Vegetable appetizer "New Year's tree" with cheese dipping sauce

Ingredients:

Deep

• 170 g of cream cheese, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 2 tbsp. prepared horseradish
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice + 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp granulated garlic
• 0.5 cup finely chopped fresh chives
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

Vegetables

• 1 large head of broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 small head of cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 piece (5 cm) cucumber + half-moon pieces for decoration
• 1 orange or red bell pepper, cut into strips and cut into stars with a small cookie cutter
• Grape tomatoes for garnish

Preparation:

1. Dip sauce:

   
   In a food processor, combine the cream cheese, sour cream, horseradish, lemon juice, lemon zest, granulated garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and black pepper to taste. Blend until smooth. Transfer the sauce to a medium bowl and stir in the chives and parsley. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
   
2. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil and prepare a large bowl of ice water. Add the broccoli to the boiling water and blanch until bright green and crisp-tender, 2-3 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to the ice water. Repeat with the cauliflower. Drain the vegetables thoroughly and pat dry.
3. To assemble the tree, create a triangle of broccoli florets in the center of a serving platter. Place a cucumber slice, skin-side up, at the base of the tree (this will be the trunk) and scatter cauliflower on either side. Decorate the tree with tomatoes, cucumber slices, and bell pepper strips and stars, placing one star on top.