We Have the Dirt on One of Actress Busy Philipps' Favorite Appetizers

Country Living

Cougar Town star Busy Philipps attended the Hollygrove Norma Jean Gala in Beverly Hills recently, and this crudité display caught her eye. She declared the rows of fresh veggies in edible soil the "cutest crudité display."

This garden-to-table creation comes from the creative team at Schaffer's Genuine Foods (SFG) in Venice, California. And they don't stop at the display. The team, outfitted in garden gloves, dishes the dirt-and veggies-using a trowel, and homemade dressings are poured out of watering cans. Lucky for us, Kathleen Schaffer from SFG shared the dirty little secret for making the tasty "soil."

Plus: 12 Awesome Asparagus Recipes »


Here's how to cultivate your own edible garden:

Ingredients
Dehydrated oil cured black olives
Garlic
Panko
Candied lemon zest
Fresh thyme
Fresh oregano
Calabrian chili flakes
Puffed wild rice (this requires a deep fryer at 500ºF)
Assorted fresh vegetables for "planting"

Directions

1. Mix minced garlic, herbs, olive oil, chili flakes, candied lemon, salt, and pepper with panko.

2. Spread the mixture out on a Silpat or parchment-lined baking tray and toast until golden brown.

3. Dehydrate olives for 24 hours or until crispy.

4. In a Robot Coupe (or other commercial-grade food processor), pulverize bread crumb mixture and olives until it is the consistency of top soil.

5. Fry wild rice at 500ºF until it puffs.

6. Add fried wild rice to top soil.

Note: Kathleen says that this olive bread crumb dirt is difficult for home cooks to master because a food dehydrator and commercial fryer are necessary, but she says that mixing dehydrated olives into the breadcrumb mixture and drying the concoction in a low 175ºF oven for a few hours until its crunchy should do the trick. She also suggests substituting the fried wild rice for puffed rice.


Tell us: What's the most unique appetizer display you've ever seen?


See more from CountryLiving.com:

Our Ultimate Guide to Kitchen Decorating »
40 Amazing Before-and-After Home Makeovers »
5 Easy Skillet Chicken Recipes »
20 Smart Ways to Save on Groceries »

Become a fan of Country Living on Facebook and follow our pins on Pinterest!

Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc.