Please share a suggestion for "light hors d'oeuvres" that I am supposed to provide, along with other

Mar, I'm with you here. The attendees are strangers to me, I'l probably never see many of them

again, and I'll save my Shrimp budget for my friends and family. The meet is a political candidates' forum. I'm on an Executive Committee that organized the event, and the general public is invited to hear the candidates speak. Someone on the Committee decided we should have a cash bar and hors d'oeuvres, and that members of the organization would LOVE to donate free food. Maybe they thought cheese and crackers would buy votes? LOL again.

 
Pat, thank you so much for making me realize that one spot like a spinach dip station would be a

disaster with so many people! That's why I've decided to make several of these suggestions, and place them in different areas. In addition, that might make folks circulate a little more, and might make the party more lively. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

 
Barbara, I'm still going to bring a batch of the spinach dip, but I really like your idea of

carrot and celery sticks for dipping, instead of crackers or bread. Although I'll still throw in a box of Wheat Thins. They are small, and I like them with spinach dip.

 
Pat, the only volunteer on this assembly line will be me, in the boondocks, an hour away from the

event site. However, I like your idea of some finger sandwiches, I could set up my own assembly line like you described, and I'd really like to have your suggestions for the bread and fillings that would hold up well until they were served a few hours later. Thanks again.

 
Black Grape & Fontina Cheese Skewers

Spiedini di Formaggie e Uva Nera
Black grape and fontina cheese skewers

Food Festivals of Italy: Celebrated Recipes from 50 Food Fairs
by Leonardo Curti & James O. Fraioli

Interesting summer dessert/cheese plate option. Consider using stripped rosemary stalks as the skewer.

Serves 4

½ pound black grapes
12 ounces fontina cheese, cubed
½ cup orange blossom honey

On four skewers, alternate grapes and cubed cheese.

Place the skewers and drizzle with the orange blossom honey. Serve slightly chilled.

 
Homemade Gravlax with Dilled Cucumbers

Friend of mine made this for a party at Christmas. Super easy. Got a side of wild salmon cheap, thawed it out and made the gravlax. Easy to do ahead.

Gravlax with Dill Cucumbers
Falling Cloudberries by Tessa Kiros

Serve this topped with potato pancakes or rye bread, some homemade mustard and freshly chopped dill or dill crème fraiche.

½ cup superfine sugar
2/3 cup coarse (Kosher) salt
2 ½ cups chopped fresh dill
2 whole fillets of salmon, skin left on, but cleaned and small bones removed

Dill cucumbers
1 cucumber
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
½ cup white wine vinegar
2 heaped tablespoons superfine sugar
1 teaspoon salt

To make the gravlax, combine the sugar, salt, dill and a few good grindings of black pepper in a bowl. Put a large piece of aluminum foil on your work surface. Onto this put about 1/3 of the sugar mixture. Put one salmon fillet, skin side down, on top of the mixture, then top this with another ½ of the mixture. Top with the other salmon fillet, skin side up, and cover with the remaining mixture. Pat down so it is all covered nicely and wrap the foil around to seal the salmon. Keep it in a container in the fridge for 4 days, turning it over every day. If you don’t have a container large enough, sit it in a pan or large dish to catch any juices that may drip.

To make the dill cucumbers, cut into very thin slices, slightly on the diagonal, if you like so that they are extra long and look good. Put them in a blow where they will fit compactly in a few layers, sprinkling dill between the layers. Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt and 2 tablespoons of water, stirring to dissolve the sugar and salt. Pour this over the cucumber to cover it. Keep in the refrigerator for at least a few hours before serving. Transfer to a jar and cover with its liquid and it will keep for up to a week.

To serve the gravlax, remove the foil and scrape off as much of the sugar mixture as possible. Slice the salmon very thin, horizontally, and scatter with fresh dill. Serve with the dill cucumbers and Finnish mustard.

 
James Beard's Chicken Liver Pate - Can't tell you how good this is! Super easy too.

James Beard’s Liver Pate
From the Lighthouse Breakfast Cookbook, recipes from Heceta Head Lighthouse in Oregon

James Beard lived in Lake Oswego, OR , not far from the Strudel House and visited the restaurant a few times. Mike had a chat with him one day about the elaborate process Carol would go through to make traditional chicken liver pate. After lunch Beard handed Mike a note that had this recipe on it and told him it is just as good and takes a fifth of the time to make. We served this pate for 15 years at the restaurant. It was a favorite on our brunch menu.

6 ounces liverwurst
6 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon dry sherry
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon dried tarragon
Pinch of fines herbes
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon whole green peppercorns

In a mixer combine the liverwurst, cream cheese, sherry, Worcestershire sauce, tarragon, fines herbes and garlic: blend well, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom. When smooth, fold in the peppercorns.

Serve with sliced baguette, butter, Dijon mustard, shaved red onions, and cornichons.

Makes about 1 pound.

Traca’s note: when I made it, I skipped the herbes and peppercorns. Absolutely delicious!

 
Marinated Eggplant with Caper Spread - (broil the eggplant)

marinated eggplant with capers and mint
Gourmet | July 2008
by Maggie Ruggiero


Sliced thin and broiled, eggplant retains a slight chewiness but still melts in the mouth; a caper and mint vinaigrette brightens everything.
Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 45 min
Servings: Makes 4 (hors d'oeuvre) servings
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Ingredients
1 pound thin Italian or Asian eggplants (2 to 3), cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1/4 cup chopped mint
2 tablespoons small capers, rinsed


Accompaniment: crisp rosemary flatbread

Preparation

Preheat broiler.

Arrange eggplant in 1 layer on a large baking sheet and brush both sides with 2 tablespoons oil (total). Broil about 4 inches from heat, turning once, until golden, 8 to 12 minutes total.

Stir together vinegar, mint, capers, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and remaining 3 tablespoons oil and toss with warm eggplant. Marinate at least 20 minutes.

Cooks' note: Marinated eggplant can be made 1 day ahead and chilled. Bring to room temperature before serving.

 
I'll bring a couple of these suggestions, and hope the other volunteers do their part. There's

three different groups participating, and no one is coordinating who is bringing what, so this is very disorganized. But that's their problem, not mine. It won't break my bank to make a couple of these recipes, however.

 
Cheese Crackers/Cocktail Cookies

Outstanding! Easy to make the dough ahead. Can bake off cookies/crackers a day in advance. The smaller size is great for nibbling with cocktails. Don’t even think about making them larger.

Cheese Crackers/Cocktail Cookies

½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, room temperature
4 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (pale New Zealand Cheddar from Trader Joe’s)
¼ teaspoon Adobo seasoning salt
Pinch of Cayenne pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour

Optional:
Cayenne Pepper
Seasoning Salt

With an electric mixer, cream the cheese and butter together. Season creamed cheese and butter with seasoning salt and Cayenne, mix thoroughly. Add flour and mix dough together. If dough doesn’t come together, drizzle water (or beer) 1 tablespoon at a time until the mixture holds together.

Divide dough and roll into two logs into the diameter of a quarter. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 30 minutes.

Dough will be stiff. Do not bring to room temperature. Slice cold dough into ¼” rounds (thinner and the dough will spread and become lacy around the edges. At ¼”, the rounds will hold their shape.) Place coins on a baking sheet lined with a silpat 1” apart.

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes, or until coins are golden around the edges.

Recipe is a hybrid of Renee Behnke’s Cheese Crackers from “Memorable Recipes” and technique from Kathy Casey’s Cocktail Cookies in “Sips and Apps.”

 
Don't make with smoked liverwurst - pink and yuk!

I didn't think it through before I started. Should have known better!

I have to get the guts up to try this again! Colleen

 
Ooh, ooh, ooh, BINGO, Traca! I'll use frilly "club picks" and put one grape and one cube of cheese

on each pick, although I have a huge rosemary bush, and could use stripped rosemary stalks, too. This would knock their socks off, and easy, easy, easy! So similar to cheezz' fabulous Caprese skewers, that I made for this committee earlier this year, using just one grape tomato and one cube of cheese on each pick. They were devoured! I also have local honey, and one of the candidates is running for our Agricultural Commissioner office, and the tie-in to the local honey would be brilliant! I'll make a little sign identifying the local honey. In case anyone doesn't know what "club picks" are, they are the longer toothpicks with a little frilly trim on one end, that are used to secure club sandwiches. You can buy them from a paper supply company. They are perfect for cheezz' Caprese skewers and any other cold or room-temp pick-me-ups.

 
What was done for the tea party finger sandwiches....

someone on the committee purchased big loaves of sliced bread, the el cheapo Wonder-bread type which works just fine for finger sandwiches when you're serving the masses (we were serving children and adults). They also made huge quantities of egg salad, chicken salad, a smoked salmon spread, and bought some containers of hummus. During sandwich assembly some older committee members were scoffing at the hummus tea sandwiches saying no one would want them but they were actually the first to disappear with requests sent back to the kitchen for more. Hummus also appeals to the vegetarians and is quite good on wheat bread. We also made cucumber sandwiches but that may not be what you are seeking for your crowd.

A good way to transport them if you're doing a large amount is to use the big plastic trays with high dome lids, like the type that deli platters of cheese and meats come on (sometimes you can buy them from your grocery deli counter). Layer up the finger sandwiches then place a damp (not wet, just damp...wet it and wring it out well, then gently unfold) over the top of the pile of sandwiches. Then secure the lid. The sandwiches won't get wet from the paper towel but will help in keeping the bread from drying out before you arrive.

You probably won't want to assemble more than 10 sandwiches at a time as the bread does have a tendency to dry out once it's exposed to the air.

Also, if you end up making the finger sandwiches I would recommend setting a placecard-type marker in front of the sandwich tray identifying the filling.

Good luck with your event, and make it fun for yourself. :eek:)

 
I would bake for friends and family, but not for this group. I'm having two sets of house guests in

the next two weeks, and will try this for them. Thanks.

 
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