Peachy the Magazine August September 2014 | Page 70

On the Go with Valerie Rice
Photo: Evan Janke

CRUDITÉS WITH
GREEN GODDESS DRESSING

Making your platter pretty:
Prep your veggies by cleaning them
well with cool water (I use a scrub
brush). After cleaning, dry well and
slice with a sharp knife into bitesized pieces. I like to keep about two
inches of stem intact on my carrots,
turnips and radishes for easy dipping—think of it as a little handle. If
you’re dealing with larger produce,
slice it in half but still keep that stem
on for dipping.

Two simple and seasonal appetizers were
served for our 12 guests—a simple crudités platter with green goddess dressing
and one passed appetizer of gluten free
crackers with Bellwether ricotta, grilled
peaches, fresh mint and a dusting of za’atar. 

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Once the veggies are prepped, my
favorite method is to mound each
vegetable up on a platter all together
in blocks of colors like a color wheel.
For example, to make a pretty mound
of carrots I hold a bunch of carrots in
my hand, all going in the same direction, then literally drop them onto
the dish, allowing them to land naturally—if they get too scattered squish
them together to create a heap on the
plate. I’ll repeat the same method for
the other vegetables in the wheel.
This creates symmetry, but also gives
the platter a little personality and an
organic feel. You don’t want them to
be too perfect, you want it to feel like
a fresh from-the-garden bounty.