How to Make Fruit Sculptures

Making a fruit sculpture by decoratively carving it to fashion a piece of fruit into whatever shape you desire is a simple process almost anyone can master. Adding one of these creations to the side of a plate as a garnish or using a larger arrangement for the centerpiece to a meal allows chefs to demonstrate their creativity and generates a fun atmosphere for guests as well.

Things You'll Need

• Sharp vegetable or paring knife
• Cutting board
• Tomato
• Apple
• Lemon water
• Pastry brush
• Wooden cocktail stick or toothpick

Instructions

Tomato Rose

1. Place your knife on the cutting board. Select a tomato that is firm, red in color and without any blemishes.

2. Wash the fruit thoroughly and buff dry with a soft cloth.

3. Place the tomato on the board with the stem side down. Carefully make a shallow cut in the tomato at the point almost exactly opposite the stem. Create an incision around this point until you have cut almost a full circle out of the skin.

4. Peel the remaining skin from the fruit until it is completely stripped by running the knife around the fruit circularly, moving progressively lower as you go. The goal is to remove the skin as one single piece; if it breaks when you have almost completed removing the skin, you can still use the tomato, as long as the break is close to the end. However, if the tear is closer to the starting point, then you should discard this attempt and begin with another one.

5. Place the circular piece you created first on a flat surface or in the palm of your hand. Wrap the skin around the base, tucking each loop inside the one that came before it, so the beginning of the tomato strip forms the outside of the sculpture while the end is tucked into the center. Once you have completely wrapped the skin in this way, the sculpture should resemble a rose.

Apple Swan

1. Use a clean board and knife for the more difficult sculpture of an apple swan. Choose an apple that is symmetrical in shape with no blemishes.

2. Remove a small piece from the side of the apple to give you a flat edge. Place the discarded piece of apple into the lemon water to keep it from browning because you will need a piece of this later.

3. Place the apple, cut side down, on the cutting board. This apple represents the body of the bird, with the apple stem representing the head for the time being. Visually estimate where the wings will attach to each side of the bird's body. From each wing attachment site, make a small cut vertically and then horizontally to remove a small wedge section of the apple.

4. Brush the cut apple with lemon water to prevent discoloration of the fruit. Repeat this, cutting and brushing, until you have created at least three interlocking wedges on either side of the apple.

5. Create the wings by stacking the wedges of apple from largest to smallest along the cut. Each wedge should be placed approximately 1/4 inch back from the one that precedes it. Repeat this on the other side.

6. Remove the original slice of apple from the lemon water and place it on the cutting board. Take a small slice from the center, creating a curved effect to imitate a swan's neck and head.

7. Attach the neck to the body of the swan with a toothpick or a piece of cocktail stick.

8. Brush the completed sculpture with lemon water to prevent discoloration.

Tips & Warnings

• Always use a sharp knife and firm fruit; the combination of these two critical elements will help make your finished sculpture the main focal point it is designed to be. Practice several of these before presenting one for the first time.

• Sharp knives can be dangerous. Always cut toward the board and away from your fingers.

References

• Fruit Carving at the Temple of Thai

Resources

• Expert Village video: How to Carve Fruit Centerpieces