be boring! For more nutritious appetizers that everyone will love, try this veggie charcuterie board, honey soy mushroom skewers, or balsamic honey grilled Brussels sprouts!
Santa Claus Veggie Tray
Say goodbye to those boring premade veggie platters, this Santa veggie tray is the best healthy appetizer for the holidays! Not only does this veggie tray look adorable, but it has a variety of fresh, delicious vegetables with all kinds of flavors and textures! Thereโs something for everyone. Complete with some creamy homemade hummus for dipping, your guests wonโt be able to get enough. Itโs the perfect way to tide over friends and family before the entree is served!
The great thing about making your own veggie trays is that you can customize them however youโd like! I love dipping veggies in hummus. (It also works perfectly as Santaโs face!) But feel free to serve your veggie tray with things like guacamole, ranch dressing, blue cheese dressing, or this tasty whipped feta dip! When I serve this veggie tray, I like to serve up lots of little bowls of dips. This way, thereโs a flavor for every craving! Trust me, this Santa veggie tray will be a hit with even the picky eaters in your family!
Letโs Start With the Board!
For this Santa veggie tray, youโll need a rectangular serving board or cutting board. You want to make sure itโs long enough to fit Santaโs beard! If you donโt already have one, hereโs a recommendation for you!
Acacia Wood Serving Board
The perfect rectangular serving board. The acacia wood finish looks great on any dinner table!
Everything You Will Need to Make a Santa Veggie Tray
Here is everything I used to put this Santa vegetable tray together! Feel free to mix and match veggies however youโd like! Just make sure youโre using nice, fresh vegetables since theyโre the star of the show. You can find how much I used of each ingredient below in the recipe card.
- Hummus: This is for dipping the veggies in. (And also acts as Santaโs face.) Homemade is always best! Find my quick and easy recipe here.
- Bell Peppers: I used red bell peppers, sliced thin, for Santaโs hat.
- Mozzarella Pearls: Because who doesnโt love some cheese! I used mozzarella balls the size of cherry tomatoes to add as the fur lining of Santaโs hat.
- Cauliflower Florets: These act as Santaโs beard.
- Cherry Tomato: Cut this in half to use it as Santaโs button nose! Grape tomatoes will also work.
- Large Black Olives: Olives are a must-add for any veggie board at my house. My kids love putting them on their fingers! Youโll want to save a couple to use as Santaโs eyes.
- Sliced Cucumber: Not only is cucumber tasty, but it has the perfect Christmas green color!
- Sugar Snap Peas: More green for your Santa veggie tray!
- Crackers: I love adding crackers to veggie boards to switch up textures. Use your favorite kind here!
- Celery: No veggie tray is complete without celery!
How to Make a Santa Face Veggie Tray
Step one, start with the face! Iโm using regular hummus as Santaโs face. (I have a great recipe for homemade hummus here!) When deciding where to place the hummus on your board, be sure to leave enough room for both the hat and the beard.
- Start With Hummus: On a large rectangular board, spread the hummus on a 6 inch plate. Then place it in the middle of the tray.
- Create the Shape of the Hat: Next, add the bell pepper strips into the hat on top of the hummus plate. Add mozzarella balls at the end of the hat and then around the top of his face. (The lining of his hat.)
Making a Beard With Cauliflower Florets
Use smaller pieces of cauliflower for the eyebrows and top of the beard. Then reserve the bigger pieces of cauliflower for the bottom of the beard where itโs extra fluffy! Here youโre also going to use olives, half of a cherry tomato, and piece of sliced red bell pepper to craft Santaโs face.
- Making Santaโs Face: Start creating the beard-like shape with layers of cauliflower. Add a strip of bell pepper to make his lips, then a cherry tomato for the nose and two black olives for the eyes. Use small pieces of cauliflower for the eyebrows and mustache.
Making Arms and Assembling the Rest of the Santa Veggie Tray
Now that youโve got the shape of Santaโs face, beard, and hat done, weโre going to make some arms and fill in the rest of the board! For the arms, youโre going to use the rest of the sliced red bell peppers as well as olives for the cuffs of his sleeves.
- Create Arms, Fill in Board With Cucumbers: Fill in the sides of the board with sliced cucumbers, bell pepper sticks for the arms and black olives for the bottom of the arms.
- Add Remaining Ingredients: Fill in the rest of the board with small mozzarella pears, sugar snap peas, crackers and celery.
More Veggie Dips
Fresh veggies are amazing, but a good dip really makes them shine. Ranch dressing is always a must! Hummus is also a great option and is quickly becoming my favorite thing to serve with any veggie charcuterie. Here are a few more tasty dips to try out with your Santa veggie tray. Your guests will love the variety!
Other Fun Christmas Recipes
Celebrate the most wonderful time of the year with these other festive recipes! Theyโre perfect for all of your holiday gatherings! Not only are they super easy to make, but absolutely scrumptious, too! For more Christmas inspiration, find my full list of themed recipes here.
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Santa Veggie Tray
Ingredientsย
- 1 recipe hummus
- 2 red bell pepper sliced thin
- Mozzarella Pearls cherry tomato sized
- 1 head cauliflower florets
- 1 cherry tomato halved
- 2 15 ounce can large black olives, drained
- 1 cucumber sliced
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- crackers of choice
- 2 celery stalks cut into sticks
Instructionsย
- On a large rectangular board, spread the hummus on a 6 inch plate. Place it in the center of the board.
- Next, add the bell pepper slices into the hat on top of the hummus plate. Add mozzarella balls at the end of his hat and around the top of his face.
- Start shaping the beard with the cauliflower. Add a strip of bell pepper to make his lips, the cherry tomato for the nose and two black olives for the eyes. Use small pieces of cauliflower for the eyebrows and mustache.
- Fill in the sides of the board with sliced cucumbers, bell pepper sticks for the arms and black olives for the bottom of the arms.
- Fill in the rest of the board with small mozzarella pears, sugar snap peas, crackers and celery.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
