Fruit Kabob Turkey

I found this super cute fruit kabob turkey idea via Pinterest (of course) and immediately knew I wanted to attempt it for Cruz's class Thanksgiving party. There weren't any step by step instructions, but after examining the picture I was able to formulate a plan in my mind. For anyone else who wants to try their hand at this adorable edible bird, here you go:

Ingredients/Materials:

1 honeydew melon

1/2 Bosc pear

2 small marshmallows

2 raisins (or blueberries)

2 red bell peppers

1 yellow bell pepper

1 orange bell pepper

small piece of block cheese

fruit of your choice for the kabobs

large marshmallows 

bamboo skewers (at least 16, but can do more for a fuller look)

toothpicks

Prep:

To stabilize the melon, first slice a small piece off one side to create a flat bottom for the melon to sit on. Next I sliced the bell peppers into strips, roughly 1-inch wide and halved the pear. My last prep step was to thread all the fruit onto the skewers so they would be ready for placement. 

To start, I inserted two toothpicks into the front of the melon at a 90-degree angle, then placed the pear onto them and pushed in to secure. The top part of the pear should be taller than the height of the melon. 

Next, I poked toothpicks into a row behind the head, spacing them evenly apart. Once they were placed, I put the bell pepper strips on to the toothpicks.

Taking shape

For the turkey's face, insert two toothpicks where you want the eyes, then stack on a small marshmallow and a raisin (or small blueberry) to finish off. I cut a small triangle of cheese and attached it with another toothpick. I trimmed another red pepper strip to create the snood, and put that on the side of the cheese beak. Voila! Look at that face! 

Such a whimsical face

For the next row of feathers, I cut off a section of several skewers to make them shorter and added the fruit. You could probably not cut the skewers and just insert them further into the melon but I chose to cut them. Using scissors, I cut more red peppers to make the feet.

Looking good already!

Now you can start adding rows of tail feathers with your fruit kabobs. Since I made this for a kindergarten class, I made one skewer for each child (25 total) so it was very full. You definitely don't need this many, and note that it can be a little back-heavy which might make it somewhat unstable.

Impressive tail feathers

Another angle

At this point, I put the entire creation in the fridge since I made it the night before the class party. I didn't wrap it or anything, and it was just fine the next day.

The following morning, I topped each of the long kabobs with a large marshmallow for a finishing look. The marshmallows are optional but I think they pulled it all together nicely, but you can get as creative as you want!

Gobble Gobble

The fruit turkey was a huge success with the kids, and I think it would make a showstopping centerpiece on any Thanksgiving table.