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12/12/2018 06:00 AMAn appetizer-only party, during the holidays and particularly for New Year’s Eve, is a great way to entertain and something that is increasingly popular, particularly during the busy holiday season.
Madison’s Michele Vejar is such a big fan of the all-app get together that she is hosting an event at Page Hardware, 9 Boston Street, Guilford on Saturday, Dec. 15, from noon to 2 p.m., focused entirely on appetizers and specifically those that are ideal for a New Year’s Eve gathering. The event is free and open to all. Many of the appetizers are featured on her website: thetravelingepicurean.com.
“Appetizers are my favorite thing to eat, because you get all these little bites of deliciousness,” she says. “There are just so many yummy apps one can make for a holiday party. You have to draw the line somewhere, so it’s good to have a theme to your spread.”
One thing she usually always includes is a dip. Her go-to dip is a buffalo chicken appetizer. She says that will be among the first she will be serving at the event at Page’s, “because it’s undeniably an all-time fave of everyone and the first thing that disappears.”
She also will offer recipes and tips for crostini and bruschetta-based apps, baked wonton shells with mango chutney shrimp, stuffed mushrooms, and another of her all-time favorites, baked asparagus with prosciutto and a cream cheese/onion spread.
Other easy holiday apps include bacon wrapped water chestnuts, and something she calls clam puffs, which is a baked clam dip on toasted bread.
My Mom’s Fave
My go-to apps include my mom’s artichoke dip, which is quite simply a can of quartered artichoke hearts, a scant cup of mayo, and a cup of Parmesan cheese. I sometimes add about a teaspoon of freshly crushed red pepper, and some parsley, though that is optional. Drain, rinse, and shred the artichoke hearts, mix all the rest of the ingredients, and bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Sometimes if I’m in a hurry, I microwave it for a few minutes, then finish it in the oven until it’s bubbly and browned on the top. You can use supermarket parm for this, but it’s really best to go to your local cheesemonger and get some authentic Parmesan and grate it yourself. It’s a bit more pricey, but well worth it.
At a recent party I attended, a friend asked me to set some dip aside and explained he likes to include it in omelets the morning after the party, which is something I plan to try next time I have some leftover. The thing is, like Michele’s buffalo chicken appetizer, there usually isn’t any leftover.
Other than that, I’m a big fan of hitting the local cheese shop for appetizers and usually get a triple cream, some kind of fabulous aged cheddar, then something else at the recommendation of the cheesemonger. If it’s a last minute get together, or you just don’t have time to make something, stuffed breads from a local pizza parlour are always welcome, as are pizzas. Antipasto platters are a great option, as are veggie platters.
‘You’ll Be A Hero’
Kaitlin McDermott of Essex says she loves the dip made with Knorr’s, chopped spinach, jalapeno, and water chestnuts. That recipe and many more like it can be found at www.knorr.com. She also loves seared tuna, about a ¼ -inch thick, on a stick, served with soy sauce with chopped-up scallions. She presses sesame seeds into the tuna before serving.
Lynne Charles of Madison, a vegan, is making a vegan not-cheese Yule Log. Many vegan cheese start with a base of soaked nuts, then add garlic, garlic powder, nutritional yeast, sea salt, and other spices. They don’t always taste exactly like cheese, and sometimes they taste better than cheese. For recipes for vegan cheese, check out Minimalistbaker.com or www.thebuddhistchef.com.
Priscilla Martel of Chester loves making a fromage fort from leftover bits of cheese, great on baguette slices, and then baked. “It’s a staple,” she says. “And gravlax. So easy to make, and it always feels appropriate at the end of the year.” She also favors a red pepper and almond romesco sauce for dipping veggies, and hot smoked trout rillettes. “Use the coarsest chip for the trout, and blend it with butter, scallions, capers, mustard, white wine,” she says. “It’s chunky and good.”
Michael Mccleery of Branford swears by his Thimble Islands Pate, made with Braunschweiger Lite that he gets from Caron’s Corner in Branford. “Throw in cognac, onions, and capers and you’ll be a hero,” he says. He says the Braunschweiger Lite is both good and affordable. “Never any leftovers.”
Recipes in bold included here:
Best Buffalo Chicken Dip Ever!
from the Traveling Epicurean
Michele Vejar
Ingredients:
¾ lb chicken tenderloins
1 tbsp olive oil
Sprinkle of salt
1 8-oz pkg Philadelphia Cream Cheese
Frank’s Hot Sauce
Buffalo sauce: ¼ cup (½ stick) butter (Kerrygold or favorite) & 1/3 cup Franks Hot Sauce
¼ cup Blue cheese crumbles
¼–1/3 cup sharp cheddar cheese
¼–1/3 cup mozzarella
one 9”–12” baking dish
Directions:
• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Melt ½ stick of butter, take off the heat and add ¼-½ cup of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce, whisk until combined. This is the homemade buffalo sauce. Set aside
• Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a pan on medium heat. Add in the chicken tenderloin pieces to the pan. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, begin to sauté for 3 minutes. Flip chicken pieces over and sauté another three minutes. Once they start to golden brown slightly, add two tablespoons Franks hot sauce, and let reduce on low one to two minutes. Remove from heat and shred or cut up.
• Smear 8 oz. of room temperature cream cheese in bottom of your baking dish. Add the shredded chicken for the next layer. Drizzle homemade buffalo sauce over the chicken, saving some to drizzle after the layer of cheeses. Sprinkle quarter cup crumbled blue cheese. Sprinkle a quarter to a third cup cheddar and mozzarella each. If you want, you can drizzle more buffalo sauce over the cheese.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes until bubbly. Serve with tortilla ships, carrots, and celery.
Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts
from the Traveling Epicurean
Michele Vejar
Ingredients:
2 cans whole water chestnuts (Vejar uses Geisha with about 18 per can)
1 lb. Boar’s Head bacon (sliced into 3” strips)
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tbsp Colemans dry mustard (if you like it less spicy only use 1 tbsp)
Directions:
• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Whisk brown sugar and dry mustard together in a medium size bowl
• Slice up the bacon into 3” pieces. Place each water chestnut on the bacon strip and roll-up. Then roll it around in the brown sugar mixture, you will need to press down a little to help the mixture adhere. Place this seam-side-down on a cookie sheet. You can use a silicone baking mat or Silpat. Do not use foil because it will stick.
• Bake for about 15 minutes. Do not flip them over. The bottoms will be more caramelized then the tops so flip them over when you plate them. Be sure to let them cool a pinch before eating because the chestnuts get pretty hot along with the sugar.
• These are a great party item because you can prep a day ahead, but do not dredge them into the brown sugar mixture until right before you put them into the oven or they will get watery. Just wrap chestnuts in bacon, place onto a cookie tray and pop them into the frig until you are ready for them.
Fromage Fort
from Food & Wine
Jacques Pepin
www.foodandwine.com/recipes/fromage-fort
This is a great recipe if you like to buy great cheese. There are always little bits and pieces left over, still delicious but not quite enough to serve to company. This way you can use them right up to the last bit.
½ pound cheese pieces
1 garlic clove
¼ cup dry white wine
Black pepper
Salt
• Put about a half pound of cheese pieces in the bowl of a food processor. Add 1 garlic clove, about ¼ cup of dry white wine, and a big grinding of black pepper. Salt is usually not needed, but taste the mixture and add some if it is.
• Process for 30 seconds or so, until the mixture is creamy but not too soft, and then pack it into small containers. The fromage fort is ready to use now, either served cold or spread on bread and broiled for a few minutes.
• Broiling will brown the cheese and make it wonderfully fragrant.
Romesco Sauce
from Bon Appetit
www.bonappetit.com/recipe/romesco-sauce
Ingredients
1 large roasted red bell pepper from a jar
1 garlic clove, smashed
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
¼ cup tomato purée
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
• Pulse first eight ingredients in a food processor until very finely chopped.
• With motor running, slowly add oil; process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Do Ahead: Romesco can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and chill.
Smoked Trout Rillettes
from Epicurious.com
¾ cup mascarpone or cream cheese
¼ cup finely chopped green onion
1½ tablespoons (or more) fresh lemon juice
1½ cups small pieces smoked trout fillets without skin and bones
Optional: 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill, plus sprigs for garnish
Directions:
• Mix mascarpone or cream cheese, green onion, chopped dill (if using), and 1½ tablespoons lemon juice in small bowl. Add trout and stir gently to blend. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired. Transfer mixture to small serving bowl.
• This can be made a day ahead. Cover and chill. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.
• Serve with crackers, bread slices, radishes, and celery stalks.