Learn how to make a beautiful and delicious Rainbow Fruit Tray complete with a pot of gold and cupcake clouds! This is a fun St. Patrick's Day or rainbow-themed party snack for kids, school, or a celebration at home with family and friends.
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This fruit platter shaped as a rainbow is an easy and fun St. Patrick's Day appetizer or snacking board. It's great for school parties, a dinner party with friends, or a low-key night at home with your family, just like our lucky charm muddy buddies and green St. Patrick's Day cupcakes are.
It takes about 20 minutes to put together and there is no cooking- yay! We're simply preparing fruit and putting snacks and dip into bowls to arrange on the charcuterie board. Making fun charcuterie boards like this are a great way to get your kids involved- and to hopefully eat their healthy fruits!
More Holiday Snack Platters
Ingredients and Supplies
You need an assortment of fresh fruits in all (or most) colors of the rainbow, a sweet dip and serving bowl for the pot of gold, mini vanilla cupcakes to use as clouds, and gold chocolate coins. To fill up the board, I also add a "sun"- a yellow bowl of rainbow goldfish.
This rainbow fruit tray uses these types of fruits:
- Raspberries
- Mandarin oranges
- Mango
- Green grapes
- Blueberries
Of course you are not limited to these and can use your favorite fruits in a rainbow of colors depending on seasonal availability and preference.
More Fruit Ideas
Red: strawberries, watermelon slices, cherries, red grapes
Orange: cantaloupe, peaches, clementines and other types of oranges, kumquats
Yellow: bananas, pineapples, mango, golden kiwi
Green: green kiwi, green apples, honeydew
Blue/Indigo: blackberries
Purple: purple grapes
How To Make A Rainbow Fruit Tray
STEP 1: First, wash the fruit, dry it, and cut large fruits into slices.
STEP 2: Arrange the bowl for the "pot of gold" on the board first, in the bottom corner. On the adjacent corner, add a few vanilla cupcakes, where the rainbow of fruit will end. Place the bowl for the sun in one of the top corners.
STEP 3: Arrange the rainbow of fruit between the pot of gold and cupcakes. Start at the bottom with the purple fruit and work your way up.
STEP 4: Fill in any gaps with gold chocolate coins and more cupcakes.
Then serve and enjoy!
Tips For Making A Rainbow Fruit Platter
Make the best of a your rainbow fruit platter by keeping these things in mind:
- Gather and prepare all of the ingredients first to save time.
- Invest in a few good wooden charcuterie boards in various shapes and sizes if you plan to create snack boards often.
- Consider the ages of guests and make sure foods are appropriate (such as avoiding choking hazards like grapes for young kids).
- Decide on the dip you'll use first and choose fruits that go well with it.
- Avoid foods that can cause allergic reactions, such as nuts.
It's best to arrange this rainbow fruit platter immediately before serving, as you don't want the fruits to become mushy or browned. To prepare the day before, wash, dry and slice the fruits but store them separately in airtight containers in the fridge. This way you're ready to arrange the board right before serving for the best quality.
Because fruits turn brown when their enzymes come into contact with oxygen, you want to lessen the amount of time fruit is exposed to air to keep it from browning. Some ways to do this are:
Store in an airtight container: this reduces the amount of oxygen that comes in contact with the fruit, slowing down the browning process.
Cover the fruit: if you don't have an airtight container, you can also cover the fruit tightly with plastic wrap to prevent air exposure.
Keep it chilled: fruits like berries and grapes can be stored in the refrigerator to keep them fresh and prevent browning.
This depends on a few factors, such as the duration of the gathering and the ages of the guests. Let's assume the guests are kids- if you're serving the fruit tray as a snack, plan for around ½ cup of fruit per child. If it's one of the only items on the menu, plan for about 1 cup of fruit each. It's always a good idea to have some extra fruit on hand in case you want to fill the board up again.
If you have leftovers from the tray, follow these guidelines for storing:
To prevent the fruit from drying out or becoming contaminated, cover the fruit tray with plastic wrap, aluminum foil, or a tight-fitting lid. Place the covered fruit tray in the refrigerator to keep it fresh. Most fruits will last for 2-3 days when stored properly in the refrigerator.
Moisture can cause fruit to spoil quickly, so be sure to keep the fruit dry by placing a paper towel in the bottom of the tray or using a slotted tray that allows excess juice to drain off.
Some fruits release ethylene gas as they ripen, which can cause other fruits to ripen and spoil more quickly. To prevent this, store fruits that release ethylene gas separately from other fruits. For example, keep apples, bananas, and pears separate from grapes, berries, and citrus fruits.
Recipe
Rainbow Fruit Tray
Ingredients
- 2 cups raspberries
- 3 oranges, peeled and sliced
- 2 mangos, peeled and sliced
- 2 cups green grapes
- 1 ½ cups blueberries
- 12 mini vanilla cupcakes
- 2 cups sweet dip, chocolate, vanilla, etc.
- chocolate coins
Instructions
- Wash the fruit, dry it, and cut large fruits into slices.
- Arrange the bowl for the "pot of gold" on the board first, in the bottom corner. On the adjacent corner, add a few vanilla cupcakes, where the rainbow of fruit will end. Place the bowl for the sun in one of the top corners.
- Arrange the rainbow of fruit between the pot of gold and cupcakes. Start at the bottom with the purple fruit and work your way up.
- Fill in any gaps with gold chocolate coins and more cupcakes.
Notes
More Fruit Ideas
Red: strawberries, watermelon slices, cherries, red grapes Orange: cantaloupe, peaches, clementines and other types of oranges, kumquats Yellow: bananas, pineapples, mango, golden kiwi Green: green kiwi, green apples, honeydew Blue/Indigo: blackberries Purple: purple grapesNutrition
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Sharon says
What a fun way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! Kids and adults alike will love this fruit tray.
Colleen says
I love this fun, but healthy fruit tray idea. I know the kids are going to love it too. Thanks for sharing.
Jacqueline Debono says
What a fun and healthy ides for a party! This fruit tray would make a fabulous dessert for a summer meal. Pinning for later!
Jamie says
Wow! My kind of board looks so delicious! Plus it's a board of healthy stuff and the color makes it so enticing and tempting! Will definitely make this for the family! Loved it!
Dani says
This was perfect for a baby shower. Everyone loved the presentation
Mindy says
Made this for my niece birthday party and her eyes lighted up at the sight on it. Great idea! Thank you!
Amy says
I made this fun St. Patrick's Day board for one of my personal chef clients. They were going to a party and wanted something everyone would love. They said it was a hit!
Karen Kelly says
This is absolutely gorgeous and so much fun for kids. I love how much fruit you've included and what kid wouldn't eat fruit when it looks that good!
LaKita says
This rainbow fruit tray is fun, colorful, and loaded with so many delicious foods to nibble on!