Rosy Strawberries

• Strawberries' deep red color and green stems may become beautiful fruity roses with a few slices. Place a strawberry firmly on its stem or bottom part on a cutting board. Shallowly and gently insert a paring knife halfway down the strawberry's right side and gently cut a 1/8- to 1/6-inch piece along its curve to just near its bottom -- within 1/6 inch, being careful not to cut the piece completely off. Bend the cut piece outwards and downwards like a petal. Rotate the strawberry about 25 to 30 degrees clockwise, make the same cut and bend, then continue rotating and cutting until each side is cut. Repeat the cutting, bending and rotating process from the two-thirds point and also the three-fourths point on the strawberry to create a rose garnish.

Orange Blossoms

• Strawberries aren't the only fruit that can become beautiful flowers -- orange peels may be cut and shaped to look like a blossoming flower. Insert a paring knife into the orange peel about 1/4 to 1/3 of an inch from the orange stem. Slowly cut around the stem until you have cut three-fourths of a circle, then began to slowly cut an upward-reaching spiral about 1/4 to 1/2-inches thick from the rest of the peel until the entire orange is peeled. Slowly rotate and wrap the peel around itself with the outside of the peel remaining on the outside until all of the peel is tightly coiled, and sit it on top of the peel circle cut at the beginning. This method also works for other citrus fruits.

Cherry on Top

• Cut cherries into flower likenesses for smaller and cute garnishes with which to fill up your plates and glasses. Place a cherry with its stem pointing upwards onto a cutting board, remove the stem, then cut the cherry into six wedges while leaving the bottom third of the cherry intact. Gently bend the six segments outwards to look like flower petals. Place the newly flowered cherry on top of clean leaves of mint. Or place something colorful yet still edible, like chocolate or candy, into the center of the flower.

Going Bananas

• One of the simplest fruit garnishes comes from one of the most malleable and easiest to bruise fruits -- the banana. Cut a banana into 1/4-inch slices, then chop a sprig of mint and place it into a bowl. Pour a little lemon juice into another bowl, then dip the banana slices first into the lemon juice then dip the slices' edges into the chopped mint. Place one banana slice on the plate, surround the one slice with four to five other slices to form a circle resembling a flower, then place a longer mint sprig coming from the bottom of the banana slices like a stem complete with leaves.