Appetizer/Hors D'Oeuvre/Starter Ideas

[Jake]

Perhaps things you can prep before hand and assemble or cook at the last minute?

If you have access to a grill you could do some satays, some asparagus and goat cheese wrapped in proscuitto and grilled, gilled veg with a dip (hummous) etc.

fresh salsas are always lovely at this time of year

crostini with different toppings could be prepped ahead and would travel well.

Good luck

[JAZ]

Welcome!

For some ideas, check out this previous thread on do-ahead hors d'oeuvres: click here.

Inside that thread is a link to yet another thread on the subject.

[lcdm]

Depends on how fancy you want to get, here are some things I have serverd.

Shrimp cocktail (bag of frozen shrimp and made cocktail sauce and cut up lemons).

Guacamole, salsa and chips (purchased form Costco, I used the mango salsa).

Spinach Dip w/veggies and crackers (you can premake the dip and cut up the veggies ahead of time).

Cheese and crackers w/pepperoni.

Stuffed mushrooms (do all the prep work, and toss them in the oven for about 15 min.)

Shrimp or chicken skewers (piece of chicken/shrimp, pineapple and pepper, marinade in teryaki sauce, either broil or grill).

Bruschetta with crostini (make ahead or you can buy both at Costco)

Antipasto Platter (bring containers of roasted peppers, marinated artichoke hearts, fresh mozzerella, olives, provalone, pepperoni, salami, tomatoes .....)

Nuke some velveeta and salsa serve with chips.

Edited August 5, 2004 by lcdm (log)

[Rachel Perlow]

Things you could do ahead (assuming we're talking this Saturday, and you want to do most of the work today, driving up Friday):

Crudite and dip: Cut the veg today, just do three or four kinds. Cut them up into sticks and store individually in an airtight bag (really important not to mix the veg). Carrots, celery, radish, green beans, broccoli and cauliflower florets, all work well for this. Cut up cucumbers at the last minute, garnish the plate with cherry or grape tomatoes. Thankfully, most dips benefit from being made ahead of time.

Prepare hot d'oeuvres today, just until the baking point, then freeze them on sheet pans. Individually frozen, then transfer to plastic containers or ziploc bags for the trip. You only have to add a minute or two to the baking time to cook from frozen. Things that work well for this: spanikopita (greek spinach and feta phillo pies, make mini triangles), a mushroom duxelle also works well as a phillo filling; pigs in a blanket (use good quality hot dogs, cut into 4-6 pieces, wrap in Pillsbury buiscuit or crescent dough). Puff pastry can be filled with all sorts of things, or cut into strips and rolled with any kind of firm cheese for cheese straws.

Buy a baguette or three tomorrow before the trip (in case you can't find any locally). If they go a little stale, you can still make crostini with them. Slice on the diagonal, toast in the oven, rub with raw garlic (pack a head of garlic) and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with a tomato salad (diced tomatoes, olive oil, herbs (basil, parsley), salt & pepper) and marinated white beans (cook today, toss with evoo, herbs, a splash of vinegar). You can either make canapes with them, or just put out a pile of crostini with bowls of toppings on the side, for "make your own bruscetta."

A cheese plate (more bread, or crackers) is always welcome.

Mixed nuts (they last longer if you put them out in the shell, if people have to crack them themselves, they don't eat them by the handfuls), bring the nut cracker (get a cheap one (they sell them with nut picks too) at the store, so you don't leave your good one (if you have a good one) from home there.

While you are at the store, get some gel freezer packs, or better yet, do you have cardboard juice or milk containers? Finish off the product (or put into an alternate container. Fill them most of the way with water (not full), freeze with the lid off (the water expands), cap and use as an ice pack. If you don't have a cooler, buy one or more inexpensive stryofoam ones at the grocery store (seriously, these cost like $3 each for large ones). You want to do all your prep today so that stuff has time to chill in the fridge or freeze overnight so everything is cold when you pack tomorrow. Place the non-frozen stuff at the bottom. Lay a towel over that, then layer the frozen stuff on top of that (you don't want to freeze your vegetables). Top the cooler with ice packs or frozen ice containers. Don't use bags of ice, it melts too quickly.

[lray]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! those are fantastic ideas!!!! please keep them coming! my heart is slowing down, the room has stopped spinning, and I think I might be able to pull this off....

[Rachel Perlow]

What ideas did you particularly like? If you want more ideas, we need to know what you are now thinking of making.

Add to my list -- chopped liver. Jewish pate, mmm. Buy Tam Tam matzo crackers to serve it on or next to. If you want to make it, I'll post a recipe.

Or, country pate -- make a meatloaf. Make it highly seasoned. Bake it in a loafpan or pate terrine and chill it, bring whole. On Saturday, slice it thinly (about 1/4 inch) (if made in a large loaf pan, cut each slice into quarters), serve cold with crosini (not rubbed with garlic through).

[hillvalley]

Edamame would work perfectly. Boil the day before, add salt before serving.

Procsuitto with melon is great this time of year. Role up slices of Proscuitto, slice up the melon and put on a platter.

Mini mozzerrella balls with basic and balsamic, served with tooth picks.

Hummus travels well and easy to make.

Tuna or Salmon pate is also easy to whip up, but needs to be kept cold while traveling.

[Jake]

Mini mozzerrella balls with basic and balsamic, served with tooth picks.

I do these with grape tomatos and basil leaves threaded on small bamboo skewars. Always seem to go fast, and quick and easy.

Smoked salmon rosettes with creme fraiche and chives on pump. rounds takes minimal prep work.

[eunny jang]

Buy some grape tomates. Poke holes with a toothpick, and marinate in pepper vodka with herbs, maybe a little vinegar if you like. Virtually no prep, and they'll stay nice-looking for the whole car ride as long as you keep them cool and don't squash them.

There are a hundred things to do with these: Serve them like chocolate truffles in candy papers; chop and use for a killer salsa or on crostini; skewer them and grill with cubes of feta.

Or just pass them in a bowl with toothpicks. On a hot day, people will snap these up and yell at you when you run out.

[Rachel Perlow]

How about Vietnamese Summer Rolls? You could bring all the ingredients, prepped, and just assemble them there. Click here

[NeroW]

Hi everyone.

I need to come up with 2 hot appetizers for tomorrow night's President's Dinner at the country club where I work. They need to be nice.

There aren't really any limits as far as ingredients, we just don't have a lot of specialty shit lying around like caviar, smoked salmon, etc.

I will have ample prep time.

Here are a few ideas I have:

Miniature Bleu Cheese Custards (in mini muffin tins) with a warm Port reduction drizzled on top right before service, on little toasts

Some kind of crostini with artichoke puree, maybe some cress, radicchio or arugula, with lightly seared beef tenderloin

Cubes of tuna (we have that cryovac "Ahi" stuff) with a wasabi-based mayo. I don't know if these will be any good with our stock tuna.

Salmon "cakes" (silver-dollar sized) with a lemony-yogurt sauce

This one's from Epicurious: miniature Yorkshire puddings (in mini muffin tins) with spicy tenderloin and a mustard sauce

Chicken and beef sates (maybe marinated in a spicy yogurt?)

Other than this, I am stumped. I would like something impressive. If anyone has any suggestions, that would be appreciated.

BTW, I believe these apps are meant to rest on a table, not to be passed. I would like them to be as un-messy as possible as our GM is fanatical about his carpet.

Thanks eG!

[dano1]

Hi everyone.

I need to come up with 2 hot appetizers for tomorrow night's President's Dinner at the country club where I work.  They need to be nice. 

There aren't really any limits as far as ingredients, we just don't have a lot of specialty shit lying around like caviar, smoked salmon, etc. 

I will have ample prep time.

Here are a few ideas I have:

Miniature Bleu Cheese Custards (in mini muffin tins) with a warm Port reduction drizzled on top right before service, on little toasts

Some kind of crostini with artichoke puree, maybe some cress, radicchio or arugula, with lightly seared beef tenderloin

Cubes of tuna (we have that cryovac "Ahi" stuff) with a wasabi-based mayo.  I don't know if these will be any good with our stock tuna.

Salmon "cakes" (silver-dollar sized) with a lemony-yogurt sauce

This one's from Epicurious: miniature Yorkshire puddings (in mini muffin tins) with spicy tenderloin and a mustard sauce

Chicken and beef sates (maybe marinated in a spicy yogurt?)

Other than this, I am stumped.  I would like something impressive.    If anyone has any suggestions, that would be appreciated.

BTW, I believe these apps are meant to rest on a table, not to be passed.  I would like them to be as un-messy as possible as our GM is fanatical about his carpet.

Thanks eG!

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I would pass on the ahi saku block stuff for a raw presentation-too watery and not enough flavor IMO. Ive done shrimp tartare in the past that worked well. Disregard if this was suppsed to be hot :).

Anything with tenderloin will give the impression of "richness"most clubs want. Seared tenderloin and baby arugula would be great combo. Saw a recipe, i think in the Zuni cookbook, for gougeres stuffed with bacon and arugula-maybe take it that way with a little bleu in the gougeres.

Bouches or puff vol au vents are some of my favorites too. You can fill with just about anything-seared bay scallops in a cream sauce, sweetbreads, etc...Or small puff "pizzas" Getting into fall, maybe duck or better duck confit if you have any.

Any belgian endive? Spears make a great "vehicle" to stuff.

BTW 2 hot hors d oeuvres ain't enough for a function like this-is someone else producing cold?

hth, danny

[NeroW]

Danny--

It is a small party with a full dinner service (about 25 - 30) and someone else is producing 2 cold.

I like your gougeres idea and was thinking along those lines. I have never stuffed a gougere. What's your method?

No endive.

[Marlene]

Brie Fritters with a raspberry sauce?

[dano1]

Danny--

It is a small party with a full dinner service (about 25 - 30) and someone else is producing 2 cold.

I like your gougeres idea and was thinking along those lines.  I have never stuffed a gougere.  What's your method?

No endive.

←

Just cut those suckers in half-after baking of course ;). make a sandwich. i could think of a couple of ways to go, skip the bleu and add a dollop horseradish or course mustard, dress your arugula simply, many different variations on this would work great.

hth, danny

[Toliver]

Tyler Florence's "Death-Defying Stuffed Shrimp with Tasso Ham and Crab "

Easy to make. You can also omit the shrimp completely and make just the crab balls from the recipe.

[GordonCooks]

Here' s some ideas from this years sunday night wine nights

Arancini (Fried Risotto Balls) - a fave at my local haunt

Lobster Salad on Sweet potato gaufrette

Duck or Seared tuna spring rolls

Mini Crab Cakes w Lemongrass

Peach Tartlettes w Foie Gras

Stuffed Wagyu Meatballs (Think Db Burger)

Foie Gras & Duck wrapped in Duck Bacon with a Maple Onion Caramel &

Orange zest

[NeroW]

Thank you everyone for the ideas . . .

Gordon, I wish we had foie gras. Haven't seen it there yet. I was supposed to make do with whatever we have on hand, which is a lot, but still, it's limiting.

Toliver, ditto on the tasso ham. There was another recipe I wanted to use that had tasso ham in it.

Marlene--ditto on the Brie! We don't stock it. I think we have every single other cheese on the planet (well, within reason), but no Brie. My Chef does not like it. He SO's it for upgrade cheese trays, and that's the only time it's around.

Dano--taking the gougeres idea and changing it to profiteroles, here is what the Chef chose from 10 or 15 items on my list:

Miniature cheese custard/souffle things: goat, cream cheese, and Maytag. Baked them in mini muffin pans with a walnut crust. These will be served cold on a warm crostini, with an arugula leaf, a toasted walnut half, and a warm Port reduction

Seared tuna brochettes, tuna is marinated in a wasabi-heavy mayonnaise and then grilled to rare. More wasabi to dip.

Chorizo and roasted bell pepper "profiteroles."

[Marlene]

You could probably do Camembert fritters then if you have that. :)

[mklynch]

Meat on a Stick

Everyone loves meat on a stick

[Ocean_islands]

How about miniature hot dogs on toothpicks with ketchup. Also tiny meatballs in a ketchup/grape jam sauce served on toothpicks are a real hit! lol

Edited September 16, 2004 by Ocean_islands (log)

[Abra]

Nero - would you give more details on making your cheese custard thingies on crostini? They sound delicious, although I never in a zillion years would have thought to put the custard in a crust, and then on a crostini.

[Toliver]

Gordon, I wish we had foie gras.  Haven't seen it there yet.  I was supposed to make do with whatever we have on hand, which is a lot, but still, it's limiting.

Toliver, ditto on the tasso ham.  There was another recipe I wanted to use that had tasso ham in it.

←

I, too, didn't have access to Tasso ham when I made the recipe (who outside of New Orleans does? ). I used Canadian Bacon instead. I suppose you could even use regular bacon though it might be a little assertive for the flavors in this appetizer.

[SobaAddict70]

An app I once had at Home Restaurant here in NYC was blue cheese fondue with caramelized shallots and rosemary oil, served with toast points and crostini. Seems like you could do a variation on that.

Apologies if this post is way past your deadline, but perhaps something for the future.

Soba

[Marlene]

An app I once had at Home Restaurant here in NYC was blue cheese fondue with caramelized shallots and rosemary oil, served with toast points and crostini.  Seems like you could do a variation on that.

Apologies if this post is way past your deadline, but perhaps something for the future. 

Soba

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That sounds sooooo good Soba. But then I'm a sucker for anything with cheese.