A Spectacular Deli Basket For A Super Bowl Or Any Other Party

We all know how to put some deli meats and cheeses on a plate, or open a jar of olives and some pickles and set them in bowls. Think about making these things into a beautiful basket of stunning design that will amaze all your friends whether at a Super Bowl party or any other function.

What You Will Need

You will need a 9 or 10 inch basket or bowl, at least 3 inches deep, wood or plastic toothpicks, about 25 or 30 bamboo skewers 6 to 10 inches long, a flower petal cookie cutter is optional. A crinkle cutter can make carrots or other vegetables look more interesting, but it is not necessary. A head or two of iceberg lettuce and some curly kale leaves will fill the basket and be the base of this arrangement.

Foods to make the skewers can be salami slices, ham or turkey slices, cheese slices like provolone or Colby that will roll without breaking. Vegetables such as radishes, cucumber, cherry tomatoes and carrots can be used to make designs. Scallions can be made into curls. Other vegetables like zucchini can also be used. Relish condiments like small gherkins, baby corn, pickled asparagus, black, green and Kalamata olives are also good.

Prepare the Basket

Line your basket with plastic wrap to contain any liquid. If using a bowl, this is not necessary. Cut off a slice from one of the heads of lettuce and set the cut side down in the basket or bowl. Cut wedges from another head of lettuce to set in around the edges and fill in the spaces. Cover the lettuce with the curly kale leaves and set aside.

Make Meat and Cheese or Veggie Flowers

With a scalloped edge cookie cutter cut out flower shapes from some cheese slices. Lay out a slice of a deli meat and set a flower cut slice of cheese slightly above the edge of the meat. With a bamboo skewer, spear a gherkin through one end. Lay this onto the meat and cheese and roll the meat and cheese into a cone shape around the skewered gherkin to make it look somewhat like a calla lily. With a toothpick, skewer the meat into place. Repeat this with other meats and cheeses and vary the center skewers with asparagus or baby corn. Then set them aside.

When cutting a cucumber into spears, first cut off each end about 1 1/2 inch deep, then with a melon baller, hollow the center of these ends, so a small cherry tomato will fit inside, looking like a flower. Put a toothpick through from the bottom of the cucumber cup, holding the tomato in place.

Make Olive or Cherry Tomato Towers

Simply place a line of black olives, green olives, Kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, or combinations of these onto several of the bamboo skewers.
If you are handy making roses from radishes, do that. If not, slice off the top and bottom, and then cut little strips from the sides so the radish looks striped. Skewer with a toothpick, or line up more than one on a longer skewer.

Assembly

Once all the skewers are made, begin inserting them into the basket, anchoring the kale in place. Use taller skewers in the middle of the arrangement, tapering down to mostly shorter ones at the edges. If the arrangement will face only one way, use tallest skewers towards the back of the arrangement and taper down to shortest in front. Filler pieces can be carrot strips crinkle cut into long spears and skewered with a toothpick. Zucchini spears, cucumber spears or even longer pickle spears can be used in the same way. Scallions can be cut to make scallion curls and added for visual interest. Pretzel sticks can be broken off at one end, a toothpick inserted and used to fill in.

Take a little time and be an outstanding MVP guest.

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. I hope it was informative and helped you along your own culinary journey. You will find many more recipes and helpful tips on my web site. I am on Facebook at A Harmony of Flavors and share a recipe or tip each day to the fans that have liked my site. I hope to see you there soon.