Basic French Crudités Appetizer Recipe

Name: Basic French-Style Crudités
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 2 cups carrots (cut into thin sticks); 2 cups red bell peppers (cut into strips); 2 cups asparagus spears; 2 cups celery (cut into thin sticks); 1 1/3 cups Vinaigrette dressing

Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 0 mins

Total: 10 mins

Servings: 8 servings

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When it comes to a simple hors d'oeuvre, a vegetable platter or crudités can't be beat. Often, it can be quite plain—a boring display of raw vegetables surrounding a bowl of ranch dip. This recipe, however, raises the bar, calling for the vegetables to marinate in vinaigrette overnight. This adds a layer of flavor, making the vegetables delicious on their own but also still welcoming to an accompanying dip.

This recipe calls for carrots, red peppers, asparagus, and celery, but feel free to swap in other vegetables. Using what is in season is always a good choice, as well as featuring a variety of colors and shapes for visual interest. Any oil-based salad dressing will work, whether it be bottled or homemade. Make sure to plan ahead as the vegetables need to sit in the vinaigrette overnight in the refrigerator.

2 cups carrots, cut into thin sticks
2 cups red bell peppers, cut into strips
2 cups asparagus spears, trimmed
2 cups celery, cut into in thin sticks
1 1/3 cups vinaigrette dressing

Gather the ingredients.
Keeping them separate, put the carrots, peppers, asparagus spears, and celery each into their own bowl.
Toss each vegetable with 1/3 cup dressing; cover and chill for at least 8 hours.
Remove the vegetables from the dressing and arrange them on a platter.
Serve cold and enjoy.

How to Assemble the Best Crudités

In addition to choosing vegetables that are in season and offering a variety of colors and shapes, there are a few other tips to follow to make the most appealing crudités. Try to use at least four different types of vegetables to offer a nice variety, and cut the vegetables into easy-to-eat pieces. Because this recipe is for marinated vegetables, you may want to offer some small forks alongside the platter.

Recipe Variations

To make it more tender to the bite, you can blanch the asparagus before placing it in the dressing.
If you use different vegetables that have a harder texture and may not be that pleasant to eat completely raw (such as broccoli and cauliflower), blanch or even roast them before placing them in the marinade.
Serve these crudités with a dip on the side. A traditional Provençal dip for vegetables is an aioli, but a rouille would be nice as well. You can also set a dish of good-quality Dijon mustard alongside the vegetables.
To add interest and to contribute a salty component, place a pile of cured olives on the platter.
To turn this into a summer meal, add cold, cooked shrimp or crabmeat.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
131	Calories
9g	Fat
13g	Carbs
2g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories	131
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 9g	11%
Saturated Fat 1g	6%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 438mg	19%
Total Carbohydrate 13g	5%
Dietary Fiber 3g	10%
Total Sugars 8g
Protein 2g
Vitamin C 64mg	319%
Calcium 40mg	3%
Iron 1mg	5%
Potassium 347mg	7%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.