Have the luck of the Irish on your side with this beautiful board of delicious green snacks sent to us by our friend Chelsea LeBlanc, Registered Dietician. It’s fun, easy, and a great way to treat the whole family! Celebrate a healthy St. Patrick’s Day with Pure Flavor® and loads of delicious green snacks.
St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner and I think that it’s a perfect time to celebrate the holiday with some tasty green snacks! Not only are green fruits and veggies packed with essential nutrients, but they can also help you create a festive and delicious snack board that your guests will love. In this post, I share some of the reasons to eat those greens and tips on how to create a St.Patrick’s Day snack board that is both healthy and festive.
Get Your Greens –
Green-colored fruits and veggies are packed with essential nutrients like Vitamins A, C, and K, as well as folate and other minerals like calcium, potassium, and iron. And since green foods are so nutrient-rich, including them in your diet can help keep your heart healthy, boost your immune system, and aid in digestion. Plus, all those antioxidants in greens are great for your skin, too!
Although I used Pure Flavor® Mini Cucumbers on my board – other great green options are Uno Bites™ Nano Cucumbers which are small and super crunchy or even slices of Solara™ Mini Melons that are crisp and juicy. Since they are made up of 95% water, Cucumbers in particular are super hydrating which helps replenish the electrolytes we lose throughout the day. Also, unlike other vegetables that might leave an aftertaste in your mouth, cucumbers contain properties that eliminate bad breath bacteria simply by eating them! Having greenhouse grown fruits and veggies available all year round makes creating recipes for every holiday super easy – not to mention delicious!
So, let’s get started on creating your DIY snack board for St. Patrick’s Day.
Choose Your Board and Pick Your Snacks –
The first step is to choose the right board. You can use a wooden cutting board, a platter, or even a large baking sheet. The key is to choose a surface that is large enough to hold all your snacks, and that has enough space for your guests to graze.
When it comes to St. Patrick’s Day, the color green is key. So, focus on snacks that are green or have a green theme. Some good options include:
- Green fruits and veggies like kiwis, grapes, green apples, cucumber, celery, green bell pepper, and sugar snap peas
- Green dips and spreads like guacamole, spinach dip, Chimichurri, and pesto.
- Green crackers or chips, pea crisps, kale chips, pistachios
Here are the ingredients I used in my DIY Snack Board:
- Pure Flavor® Mini Cucumbers
- Green Bell Pepper
- Sugar Snap Peas
- Green Grapes
- Pistachios
- Pea Crisps
- Green Crackers
- Guacamole
- Herbed Tahini Sauce
Pro-Tip: Add some dark chocolate squares for an extra sweet little treat!
Arrange Your Snacks –
Once you’ve gathered all your snacks, it’s time to arrange them on the board. I made a shamrock out of green bell pepper & half of a Pure Flavor® Mini Cucumber and placed this in the center of the board. Place your larger items on the board first like your bowls of dips and nuts. Then, fill in the gaps with your smaller items like fruits, veggies, and crackers. Don’t be afraid to play around with the arrangement until you find a layout that works for you.
You could add some St. Patrick’s Day decorations to make your snack board look even more festive. Maybe a few shamrock decorations or scatter some gold coins around the board. You could even add some greenery like clover or eucalyptus to make it look even more beautiful and fill in any gaps.
Now that your DIY snack board is complete, it’s time to serve and enjoy! Encourage your guests to try a little bit of everything and mix and match different flavors. By focusing on healthy and delicious green snacks, you can create a snack board that is both festive and nutritious.
~ Chelsea
