Name: Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Tray Recipe and Homemade Ranch Dip
Prep time: 45 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: ⅔ cup buttermilk; ¼ cup light mayonnaise; 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce; ½ teaspoon onion powder; ½ teaspoon dried onion flakes; ¼ teaspoon garlic powder; 1 Tablespoon chopped chives; 1 Tablespoon chopped dill; 1 Tablespoon chopped parsley; salt and pepper, to taste; 1 green bell pepper (sliced into strips); 1 red bell pepper (sliced into strips); 1 yellow bell pepper (sliced into strips, except cut off the bottom to use as the turkey face); 1 orange bell pepper (sliced into strips); 1 pound baby carrots; 1 head broccoli (cut into florets); 1 English cucumber (sliced); 6 ounces black olives (1 can); Your favorite vegetables that you want to include; Candy eyeballs or "googly" plastic eyeballs

With Turkey day right around the corner, it is time to break out our Thanksgiving turkey vegetable tray recipe and homemade ranch dip. Not to mention it makes for a great vegetable turkey centerpiece!

Who doesn’t love a great Thanksgiving turkey vegetable tray recipe and homemade ranch dip? It is a one-of-a-kind platter that you, your family, and all guests will love.

You can make it up the night before you need it if you have room in the fridge or chop everything ahead of time and place it all on the platter the day of. Either way, it is one of the more simple holiday vegetable trays that does not require any baking.

It is probably one of the more kid-friendly recipes that the kids can dig into while they are waiting for the feast to start. I always love having our setting out so it is ready to go and people can munch on it as the day goes on.

And don’t forget that this is an easy healthy appetizer that you can put together and be sure everyone will like. For more easy trays like this one, take a look at our Vegetable Dill Dip Recipe, Easy Mediterranean Dip Recipe, or even change it up with something like our Big Game Day Treats and Family Friendly Charcuterie Board.

Vegetables needed to make Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Tray Recipe and Homemade Ranch Dip

Ingredients You Need to Make Our Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Tray Recipe and Homemade Ranch Dip:

Buttermilk
Light mayonnaise
Worcestershire sauce
Onion powder
Dried onion flakes
Garlic powder
Chopped chives
Chopped dill
Chopped parsley
Salt
Pepper
Green bell pepper slices
Red bell pepper slices
Yellow bell pepper slices
Orange bell pepper slices
Baby carrots
Broccoli, cut into florets
English cucumber slices
Black olives
Any other vegetables you like
Candy eyeballs or “googly” plastic eyeballs

How To Make Our Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Tray Recipe and Homemade Ranch Dip:

When you are ready to assemble your vegetable turkey tray start by making the homemade ranch dip.

Ingredients for Homemade Ranch Dip in a small bowl

Get out a medium mixing bowl and pour in the buttermilk, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, onion flakes, garlic powder, chives, dill, and parsley and whisk it all together.

Once you have all the put in, sprinkle in some salt and pepper to your taste, whisk it together and then pour it into a small bowl.

Place the small bowl at the bottom of the tray to use it as the body of the turkey.

Then take one of your bell peppers and slice off the bottom to use it as the turkey’s face and put it near the top of the bowl.

Platter with bell peppers creating a turkey face

For the beak, take an orange bell pepper and slice it into a triangle and place it on the bottom of the bell pepper, and then place two of the candy eyeballs to complete the turkey face.

Now wash and cut all of your vegetables and dry them off.

Fresh vegetables sliced and displayed as feathers for the Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Tray and Homemade Ranch Dip

Then begin to start assembling the turkey by arranging the first layer of “turkey feathers” along the outer edge of the platter.

NOTE: To create the best shape for the turkey, it would be best to use a large circular plate or platter.

Now, continue layering the vegetables in a rainbow shape or half circle, making sure to overlap the vegetables to make them look more like the feathers of the turkey. Add olives as a filler or a contrast half circle.

Thanksgiving Vegetable Tray Recipe and Homemade Ranch Dip

Keep making the layers until you reach the turkey body aka the vegetable dip bowl!

Close up of Thanksgiving Turkey Vegetable Tray Recipe and Homemade Ranch Dip

Then either carefully wrap the turkey veggie tray with plastic wrap or serve it right away and enjoy!

To Make this Thanksgiving Side Dish You Will Need:

Large circular platter (one like THIS would be great!)
Medium mixing bowl
Small serving bowl
Knife
Cutting board

How to Make Homemade Buttermilk

I’ll be honest, I’ve never been one to always have buttermilk on hand. So, if you didn’t plan on needing buttermilk, or the store was out, rest assured you can always make your own!

Actually, once I realized I could make my own buttermilk with Tastes Better from Scratch’s recipe, I stopped buying buttermilk altogether. You can make it with everything you already have at home.

What is Normally on a Vegetable Tray?

You can choose what vegetables you want to serve based on what you like or what you think others will like. Here is a list of the vegetables we like to serve on our vegetable trays:

Bell peppers
Chopped broccoli
Grape or cherry tomatoes
Carrots
Snap peas
Cucumbers
Pickles
Sliced radishes
Cauliflower

Should You Peel a Cucumber for a Veggie Tray?

Often times people will peel part of the cucumber on a veggie tray. But honestly, that is more based on looks rather than out of necessity. So you can choose which you like better.

Leaving the skin on the cucumber will add more color and fiber, but if you prefer cucumbers without the skin, then I would suggest doing what you like best.

How Do You Cut Broccoli for a Vegetable Tray?

For broccoli, you will want to cut them into smaller, bite-sized pieces. I also like to leave a little bit of the broccoli stalk on too to give people to hang onto when they are dipping the broccoli into your homemade ranch dip.

Should You Peel a Cucumber for a Veggie Tray?

To make this recipe even easier you can just buy your favorite veggie dip and use that in place of the homemade ranch dip. While I love this ranch dip, Thanksgiving can be crazy busy, and buying the dip might make your life easier and that is awesome.

Want More Easy Dinner Ideas?

Join our email list today and we will send you a FREE ebook of our favorite dinner recipes – plus we will send you recipes each week to help make your dinner planning easier!

Join today by CLICKING HERE.

Have you checked out our YouTube channel? We show you how to make our favorite recipes right in our own kitchens!

Our latest cookbook – Six Ingredients with Six Sisters’ Stuff – is all about using a few ingredients to make a delicious dinner! With only 6 ingredients or less per recipe in this cookbook, cooking has never been easier!

Six Ingredients with Six Sisters' Stuff Cook Book

Whether you are a cook just starting out or a busy parent looking to save time in the kitchen, this cookbook is for you! It’s full of entrees, side dishes, and desserts.

We are so excited to share these recipes with you. Order your copy today!

SIX INGREDIENTS with Six Sisters’ Stuff <—– Click here to order!

Love cooking as much as we do? Join our FREE private Facebook Group: Six Sisters’ Dinner Club!

Pick Out Your Favorite Thanksgiving Side Dishes:

You Can Never Have Enough Tasty Dip Recipes to Serve or Bring During the Holidays. Give These a Try!

Serves: 6