These olive penguins and radish mice are the life of the party ~ equal parts cute, clever, and completely snackable.
This week I’m injecting some whimsy into the cocktail hour with some beyond adorable olive penguins and radish mice. They’ll wow your guests and get everybody into the party spirit.
what you need for olive penguins
These ingenious little penguins are made with two sizes of black olive, some cream cheese, and a carrot.
- large black pitted olives
- medium black pitted olives
- brick style cream cheese
- carrot
- toothpicks
I guarantee these guys will be the hit of your next party. Don’t worry, they are easy to make, and they don’t have to be prefect. Their imperfections and variations just make them more adorable. You can have dapper ones, scruffy ones, portly ones, sly ones and clueless ones…you’ll love them all.
How to make Olive Penguins
- Make a small divot in a carrot slice for the feet.
- Make a small ball of cream cheese (use a melon ball scooper) and add two large olive halves on either side for the penguin wings.
- Place onto the carrot slice.
- Cut the leftover bit of carrot into half again, and put it inside the puckered hole of the medium olive to form the beak.
- Put a long toothpick or cocktail skewer through the head and body and into the carrot feet to secure.
Like I said your only problem might be knowing when to stop. It’s quite a stress-buster to sit down with a glass of wine and make these. You can knock out a waddle (that’s what it’s called, I looked it up) of penguins in no time.
Radish mice
My friend Judith used to make these radish mice for our kids during the holidays, but you don’t need to be a kid to appreciate them. I like to let them roam around a cheese plate.
They are super easy to make, and you’ll get lots of oohs and aaahs in return for very little effort.
I could only find round radishes, so my mice look a little chubby. If you come across oval ones, your mice will look even more like mice. Either way they’re pretty darn cute. Both the penguins and the mice can be made earlier in the day and refrigerated until party time, just make sure they’re covered. But they don’t keep well overnight.
how to make radish mice
- Select a radish; it can be big or small, round or oval, but look for a nice long tail. Chop off the leafy end, this will be your mouse’s nose.
- Cut a small slice off the bottom so your mouse will be stable. The exact place you make your cut will determine how you mouse is positioned, nose up, or nose down.
- Cut small slits on each side of the head for the ears.
- Insert small slices into the slits for the ears. You can take slices from another radish.
Cheers!
Olive Penguins
Ingredients
- 1 carrot slice
- 1 large olive, cut in half lengthwise
- 1 medium olive
- 1 tsp cream cheese
- 1 long toothpick or cocktail skewer
Instructions
- Cut a small divot from the carrot slice to form the “feet” base.
- Roll the cream cheese into a ball and insert between the halves of the large olive. The olive halves can touch at the back, and open out in the front to form the wings.
- Take the small carrot divot and cut in half again to form the beak.
- Insert the beak into the small hole in the medium olive.
- Run the toothpick through the head, down through the body, and into the carrot base.
- Lower the head to meet the body, and clean up the cream cheese. Adjust the penguin as necessary.
Notes
Nutrition
More fun with olives!
- Stuffed Olive Cocktail Picks
- Fried Olives
- Easy Roasted Olives
- Fried Olives with Spicy Yogurt
- Festive Olive Wreath Appetizer
NO WAY!!!!!!!!… these are beyond cute and your photography is just adorable… much like to little penguins… would be a crime to eat them!
Yeah, I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
You are a riot! I’d never be able to do these…..the time it must take. But the giggles might be worth it. Makes me laugh out loud. Thanks!
Get out of here!! Those penguins are freekin hysterical! I love those! Haha I want to come to your cocktail hour! Keep em coming!
It’s really funny how they each have their own personality, every little variation in the olives, beaks, etc. results in a completely different fella.
Pretty freakin’ cute! I bet they’re a real hit at the children’s table on Thanksgiving or Christmas!
🙂
Sue this is just beyond creative! Were you a school teacher ever? 🙂 This would be a great project for me and my daughter. Even tho radishes and olives aren’t kiddie food per se, she’d love the adorable factor. So do I!
It would be lots of fun for your daughter, and doesn’t really matter that they aren’t something kids would love to eat because, really, could you eat one of those adorable creatures?
I love these penguins! I’ve had them in my list of things to try for ages. I’ve never seen the mice before though and I love how stinking cute they are with the cheese plate. I’m betting my kids would flip over these penguins. Thanks for the reminder!
Not too many kids like olives, but I bet yours do!
WOW! they are so cute, love them 🙂
Both are adorable! I think the chubbiness of the mice is best.
They look a tiny bit like little pigs, but it’s not very appetizing to have pigs running around a cheese platter, so I’m sticking with mice!
Ha, and now that you say that …
Even so, little pink oinkers are cute too.
Sue, these both look wonderful and they are absolutely charming. They’ll be perfect for the holidays. I hope you have a terrific weekend. Blessings…Mary
Thanks, Mary, I had fun making them!
You know I’m going to try this don’t you? They are beyond amazing!
I’ve never seen radish mice before either – best ever Sue!
They do bring a touch of class to the party, don’t they??
Totes!