From start to finish, try these unique edibles to wow your guests at your next gathering

Stock image | St. George News

FEATURE — You can make your next gathering one to remember by including a few unique vegetables on the relish tray, as a side dish or for dessert. Your guests will be “wowed,” not only because you grew your own ingredients but because of the unique shape, color or flavor of the vegetables you serve.

Set the stage

The uniquely shaped mad hatter sweet red pepper, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of All-America Selections, St. George News

Create a memorable dining experience with attractive edible containers adorning the patio, balcony or deck. Include a few candle fire okra plants in large containers to create a tropical feel. The dark green leaves, hibiscus flowers and colorful red pods make a striking display in a container or garden.

Surprise guests with roasted candle fire okra and candyland red currant tomatoes. Roasting okra eliminates the slime that prevents many from eating this unique vegetable. And don’t discard any overripe pods, use them in flower arrangements to dress up any event.

DIY dinner

Allow your guests to harvest their own greens, herbs and cherry tomatoes to toss into their salads or to season their meal. Use prizm kale as a vertical dark green accent in your containers, then add a contrasting ornamental leaf lettuce like red sails, long lasting vibrant red kingdom mizuna (Japanese mustard) and edible flowers like calendulas, nasturtiums and pansies.

The new patio-choice tomatoes produce up to 100 yellow cherry tomatoes on an 18-inch plant. Plant it in a container for a splendid display, and then watch as guests harvest fresh tomatoes from your centerpiece.

You can also dress up the table, indoor or out, by using a few potted herbs as centerpieces. Include dark opal basil with dark purple leaves and compact dolce fresca in a simple container or more decorative pot to create a splendid display. Just place a pair of garden snips on the table and let your guests flavor their meals.

The pièce de résistance

Make any meal special with a bok choy frittata. Your guests will be impressed when you create this popular dish from your own homegrown ingredients. Asian delight pak choi, or bok choy, is slow to flower so you will enjoy season-long harvests. The mild flavored, tender white stems and textured dark green leaves look good in containers, in the garden and, when served fresh, in a salad, frittata or stir fry.

Stock image, St. George News

Serve a colorful platter of sliced tomatoes with the chef’s choice series of red, pink, orange, yellow and green fruit. The globe shaped beefsteak tomatoes have the perfect balance of acid to sugar. Their disease resistance, productivity, yield, flavor, color and performance made them winners in the nonprofit All-America Selections national trials.

Stuff a few of the uniquely shaped mad hatter sweet peppers with cheese. Your guests will enjoy the beauty and refreshing citrusy floral flavor of this three-sided red pepper. The vigorous plant produces an abundance of fruit, so you’ll have plenty to use in appetizers and salads throughout the growing season or pickled for future enjoyment.

End the evening with a surprise

Serve each guest their own watermelon for dessert. “Mini love” watermelon packs lots of sweet flavor into an individual sized fruit. You can also brighten their dessert plates with a slice or two of gold in gold. This eye-catching watermelon has a yellow rind with golden stripes, and its orange-gold flesh is crisp and sugary.

With just a little planning, you can plant unique and beautiful edibles in your garden and containers this season. Then find fun ways to include these in dishes shared at potlucks, meals for family and friends or as a snack to enjoy on a summer afternoon.

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