A fruit rainbow is perfect easy-to-prepare St. Patrick's Day party food for all ages, especially when a pot of gold awaits at the end of this colorful arc.

Rainbows are well loved symbols of Ireland, especially since they hover over leprechauns' hiding spots. The lure of pots full of gold intrigues both young and old alike, making spirits brighter, especially around St. Patrick's Day.

A fruit rainbow platter with shamrocks made of grapes and a bowl of rolos as a pot of gold — Fruit Rainbow for Saint Patricks Day

Rainbows As Symbols Of Ireland
Saint Patrick's Day Party Food
How To Make A Fruit Rainbow on a Platter
Finishing Touches
Recipe Card

Rainbows As Symbols Of Ireland

I have reminisced before about how much I miss Irish rainbows. Ireland is a land full of rainbows. Our wet climate and changeable weather patterns make it the perfect place for plenty of rainbow formations.

Our Irish ancestors were so intrigued by rainbows that they passed down many rainbow blessings through the generations. Here is one of my favorites.

May God Give You For Every Storm a Rainbow Printable — May God Give You For Every Storm A Rainbow

You'll find this free printable here.

Saint Patrick's Day Party Food

This fruit rainbow platter is a perfect treat for St. Patrick's Day!

But then I got to thinking how perfect a fruit rainbow might be for a play date recipe and snack, especially in the coming weeks with St. Patrick's Day fast approaching.

Some rainbow platters use quite a lot of fruit. My fruit rainbow is perfect size for treating four hungry little ones.

How To Make A Fruit Rainbow on a Platter

I arrange it on a large white dinner platter with individual fruit segments, jig-sawed together to compose each colorful stripe.

Here's how I did it. At the end of the post you'll find a printable recipe with all the instructions carefully explained.

Strawberries for Fruit Rainbow — Strawberry arch for a fruit rainbow

First we washed and halved our strawberries lengthwise, then laid them along three-quarters of the outer edge of a white plate. Alternating tops and tails, they fitted perfectly together.

I was careful to choose a punnet of strawberries with similar, medium sized berries. I avoided the packets with those humongous looking mammoth strawberries.

Orange Layer for Fruit Rainbow — Mandarin stripe on a fruit rainbow

Next I took a small, seedless mandarin, peeled it and broke it into segments. They created a perfect orange stripe lying end-to-end beneath the strawberries.

Pieces of cantaloupe would also work well for an orange layer.

Colorful fruit layers forming a rainbow on a plate — Fruit placed in arched layers for a rainbow

We chose green grapes next, followed by a layer of pineapple triangles.

Rolos in gold wrapping as a pot of gold at the end of a fruit rainbow — Fruit Rinbow with Grape Shamrocks and Rolo Pot of Gold

Then came a row of purple grapes, followed by just a few blueberries for the final stripe. A lovely rainbow!

I had planned to put a row of apple segments or bananas between the grapes and pineapple, but my plate wasn't big enough. We made do with a six stripe rainbow instead of seven.

Green grapes sliced in half to make leaves for a fruit shamrock — Shamrocks made with grape halves

Finishing Touches

Then we decided we needed to do something to fill in the empty white space on our plate.

So we made grape shamrocks by halving our grapes, laying them in the familiar trefoil pattern, with a sliver of blueberry as a stem.

Gold wrapped rolos are perfect for an Irish pot of gold — Gold foil rolos as a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow

Our final finishing touch was a pot of gold containing rolos covered in shiny, golden foil.

I confess, I do not own a little black bowl, so I had to get creative. I stared into my cabinets for inspiration. Then suddenly I spotted a sports bottle with a black lid. Turned upside down, the lid made a perfect leprechaun's pot.

Next Halloween I plan to buy some little black pots that can do double duty around St. Patrick's Day.

Fruit Rainbow With Pot Of Gold — Fruit Rainbow with Shamrocks and Pot of Gold

And so, there you have it - a lovely play date fruit rainbow, with just the right amount of fruit for four little ones to munch on and enjoy every last morsel.

Recipe Card

Here's the printable recipe card ...

Fruit Rainbow

A rainbow of fruits to celebrate Saint Patrick' Day.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Snack

Cuisine: Irish

Keyword: Fruit Rainbow, Pot of Gold, Saint Patrick's Day

Prep Time: 15

Total Time: 15

Servings:

Calories: 209kcal

Ingredients

2 mandarin oranges peeled and divided into segments
12 medium strawberries washed and halved
18 green seedless grapes washed and halved
8 ounces pineapple chunks canned in light syrup or fresh
1 medium apple peeled and sliced
1 lemon juice
7 red seedless grapes washed and halved
8 blueberries
12 Rolo candies in gold foil wrappers

Instructions

Wash, dry and halve the strawberries. Lay them along the outer rim of a large white plate for ¾'s of the circumference.
Peel and segment the oranges. Lay them in a semi-circle inside the strawberry layer.
Wash, dry and halve the green grapes. Arrange them in a semi-circle inside the orange layer. Reserve the remainder of the grapes to make shamrocks beneath the rainbow.
Drain the can of pineapple chunks. Arrange them in a semi-circle inside the grape layer. Fresh pineapple chunks can also be used.
Peel, core, and slice the apple into semi-circular shapes. Toss in lemon juice to slow down the browning process. Arrange them in a semi-circle inside the pineapple layer.
Wash, dry and halve the red grapes. Arrange them in a semi-circle inside the orange layer.
Wash and dry the blueberries. Arrange them in a semi-circle inside the orange layer. Reserve two blueberries to cut into tine segments to make shamrock stems.
Use three grape halves to create shamrocks beneath the fruit rainbow. Use a sliver of blueberry as a stem for each shamrock.
Add a container of gold foil covered candy at one end of the rainbow.

Notes

The exact amount of each fruit required will vary depending upon the size of the platter you use. Adjust the quantities accordingly.

Nutrition Facts

Fruit Rainbow

Amount Per Serving (110 g)

Calories 209 Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value*

Fat 4g6%

Saturated Fat 3g19%

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 1g

Cholesterol 2mg1%

Sodium 37mg2%

Potassium 378mg11%

Carbohydrates 45g15%

Fiber 5g21%

Sugar 37g41%

Protein 2g4%

Vitamin A 367IU7%

Vitamin C 56mg68%

Calcium 67mg7%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition Information is estimated based on the ingredients and cooking instructions as described in each recipe and is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Please note that nutrition details may vary based on methods of preparation, origin and freshness of ingredients used.

Tried this recipe?Mention @IrishAmericanMomBlog or tag #irishamericanmom!

And remember, a fruit-filled rainbow is also a perfect show piece for any St. Patrick's Day party.