HOW TO: Strawberry Topiary Tree

Monday, May 3, 2010

HOW TO: Strawberry Topiary Tree

I bought too many fresh strawberries...one of my first lessons learned in cooking for large groups. I'm getting better at purchasing food...but those strawberries looked so fresh (and were so cheap) I couldn't resist. I was inspired by a Paula Dean episode where she made this pretty little strawberry tree. She made it look so easy. It was a different story for me, since I was unable to find a topiary tree with a base, dowel already secured, and a foam floral fixture on it. So I had to make one. Lucky for you, if you find yourself in the same situation, here's how to do it.

Materials:
1 flower pot
Long floral picks OR dowel (for the "trunk" of the tree)
1 circular Styrofoam piece to fit inside base of pot
1 Styrofoam cone or ball (I used a cone)
Glue gun or StyroGlue
1 bag of river rocks, or moss or whatever filler you want to use
Ribbon

For the Tree:

Fresh strawberries (about 3 packages) if you are able to hand select, try and get uniformly shaped strawberries

Sturdy tooth picks

Fresh bunch of mint or lemon leaves (who has those?)

Directions:

Start with gluing the circular Styrofoam piece down into the base of the flower pot. Secure. Take floral picks (if using, take around 6 or 7) and stab center of circular foam to create a "trunk". Glue around base of the trunk to secure. Tie a ribbon above the trunk. Insert the Styrofoam cone or ball on tip of the dowel or picks. Push down. Fill pot with rocks or whatever filler you choose. Lost? Here's a snapshot:

PHOTOS BY VIRGINIA LEE

I let it sit overnight to make sure all the glue was dried before starting in on the strawberries. To attach the strawberries, I recommend starting at the bottom and working your way up. I tried to use strawberries of the same shape throughout the tree, but if you have some bigger ones, I think they work best at the bottom of the tree. Insert the toothpick at a downward angle and stick the strawberry on. Move around until the top. I put in an upside down strawberry at the very top of the cone. Take the fresh mint and insert it in any "holes" throughout the tree. If you have the time, you can also dip the strawberries in chocolate as an added treat. But the strawberries I selected were sweet enough without the chocolate. Here's the final product: