A Rainbow of my Own by Don Freeman was first published in 1966 but I didn’t have the pleasure of discovering this book until recently. Growing up, I loved the Corduroy books by Freeman but had never really read any of his other writing. A Rainbow of my Own makes me want to run out and buy every book he has written! In this short, enchanting book, a young boy sees a rainbow and runs outside to try and catch it. When he realizes that the rainbow always remains just beyond his reach, he imagines what it would be like to have a rainbow to play with. The boy imagines playing leap frog, sliding, and swinging with his imaginary rainbow before it eventually disappears like a real rainbow. Upon returning home, the boy sees a rainbow projected on the wall of his bedroom from the light refracted through his fish bowl and realizes that he now has a real rainbow of his own! This book is a colorful, playful depiction of the power of children’s imaginations and imaginary play. Freeman perfectly captures the precious years when a child is able to completely lose themselves in their imaginary world.
With St. Patrick’s day coming up next week, I wanted to feature a rainbow-themed recipe for the holiday, inspired by A Rainbow of my Own. I decided to try for a healthy rainbow recipe that would be appropriate for parties or gatherings, full of flavor, but not full of sugar. This rainbow vegetable platter is the perfect combination of vibrant color and zesty flavor in the form of a healthy snack. The purple potato chips add a fun crunch while the Sun Dried Tomato Hummus and Greek Yogurt Chive Dip are new twists on hummus and ranch dressing. Of course, you could use any combination of colorful vegetables in this platter. I will include a list below of vegetables to use by color, but I would suggest at least trying the purple potato chips: they are so delicious and fun to eat!
Colorful Vegetable Ideas
Red
- Red bell pepper
- Cherry tomatoes
- Radishes
- Red potatoes, steamed, roasted or made into fries
Orange
- Orange bell pepper
- Carrot sticks
- Cubes of cooked squash
- Sweet potato fries
Yellow
- Yellow bell pepper
- Cubes of cooked yellow summer squash
- Steamed yellow beans
- Cubes of cooked golden beets
- Baby corn
Green
- Green bell pepper
- Steamed green beans
- Snow peas
- Sugar snap peas
- cucumber spears
- Steamed broccoli
- Romanesco green cauliflower
- Kale chips
- Celery sticks
- Steamed or roasted asparagus
Purple
- Purple potatoes, steamed, roasted or made into chips
- Steamed or roasted Purple Cauliflower
- Radicchio lettuce leaves
- Cubes of steamed or roasted beets
- Purple peppers
- Purple carrot sticks
Rainbow Vegetable Platter + Two Dips
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add a large pinch of Kosher salt and stir to combine then add the green beans. Blanch the green beans for just 1 minute in the boiling water before draining and rinsing immediately with cold water to stop them from cooking further.
Arrange the cut up vegetables in a rainbow pattern on a large platter or tray, leaving room for the purple potato chips on one end. Fill two bowl or jars with the hummus and yogurt dip and serve alongside the vegetable platter.
Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Using a sharp knife or a mandolin, thinly slice the potatoes into round coins. Add the sliced potatoes to a large bowl and toss with the olive oil and salt. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a large sheet pan. It is important for the potatoes to be a in a single layer and not overlap or they will not get crispy, so use two pans if needed to fit them all.
Roast the potatoes in the preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are crispy and beginning to brown on the edges, but not yet burnt. It's a little tricky to get these chips just right so they are not mushy or burnt. I would suggest checking them after 10 minutes, then checking every 2 minutes until they look just right. Let the chips cool on the pan for about 10 minutes before scraping the chips off with a metal spatula.
Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, lemon juice, tahini, garlic cloves, salt, and paprika to the bowl of a food processor the pitcher of a blender. Blend the ingredients together for about 30 seconds until they begin to form a paste. Continue to blend the ingredients while streaming in the olive oil and water until the hummus forms a smooth texture. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Add all the ingredients to a medium mixing bowl and whisk together vigorously until well-combined. Chill until ready to serve. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Ingredients
Directions
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add a large pinch of Kosher salt and stir to combine then add the green beans. Blanch the green beans for just 1 minute in the boiling water before draining and rinsing immediately with cold water to stop them from cooking further.
Arrange the cut up vegetables in a rainbow pattern on a large platter or tray, leaving room for the purple potato chips on one end. Fill two bowl or jars with the hummus and yogurt dip and serve alongside the vegetable platter.
Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Using a sharp knife or a mandolin, thinly slice the potatoes into round coins. Add the sliced potatoes to a large bowl and toss with the olive oil and salt. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a large sheet pan. It is important for the potatoes to be a in a single layer and not overlap or they will not get crispy, so use two pans if needed to fit them all.
Roast the potatoes in the preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are crispy and beginning to brown on the edges, but not yet burnt. It's a little tricky to get these chips just right so they are not mushy or burnt. I would suggest checking them after 10 minutes, then checking every 2 minutes until they look just right. Let the chips cool on the pan for about 10 minutes before scraping the chips off with a metal spatula.
Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, lemon juice, tahini, garlic cloves, salt, and paprika to the bowl of a food processor the pitcher of a blender. Blend the ingredients together for about 30 seconds until they begin to form a paste. Continue to blend the ingredients while streaming in the olive oil and water until the hummus forms a smooth texture. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Add all the ingredients to a medium mixing bowl and whisk together vigorously until well-combined. Chill until ready to serve. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
