Whether you are hosting a party or are invited to bring a dish to a gathering, it’s so easy to go the same old stuff you know or can pick up at a store. But aren’t you tired of the same old unimaginative stuff you see at all parties? Well, here is an idea! Put down that package of Knorr Vegetable Soup Mix and take something ordinary – like a crudité platter – and make it into something extraordinary that will WOW everyone. Here are some tips:

When I make a vegetable platter, I try not to use the same old carrots, cauliflower, celery, blah, blah, blah, boring. Or if I use common vegetables, I cut them in a different shape or use individual containers to make it look more interesting. For example, instead of just slicing cucumbers into rounds, I cut them lengthwise into quarters. (This works best with smaller cucumbers like the Persian variety.)

Some of the vegetables I like to use are jicama, blanched asparagus or green beans, endives, lettuce leaves, radishes, different colored bell peppers, and sliced fennel. If I use carrots, I get the multi-colored variety and cut them lengthwise. It’s all about the ingredients you use and how it’s presented.

I hope you get inspired by these photos and make your own amazingly fabulous crudité platter. And please take pictures of your creation and share them with me in the comment section below. I would love to see them.

Now go get your creative juices flowing!

Note: For the individual cucumber crudité in the second picture, I hollowed the cucumber and put the dip on the bottom.

Variations:

The possibilities are endless. go wild!

Do Ahead:

Most vegetables can be cut/sliced one day ahead.