While cheese boards and charcuterie platters are always appreciated, no matter what the season, there’s nothing more vibrant, fresh, and colorful than a spring crudités platter. If you’ve been around the Mixin Mamas website very much, you probably already know we love a good food platter of pretty much any kind!
There are so many variations on a spring or summer veggie platter that you can make. Swap things in and out and more vegetables come into season to make it the freshest and most appealing crudites tray you could possibly put together.
How To Easily Assemble a Spring Crudités Platter
What Does Crudités Mean?
Crudités is a French term that describes appetizers of sliced raw veggies that are generally accompanied by a dipping sauce. They are an easy and delicious platter to assemble when spring and summer roll around.
Springtime produces some of the crunchiest, most colorful, and most nutritious vegetables that are perfect for munching on without having to cook them in any way, shape, or form. What could be easier?
Freshness Counts
The key takeaway when assembling a crudités platter is found in the word “fresh.” And while what I’m about to suggest may seem time-consuming, consider the payoff when you bite into any veggie you choose to include as well as view your artfully and freshly arranged platter.
The fresh component I’m referring to is taking the time to manually cut all your fresh vegetables yourself. That means don’t use those packaged baby carrots or any pre-cut veggies just because of convenience if possible.
That being said, I am not always up to cutting up all those veggies for a large gathering. So, I use a mix of some of the prepackaged vegetables along with some standout fresh superstars. That balance is a nice way to save some time while still giving your guests something special.
Our Favorite Crudités Platters
Spring Vegetables To Include On Your Crudités Platter
Here’s a short list of vegetables that are perfect to include. Choose at least 4 or 5 to include to give your platter visual and textural interest.
- Radishes- there are a variety of spicy and crunchy radishes you can include on your platter. If you can find the tri-colored bunch that has red, white, and purple radishes, those always make a colorful variety of these bite-sized veggies. Sometimes you can even find the variegated or striped variety.
- Carrots – Here’s a non-negotiable vegetable that, in my opinion, should absolutely be sliced fresh. Peel the carrots and slice them into sticks that are easy to pick up with your fingers.
- Celery – Here’s another vegetable that deserves to be freshly sliced. You want your water-based celery sticks to be moist, crunchy, and flavorful, not dry and resembling shredded wheat.
- Cucumbers – If you have homegrown or farmer’s market cucumbers that are non-waxed, feel free to slice them with the skin left on, otherwise, I suggest peeling them before slicing.
- Asparagus – Be sure to break or cut your raw asparagus spears into shorter stalks and discard the reedy ends. To eat asparagus raw, I like to use thinner stalks rather than thick ones.
- Cauliflower – Break or cut your cauliflower into small florets.
- Broccoli – Cut fresh broccoli into florets, taking care to leave just enough of a stem on them so that you don’t produce broccoli “crumbs” when cutting into florets.
- Cherry Tomatoes – These small orbs of juiciness are always appreciated. If you find the small heirloom tomatoes in a variety of colors, those are excellent to include, as well.
- Bell Peppers – Slice these in stick form.
- Lettuce Wedges – You can use simple iceberg lettuce and cut them into bite-sized wedges that are easy to spear with a toothpick or appetizer fork.
Our Favorite Dip Bowls
Sauces And Dip Ideas
I like to include small spoons in the dips and sauces so that the guests can spoon them out and onto their appetizer plates. Of course, if you’re serving this informally for your family, this might not be an issue.
Hummus – Roasted Garlic Hummus Recipe Here
Honey Mustard Sauce
Ranch Dip – Homemade Ranch Seasoning Mix Recipe Here
Cream Cheese Onion Dip
Tzatziki Dip
Green Goddess Dressing
Spinach Artichoke Dip
How To Assemble The Platter
- Choose a tray, platter, or serving board large enough to hold all the ingredients.
- Place small bowls of the dips and/or sauces on the platter.
- Arrange the veggies around the bowls. I like to keep the veggies in their assigned groups, such as all the carrots are grouped together, all the celery together, etc., as I add them to the platter.
Our Favorite Accessories
Accessories
Make sure you have small plates, toothpicks, forks, and napkins on hand so your guests can easily spear the bite-sized veggies.
Serve your gorgeous crudité platter and don’t be surprised to receive rave reviews!
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