Learn how to make a beautiful vegetable platter with pro tips, easy recipes, and presentation strategies. Perfect for healthy snacking & entertaining!
How to Make a Stunning Vegetable Platter (Tips, Recipes & Health Benefits)
Want to impress guests or upgrade your snack game with something fresh, colorful, and healthy? A beautifully arranged vegetable platter—also called a crudité board—is the perfect centerpiece for any gathering. Learn how to make a stunning veggie platter, complete with expert tips on styling, prepping, and pairing, easy dip recipes, and the many health benefits of raw vegetables. Whether you’re hosting a party, prepping for the holidays, or just craving a vibrant plant-based snack board, this guide will help you create a gorgeous, delicious, and nutritious spread every time.
Have you ever seen the most outrageously gorgeous vegetable platter, and wondered in awe how the creator achieved this pinnacle of culinary aesthetics? If you’re nodding your head yes, then I want to let you know that I’m right there with you. I have seen such artistic creations at restaurants, brunch bars, party tables, weddings, and outdoor picnics. These abundant platters of beautiful vegetables—miniature carrots, candy-colored beets, unusually colored squash, exotic produce—displayed in a variety of settings, including marble slabs, rustic barnwood, and earthen pottery, seem to haven fallen off a Dutch master’s painting easel. They are not only lovely to look at, but these vegetable platters celebrate seasonal produce, and healthy, plant-based eating. That’s why I asked some of my favorite food and nutrition experts to weigh in on their best advice on how you can create a vegetable platter to remember. I’m sharing some of my own expert tips, too! Check out these food hacks, and plan on serving a veggie platter at your next event.
8 Tips to Create the Best Vegetable Platter
1. Create Color Combinations
Turn to Mother Nature’s amazing array of colorful produce to paint your veggie platter with vibrant hues. “When I make veggie platters, I like to lean in to a diversity of color and variety. My guests are always delighted when they see a unique array of veggies, such as purple carrots, heirloom tomato slices, artichoke hearts, and rainbow radishes. Couple these colorful veggies with a simple house-made dukkah-spiced olive oil, and it will be the highlight of the party,” says Chris Vogliano, MS, RD of Forward Eating. “I put together 3 different colorful vegetables on mini skewers. I’ll either assemble them on a platter or throw into shooter cups. It’s so easy and the crowd is always wowed!” Wendy Kaplan, MS, RDN, CDN of Food 4 Health RD.
2. Lean in to Kid-Friendly Creations
Dial in to children’s love of color, crunch, and interaction with an enticing veggie platter. “When I’m teaching kids’ cooking classes, I often start off with a healthy snack. The kids love my colorful edible rainbow made out of vegetables. Cauliflower florets become the clouds, and I serve a dip in the middle,” says Liz Weiss, MS, RDN, of Liz’s Healthy Table.
3. Showcase Dips
Remember, a stunning vegetable platter just isn’t the same without an enticing dip to add flavor and creaminess to this crunchy crudités. “For me it’s all about the dips! Hummus, guac, ranch, salsa, yogurt dips – I want them all!” says Kelli Shallal, RDN of Hungry Hobby. Check out my lineup of delicious healthy dips here.
4. Pile on the Veggies
5. Add Some Fruits, Too
Don’t forget to add the sweet stuff to your veggie tray, such as berries, stone fruit, pineapple, and grapes. “Upgrade your basic veggie platter by thinking outside the V and adding some F! Yep, fruits make a beautiful accompaniment to your basic veggie tray and provide an assortment of delicious nutrients. Intermingle fruits with veggies and create space with little bowls filled with nuts and other textures of produce, like dried, roasted. You can even add a finishing touch by having a variety of flavored oils to dip in! The possibilities are endless with the timeless veggie tray!” says Elizabeth Shaw MS RDN CLT CPT of Shaw’s Simple Swaps.
“Vegetable platters can be really exciting and unique when paired with unexpected tastes, which is why I love to grill vegetables and drizzle them with an easy topping, like salsa verde. With fresh ingredients and a unique flavor profile, this is a great way to encourage people to eat more vegetables and showcase different ways to enjoy seasonal produce,” says Patricia Bannan, MS, RDN. “With a few exceptions, I don’t really enjoy raw vegetables. Carrot sticks and celery with ranch just feels like filler food to me – not something I’m excited to eat! When I make a veggie platter, I love to grill my vegetables first. My recipe for a grilled vegetable platter with two homemade dipping sauces always gets devoured when I make it for parties or holidays. When you put a little effort into making vegetables taste good, people actually want to eat them!”, says Rachael Hartley, RD, owner of Rachael Hartley Nutrition.
7. Think Beyond the Basics
“I think it’s always important to build a veggie platter with the basics as a base. But then have fun from there. Go to the grocery store and pick up bright-colored, interesting veggies that you’ve never tried and add them to the arrangement. Also, think outside-of-the-box when it comes to how you present the veggies. They don’t all need to be served raw. For example, marinate and grill planks of bell peppers, zucchini and summer squash. Or quick pickle some mushrooms or cucumbers. Or add some marinated onions. And be sure to have plenty of fun dips – not just hummus and ranch! Think bean dips or dips made with nut butters or seed butters. Really, the options are endless!” says Sara Haas, RDN, consultant culinary dietitian and author based in Chicago, IL.
8. Assemble Your Veggies Thoughtfully
Take your time and create your own personal masterpiece! “Putting together a gorgeous veggie platter is an important hosting skill. If they look irresistible, then guests are more likely to enjoy them. They’re a much lighter, more nutritious appetizer or snack than so many other options and they’re fun to grab and snack as people are socializing–the perfect party food. One thing that’s critical for a good vegetable platter is making sure that you have a large variety of different veggies that are cut to appropriate sizes. Make sure that cauliflower or broccoli pieces aren’t too large for one bite, which can be difficult for guests to navigate while they’re mingling. A unique veggie like jicama or endive can actually serve as a topic of conversation and help people discover new favorite varieties. And finally, make sure that you have a flavorful dip. Use fresh herbs and spices to increase flavor that complements a variety of fresh veggies. You don’t need to buy dip; they’re so easy to make on your own and can be whipped up in minutes before a party,” says Seattle-based registered dietitian Ginger Hultin, Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetic, owner of Champagne Nutrition.
