Fruit Salad Froggie

Fruit salad is a basic attendee of brunch, bbq's, parties and gatherings and most of the time never gets a second look, this fun, easy, somewhat silly froggie makes fruit salad fun and festive.

Kids Birthday
Baby Shower
Summer BBQ
Brunch Buffet

Perfect for Fruit Salad Froggie!

Now hit the market, grab a tasty seedless watermelon, some limes, a nice dark plum and your favorite fruit salad ingredients.


FOOD STUFF:

1 Seedless watermelon
2 Limes
1 Dark plum

Fruit salad ingredients
I used mixed melons, grapes and pineapple this time, go with what is in season and looks fresh :D

Tip: If you use a fruit that oxidizes (apples, pears, peaches, bananas) toss them with some citrus juice before adding to the salad so they maintain their fresh appearance.

KITCHEN STUFF:

Nice sharp knifes for all sorts of slicing, dicing and carving (depends on your fruit choice)
Metal spoon
Large bowl
Melon baller
Toothpicks or appetizer forks
Cutting board
Platter
Serving spoon
Tupperware or gallon baggie

Start with your watermelon, find the bottom (which is most likely a little yellow, dented and dirty) and give it a slice, just enough to give it a flat bottom to stand on.

Now rotate your melon around on the cutting board and find the best place for the mouth, you may want to make sure an imperfection is in the back, or you might want to make sure it gets cut out.

Now take a nice big sharp knife and slice the melon vertically from about an inch forward from the former stem location, down to almost halfway down the melon.  Then make a second cut from the from the front of the melon back to the first.  This will leave you with a nice big melon wedge, set it aside, we will need it in a little bit.

Now snag your melon baller and get to scooping, make some nice pretty melon balls for your salad.  Then making sure you leave a layer of red for appearance clean up the rest with a metal spoon to leave a nice smooth cavity for your fruit salad.

You remember that melon wedge we set aside before?

Go get it.

Now here are your options, get your melon baller and get to work, carve out the melon with your knife... OR EAT IT.

I suggest that last option.

Now you should have a nice piece of watermelon rind, ready to be carved into froggie feet.

Cut the rind in half so you have two triangles, score some happy little webbed toes in the surface then very carefully carve them out.

Now take your little froggie head and your little froggie feet and set them on your platter.

Now get your fruits of choice, slice, dice, cube... whatever, until you have a nice tasty fruit salad.

If you used any fruit that oxidizes, make sure you toss it with some citrus juice ;)

Now mix up the salad a little and fill up your little froggie.  Put the salad that didn't fit in a tupperware or gallon baggie so you can be prepared with refills.

Now go get your limes and your plum.

Cut the bottoms off of your limes so they can stand up, then cut a slice off the front.

Grab your plum and slice an approximately equivalent slice off two sides.
(line up your plum slices and determine if you need to carve or trim any edges)

Now for the assembly, I used little appetizer forks I picked up at the dollar store,  I was all out of toothpicks, and apparently so was the local Dollar Tree.

Normally I use regular toothpicks and they are actually more effective.

Use your toothpicks to secure the plums to the front of the limes and then to attach to the top of the frog.

I used a pairing knife to cut a slit in the melon rind to make it easier to attach.

Feel free to eat the rest of that juicy sweet plum... it is calling you.

Now take your happy little froggie, with his happy little froggie feet and his little froggie eyes and give him a little froggie tongue. 
Put your serving spoon in the fruit and serve.  Got one with a red handle? That would be even more awesome.

Now isn't he not the cutest little guy ever?

Enjoy your fruit salad :D