Food Thursday: Feast of Appetizers

It’s December and in December we like to host a casual gathering titled: Christmas Cocktails & Feast of Appetizers. It’s one of my favorite events of the year. Instead of juggling the timing of entrees and side dishes and making sure I’m offering a perfectly balanced menu, I throw all caution to the wind and encourage people to eat with their fingers. I make a half dozen or so appetizers, none of which require utensils (unless toothpicks count as utensils) and a couple desserts. My guests pitch in with one or two more appetizers or desserts. The final result? A counter filled with delicious foods of all varieties; something for everyone; and a guarantee that you won’t leave hungry.

I think this idea is similar to the notion behind small plates. When you host a Feast of Appetizers you get to try lots of different foods without feeling like someone needs to roll you out the door at the end. And, in my opinion, it’s the very best way to host a holiday gathering. This is such a busy time of year and there’s a lot less pressure involved in throwing together appetizers than full-fledged dinners.

I’ll be making a batch of these roasted peanuts for our party. I think they will be perfect to have in bowls strategically placed around the room for people to snack on in between appetizer helpings.

Spiced Peanuts

• 2 tablespoons ground coriander
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 3 large egg whites
• 6 cups unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds

1. Preheat oven to 300.
2. Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl.
3. Beat egg whites in a medium bowl for 1 minute or until frothy. Add spice mixture, peanuts, and sesame seeds; stir well. Spread the mixture in a single layer on a jelly roll pan lined with parchment paper. Bake at 300° for 30 minutes or until the nuts are dry and roasted, stirring occasionally. Cool completely.

Food Thursday: Asparagus Pizza

Whether it’s appetizers for a party or snacks for a football Sunday, I like to keep a stack of recipes for fun food that doesn’t require lots of work or silverware. Anything that falls in the flatbread or pizza category tends to make that stack. This one should be added to yours (or just come over here to watch football sometime and I’ll make it for you.)

Asparagus Pizza

1 tube of refrigerated pizza dough (I prefer the thin crust for this recipe)
1 bag of shredded mozzerella
1 package of spreadable garlic & herb cheese (Boursin or Alouette)
1 bunch of asparagus

1. Preheat oven to 450
2. Stretch pizza dough out to fit a baking sheet. Spread the mozzerella on top.
3. Snap the woody ends off the asparagus and using a vegetable peeler, shave it into thin strips – you’ll get 3-4 strips from each piece. Pile it all over the pizza. It will seem like a lot but when it cooks it kind of shrinks down so use all of it.
4. Dot the pizza liberally with your spreadable cheese. Top with some black pepper.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden.

Food Thursday: Cajun Crab Dip

We like to have people over and summer seems to be a more relaxed time for that to happen. I like to have a bunch of appetizers that I can make for us to snack on as we grill something for dinner. OR sometimes we just eat appetizers, you never know how things are going to go in the summer. Here’s one that I found and made during our “Father’s Day Feast of Appetizers.” Sometimes people think that “Cajun” means spicy but that’s not the case with this recipe – just full of flavor. We all gobbled it up.

Cajun Crab Dip
From a 2011 Cooking Light Magazine

2 TB minced shallots
1 tsp minced garlic
1 pound lump crab meat (imitation crab meat, flake style, can be substituted)
1/4 cup water
1 TB hot sauce (I used Frank’s)
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
1/2 cup mayo
1/3 cup less fat cream cheese
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper
2 TB lemon juice
dash of salt & pepper
3 TB panko bread crumbs
3 TB minced chives or green onions

1. Preheat oven to 450.

2. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray and add shallots & garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes stirring frequently. Remove from heat.

3. Place 1 cup crab in a food processor. Add the shallot mixture, 1/4 cup water, hot sauce and Cajun seasoning to the crab. Process until smooth. Spoon this mixture into a large bowl and stir in the rest of the crab, mayo and next four ingredients (through the salt & pepper).

4. Transfer to a 1 quart casserole dish coated lightly with cooking spray. Combine bread crumbs and chives and sprinkle over the mixture. Spray cooking spray on top of the bread crumbs to help them brown up.

5. Bake at 450 for 30 minutes or until browned & bubbly. Serve with crackers.

Food Thursday: Peanut Chicken Skewers

For Father’s Day my husband requested that he be able to watch the US Open uninterrupted. That’s fine except the tournament falls right on top of dinner time. So the kids and I decided that instead of making him take a dinner break, we’d just make appetizers all afternoon & evening. There were enough of them (five courses) and they were substantial enough that none of us missed an actual dinner. These were the final course and frankly, with a veggie on the side they totally could have been dinner. And since they come on a stick they are very kid friendly – my gang all loved them.

Peanut Chicken Skewers
based on a recipe that appeared a few years ago in Real Simple

– 1 cup salted, roasted peanuts roughly chopped (I put them in a ziploc baggie and had one of the kids bang away with a mallet)
– 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
– 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
– salt & pepper
– 1 lb of chicken – either breasts sliced into thin strips or tenderloins
– 2 TB vegetable oil
– wood skewers (I always soak mine in water for a few hours so there are no issues with wood & fire)

Dipping sauce:
– 1/2 cup mayo
– 1 tsp Asian chili-garlic sauce
– 1 tsp Asian sweet chili cauce

1. Make dipping sauce by combining all three ingredients; place in fridge until ready to eat.

2. On a large plate combine the peanuts, bread crumbs & parsley with a dash of salt & pepper.

3. Thread each chicken strip onto a skewer and press into the peanut mixture to coat.

4. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the skewers until golden – 2-3 minutes on each side. I did mine in batches of three and transferred them to a platter lined with paper towels to soak up any grease. However, since we’re only using a couple tablespoons these weren’t greasy at all. Add oil to the skillet while cooking your batches if necessary.

5. Serve with the dipping sauce.

Food Thursday: Shrimp & Bacon Deviled Eggs

Still toying with the idea of assorted finger foods for my Easter brunch. I’ve been digging through my recipe files and found this idea which seems to be perfect for Easter. It helps use up some of those many hard-boiled eggs but elevates one of our favorite finger foods by adding some of our other favorite foods. I think this one is definitely going on the menu.

Shrimp & Bacon Deviled Eggs
straight from the reliably good pages of Cooking Light

8 hard-cooked large eggs, shelled
1/4 cup instant potato flakes
1/4 cup fat-free mayonnaise
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 cup cooked medium shrimp, peeled and chopped (about 4 ounces)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
3 center-cut bacon slices, cooked and crumbled
Preparation

Cut eggs in half lengthwise; remove yolks. Place 4 yolks in a medium bowl; reserve remaining yolks for another use. Add potato flakes and next 6 ingredients (through red pepper) to yolks; stir well. Stir in shrimp and parsley. Spoon about 1 rounded tablespoon shrimp mixture into each egg white half. Sprinkle with bacon.