Discover the joy of creating a Fruit Christmas Tree – a festive, edible centerpiece perfect for the holiday season! Easy to assemble and delightfully decorative, this guide offers step-by-step instructions to build a stunning tree using fresh fruits like strawberries, kiwis, grapes, and more.
Last year, we celebrated with a Veggie Christmas Tree, but this year we’ve sweetened the holidays with an all-fruit version! Initially a fun project for my kids, I soon discovered my patience (and slight OCD) didn’t quite match their enthusiastic, albeit chaotic, approach. But together, we’ve crafted something truly special.
Drawing inspiration from my days at a flower shop, where creativity knew no bounds (from Mickey Mouse made entirely of flowers to fruit-sculpted designs), we created this entirely edible Fruit Christmas Tree. It’s a delightful mix of kiwis, strawberries, oranges, grapes, apples, and melons.
How To Make A Fruit Christmas Tree
In keeping with all-things-edible, this Fruit Christmas Tree is completely covered in fruits. Apart from all the fruit that you can see, what you are going to need is an unpeeled orange, a sturdy plate, a carrot, and a lot of toothpicks. As you work on it, remember that the beauty of this tree is in its creativity and homemade charm. Have fun with it and enjoy the festive spirit it brings!
- Base: Start with an unpeeled orange, sliced at both ends, and stick a long carrot in the center of the orange. Set it on a sturdy plate.
- Construction: Insert toothpicks or skewers at an upward angle into the orange and carrot.
- Decoration: Add fruits to the toothpicks, filling gaps with smaller fruits.
- Finishing Touches: Adorn with fresh parsley stems for garland, stick fresh rosemary leaves in between the fruits and top with a melon star.
Recipe Tips And Variations
- Choosing the Right Base: Use a firm, large fruit like an orange, a pineapple, or a melon as the base of your tree. This will provide stability.
- Structural Support: For the internal structure, you can use a combination of a large carrot and skewers or sturdy toothpicks. The carrot can be inserted into the base fruit for added stability, and the skewers can be arranged in an upward and outward direction to create the tree shape.
- Fruit Selection: Choose a variety of colorful fruits for visual appeal. Berries, kiwi slices, grapes, and melon balls work well. Consider the weight and size of the fruit; heavier fruits should be placed at the bottom, while lighter, smaller pieces can go towards the top.
- Cutting and Attaching Fruit: Cut fruits into shapes that are easy to skewer and attach to the tree. You can use cookie cutters for fun shapes like stars or hearts. Attach the larger pieces first and then fill in gaps with smaller pieces of fruit.
- Adding Greenery: Use fresh herbs like parsley or mint to add greenery and fill any empty spaces. This will give your tree a more authentic and lush look.
- Topper: For the tree topper, a star-shaped piece of fruit, like a slice of starfruit or a star-shaped melon piece, makes a great choice.
- Stability: Make sure your tree is balanced as you go along. Too much weight on one side can cause it to topple.
- Keeping It Fresh: If you’re not serving the tree immediately, brush the cut fruit with lemon juice or cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate to keep it fresh.
- Decoration and Serving: You can sprinkle the tree lightly with powdered sugar for a ‘snowy’ effect. Serve alongside yogurt or a chocolate dip for extra deliciousness.
Easy Holiday Recipes
- Raspberry Jam Puff Pastries
- White Chocolate Cheeseball
- Peppermint Mocha Fudge
- Cranberry Brie Puff Pastry Pinwheels
Fruit Christmas Tree
Ingredients
- 1 large orange, trimmed at the top and the base; do not peel
- 1 long large carrot
- 4-inch long skewers
- grapes, red and green
- strawberries
- orange or mandarin segments, peeled
- kiwi, peeled and sliced
- fresh blackberries
- apples, sliced
- melon, cut into star shapes
- fresh parsley stems or other herbs, optional
- powdered sugar, for dusting, optional
Instructions
- Slice the orange at the top and at the base and place it on a sturdy plate.
- Position the carrot in the middle of the orange and press it down into the orange.
- Start placing toothpicks or skewers into the orange and the carrot at an upward angle.
- Add the fruit onto the toothpicks and keep going until the tree is completely filled up. Fill any gaps with smaller fruits.
- Arrange the fresh parsley stems or herbs around the tree if using. You can also stick fresh rosemary leaves in between the fruits.
- Top the tree with one whole strawberry and a few raspberries, and place a melon "star" right above the strawberry.
- Optionally, sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.
Equipment
Notes
- The Base: Choose a sturdy and large fruit, such as an orange, for a stable base. Slice off the fruit’s top and bottom to create flat surfaces, ensuring it sits securely on the platter.
- Fruit Selection: Choose a variety of colorful fruits and pat them dry with paper towels.
- Cutting and Attaching Fruit: Cut fruits into shapes that are easy to skewer and attach to the tree. Attach the larger pieces first and then fill in gaps with smaller pieces of fruit.
- Adding Greens: Use fresh parsley, rosemary, or mint to add greenery and fill any empty spaces.
- Topper: A star-shaped melon piece makes a great choice for the tree topper.
- Stability: Make sure your tree is balanced as you go along. Too much weight on one side can cause it to topple.
- Storage: If you’re not serving the tree immediately, brush the cut fruit with lemon juice, cover the tree with plastic wrap, and refrigerate to keep it fresh.
- Decoration: You can sprinkle the tree lightly with powdered sugar for a ‘snowy’ effect.
- Serving: Serve alongside fruit dips, flavored yogurt, or a chocolate dip for extra deliciousness.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Nice IA photo!
Very pretty and creative for Christmas!
Such a cute idea! I love the snow effect! xo Loren // http://www.thinkelysian.com
That is so cool, my kids would have a blast helping me make this!
Such a great idea. Healthy and easy. This would be totally fun to do with the kids!
This looks amazing! I love how you showed up step by step pictures!
Too cute and such a perfect idea for Christmas!
This is awesome! So creative, and yes, spend that hard-earned cash elsewhere! Merry Christmas to you and yours!