Veggie Bugs

Ladybugs, butterflies, glowworms — oh my! Use your culinary imagination to chop, pipe, and decorate a delicious springtime snack: Veggie Bugs! Kids will adore this fun, hands-on recipe, and they might discover a few favorite foods along the way. Feel free to follow along step by step or invent your own garden-inspired veggie creations!

Makes:

4 servings

Hands-on time:

20 minutes

Start-to-eat time:

30 minutes

Ingredients

4 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 English cucumber, cut in rounds
1 carrot, cut in rounds
2-3 large strawberries, thinly sliced
½ cup cherry tomatoes or grapes, halved
½ cup blueberries or grapes, halved
1 kiwi, cut into rounds
3-6 sprigs chives, cut in half
⅓ cup cream cheese or hummus
⅓ cup almond butter, or nut butter of choice

Kids kitchen skills:

chopping
piping
creative presentation

Tools:

measuring cups
knife & cutting board
spatula
serving plate
2 piping bags or resealable sandwich bags
kitchen scissors

Step-by-step

Grown-up steps: Kids will need support chopping, slicing, and using the piping bags. This recipe is a great chance to be creative, and see where your fun foodie imagination takes you!

Add the cream cheese and almond butter into separate small reusable bags or piping bags.
Place the pieces of celery on a serving plate. Cut off the tip of the plastic bag with the almond butter and the cream cheese, and pipe your choice of filling into the center of each celery wedge.
Next, make the bug’s head by placing a cherry tomato or grape at the edge of the celery stalk.
To make antennae, place a slice of chive on each side of the bug’s head.
Then pipe two small dots of cream cheese or almond butter on top to create the eyes. Place small pieces of cucumber or carrot for the pupils.
Next, make the bug’s body, by placing either a cucumber round, carrot round, or kiwi round in the middle of the celery.
To make the wings, affix cucumber half-rounds to each side of the bug’s body, or place two strawberry slices on each side of the celery. See what other fun animal friends you can make!