Tag: VEGGIE TRAIN

ALL ABOARD!

Being so close to New Year’s Eve, everyone is starting to think of their New Year’s Resolutions. In 2017 (see footnote below) the most popular New Year’s resolution was to get healthy. I think everyone will be getting on the Healthy Train again this 2018 New Year’s Eve.

So think of this for the New Year’s Eve Party! It’s super simple, a little time consuming, but everyone will love to jump on the Train that’ll kick start healthy choices in 2019.

So ALL ABOARD the Veggie Train. Last week I made a veggie train for a friend’s grandchildren’s birthday party. It was a huge hit with parents and children alike. Amazingly so, the broccoli was actually replenished more often than anything else.

The Track itself was a bit of a challenge. Previously I’ve used black liquorice rolls and Twizzlers, but this time that didn’t happen. Drawing a track with markers on heavy paper was also a no-go. In the end, cutting and pasting thick chalkboard paper was the answer. This track is now under wraps for future use.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

  • Black Chalkboard Paper (available at craft shops or even Dollarama)
  • Stapler & maybe a little glue
  • Veggie Dips (I used store bought Hummus, Blue cheese & Spinach)
  • 2 large cucumbers (the sturdy ones, not English cukes)
  • 1 package small Cucumbers (they come in packages of 6 or more)
  • 2 Dikon
  • 2 green peppers with stem attached
  • 2 red peppers with stem attached
  • 2 orange peppers with stem attached
  • 2 yellow peppers with stem attached
  • 6 cherry tomatoes
  • bag of radishes
  • Carrots
  • Celery
  • Broccoli
  • Cheese Sticks
  • Rosemary twigs
  • Parsley
  • Chives
  • Olive oil
  • Arugula sprouts
  • Blue cheese
  • Toothpicks

Start by preparing your veggies, I prefer to start with the peppers so I know how many wheels, I’ll need in total.

When cutting put the flattest side down and cut each pepper so that it has good support for your veggies. The stem will be the visual to connect your train cars. Only cut 1 of the green cars like this, the 2nd can be lopped with no back, it will be your caboose.
Preparing the wheels by peeling and slicing the dikon. Slice the small cucumbers, and slice tips off the radishes for the wheel hubs. Insert the toothpicks at a slight angle to keep a tighter grip on the pepper, this will also give you more space for the cargo.
Here’s how I prepared the engine. I actually bought 2 cucumbers (my margin for error) . I used a melon baller to carve out the engineer’s cabin and to hold the smoke stacks. Use bamboo skewers to hold the pieces together and then cut off the ends that stick out.
You need to carve out the cabin overhang or it will look like this. You want all your skewers and tooth picks hidden as much as possible. Once this is done you can add your wheels, I used the bigger pieces of cucumbers to give the engine more power!

I prepared the train cars and the engine, then sealed them in plastic bags. Put a sheet of paper towel in the bag and it will absorb any excess moisture during storage. Keep them in the fridge until you’re ready to go. They can be transported like this and you can just load up the pepper cars when you get to your friends place.

Prepare the veggies that you like and make sure they are long enough to stand in the pepper cars. These can also be stored until you’re ready to serve.

These cheese sticks were a big hit with both the kids and the adults. Next time I’ll add a pepper car with Pepperettes or maybe sticks of Sopressa so there’s more protein on the Train
The dips can also be dressed up! Add some chunks of Blue Cheese (I prefer the Danish type) to the Blue Cheese dip and some chopped parsley. Grate some Carrots over the Spinach Dip and with a spoon make a little dent in the Hummus, pour some Olive Oil into the dent and add some Arugula Sprouts for that special touch.
When you get to the party, load up the Pepper Cars with all the veggies you love! Place the dips in the centre (cereal bowls are a good size for this tray). I used some place-card clips to hold sprigs of Rosemary (trains do travel through forests). Tie strands of Chives and toss them around, here and there on the track. Alternate the Pepper Cars so that the colours are assorted. I also set cards to celebrate the event (this time it was Indy and Quin’s Birthday party …. twins )

YEAR’S RESOLUTION IS TO HELP MY FRIENDS GAIN 10 POUNDS SO I LOOK THINNER! Thanks for being here, now I’ve got to run, and show some properties on this gorgeous Saturday, nice way to end off the year!

(Footnote) According to NBC news and the data pulled from Google by iQuanti, (pulled from Jan-Oct 2016 Google search terms) 62,776,640 searches, a 13.77 percent increase over last year during the same time period, when it was searched 55,177,290 times.