Making Food More
Appetizing
By Nikki Willhite
www.allthingsfrugal.com
One of the first things you learn in home economics is that food
needs to look appealing. Even the simplest of food can look more appealing with
the use of color. Have you ever served a dinner with food all the same color?
Picture a plate of macaroni and cheese, corn, and applesauce. Does it seem
enticing?
Yet these are all great foods. They are just put together wrong.
Macaroni and Cheese needs bright greens or reds served with it to make it look
delicious. Picture that same plate of macaroni and cheese with bright orange
carrots and a green salad. It is much more appetizing.
This is why colorful herbs like parsley are used to garnish
plates of food that you order in restaurants. While we may not want to spend the
money on these garnishes, we can take into consideration the color of our food
when planning our meals.
One of my children's favorite foods is finger jello. It is a
great snack because you can take it to the park and it doesn't melt. (It is also
listed on my "Recipes" Link).
One way to give a lot of color to a plate is to set up 3
different colors of it. Then you cut it into small squares, and place one of
each on the plates. Don't worry about the leftovers. They will be devoured! Here
is the recipe for Finger Jello.
Ingredients for Finger Jello
4 packages unflavored gelatin
1 and 1/2 Cups jello (any flavor/flavors mixed together)
Mix the gelatin and jello together in a rectangular pan (approx
13x9). Bring the water to a boil, pour it into the jello powder, and stir until
dissolved. (My family likes the bottom crunchy- so I stir less). After it cools
to room temperature, put in the refrigerator for it to harden (approximately one
hour).