Our crafty mama Holly always has something unique up her sleeve. This month, she’s hitting us with a two-part DIY tutorial for creating a cute, festive summer fiesta. From a tortilla flower dip holder this week to a truly clever decoration idea next week, Holly never ceases to amaze me!
Now, read on and get ready to wow your guests with this tortilla flower dip holder!
Can you feel it? The warm air moving in, the sun staying out a little longer each night, the familiar smell of your neighbor’s grill wafting over the fence…summer is just around the corner! Particularly in Texas, this season begins a few months early as we all take advantage of temperatures in the mid-80s during those last few weeks of May.
Fiesta has wrapped up in San Antonio and the margarita fog from Cinco de Mayo is starting to fade, but the fun is just beginning! There’s always room for another fiesta in your summer even if we do reach 110!
No party is complete in my book without chips and guacamole (and salsa and queso and pico…and more chips!), so I wanted to share a fun and simple way to display a few dips at your next get-together. You can go totally crazy with this! Get super detailed, add as many layers and elements as you can imagine, or even create a tablescape with three or four different flowers. Then again, if you have two toddlers at home and sixteen loads of laundry waiting to be folded, keep it simple and put this quick and easy version together during that next episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
Materials/Ingredients
– Large platter/basket/tray
– Parchment paper
– Glue gun/hot glue
– Assorted size/color tortillas
– Assorted greens
– Assorted color tortilla chips
– Grated cheddar cheese
– Toni’s Chunky Guacamole/queso/pico/dip of choice
First, line your platter with parchment paper if desired. This is not an absolute necessity, but it helps your flower move more easily and it also keeps your tray or basket from being stained or damaged. Then, set the lined platter aside.
Starting with one tortilla, gather a side as pictured to create a petal shape. Use glue sparingly to secure edges together and hold until fully set. Make sure glue does not come to surface of tortilla, and carefully remove any glue strings if present.
Repeat previous step until you have five complete outer petals. You can also layer a different color of smaller tortilla on top of each petal to make double-layered petals. If you have another episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse in your queue, of course!
Using green leaf lettuce, butter lettuce, radicchio or red cabbage, create a contrast layer of petals by laying one leaf over each tortilla petal. Remember that real flowers are not perfect and also that many other layers will be added, so don’t sweat it if the leaves are slightly flawed.
Actually, I’m going to take a moment here because you know what? I used to be a perfectionist. And secretly, I wish I still were. But slowly these past four years since starting my family, growing a business, and learning more and more about my true self, I’ve found so much happiness in not being perfect. Sure, I’d love to be, but some days I have to choose the much more genuine happiness that comes from being a good mom, a good wife, a good business owner, and a good person over the fleeting and artificial happiness that comes from being absolutely perfect at just one of those things. So screw it if my radicchio leaves aren’t straight out of a magazine. This is real life, folks!
Now back to business!
Add a mix of multicolored tortilla chips in a ring, leaving at least a few inches of the previous layer exposed.
Sprinkle a smaller ring of grated cheese toward the center of the flower, and finally top with your dip of choice. You can even use a small bowl or hollowed out bell pepper to contain queso or salsa.
I would love to see a cluster of these tortilla flowers in different colors and styles as the centerpiece of your next get-together! And if that just happens to be a true fiesta, I have a bonus DIY for you coming later this month!
