Preschoolers lovesquirting this basil cream cheese into hollowed-out cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices. Use room-temperature cream cheese for best results.
Ingredients
1 8-oz. package softened cream cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped basil leaves
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Cucumbers and cherry tomatoes
Fresh dill (optional)
Directions
KID'S COOKING SKILLS:
Use this recipe as an opportunity to teach your kids how to use a melon baller and pastry bag and how to creatively serve crudités.
In a small mixing bowl, stir the cream cheese until smooth. Add the chopped basil, garlic, and Parmesan, if desired, and stir until thoroughly combined. Set aside.
Score the sides of a cucumber, if desired, with a zester, potato peeler, or sharp knife. Next, cut the cucumber into 1-inch-thick rounds and delicately scoop out the seeds with a melon baller. Slice off the tops of the cherry tomatoes with a serrated knife and scoop out the insides with the baller.
Fill a pastry bag, fitted with a star tip, with the cream cheese. If you don't have a pastry bag, fill a resealable freezer bag with cream cheese and snip off a small hole in the corner. Squirt the cream cheese through the bag into the hollowed-out cucumbers and tomatoes. Garnish with sprigs of fresh dill, if desired, and serve immediately.
Makes 1 cup of cream cheese, enough to fill 30 vegetables.
