Your guests will get a bang out of your Fourth of July party when they sample this flower-basket buffet. It’s easy, elegant and will be the highlight of the day’s celebrations.
Flower-Basket Buffet
This edible centerpiece is a garden salad buffet no one will forget.
You will need:
- 1 large (18×23”) wicker flower basket
- Plastic wrap
- Paper towels
- Florist wire
- Romaine or leaf lettuce and curly endive
- Cauliflower and broccoli
- 2 large red cabbages, cut into wedges
- Several large green peppers
- Carrot sticks
- Radishes, mushrooms, cucumbers, and tomatoes
- Green onions
- Flowerpots
- Tape
- Seed packets (optional)
- Salad dressings
Assorted salad bar toppings (corn, peas, breadsticks, croutons, etc.) Line a large wicker basket with plastic wrap and paper towels. Prepare vegetables. Cover the bottom and outer edges of the basket with lettuce and endive to make a green frame and backing. Arrange the vegetables, starting at the back of the basket and working toward the front.
Tie groups of green onions to the basket handle with the florist’s wire. Serve the vegetable basket with an assortment of salad bar toppings and dressings in flowerpots lined with plastic wrap. Fold plastic wrap over the edge of the pots and secure with tape. For a whimsical touch, tape real or hand-made seed packets to the ends of serving spoons.
To serve, place several sharp knives and pairs of kitchen scissors around the basket. Guests can snip off greens and trimmings onto their own salad plates, and add other toppings and dressings. A flower basket never looked prettier or tasted better. Serves 15 to 20.
