Appetizers are like your kitchen’s business card; don’t be stingy with them! These recipes will spice up any dinner party and are still easy to make.
Goat cheese guacamole baguette bites
Ingredients:
- 2 ripe avocados
- 3 tablespoons red onion, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, pressed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1/2 cup goat cheese
- 1 tomato, finely chopped
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- 1 fresh baguette, sliced
Directions:
- Cut the avocados in half, scoop out the flesh, and put it in a bowl. Mash with a fork or a potato masher. Add 2 tablespoons of red onion, garlic, lime juice, salt, pepper and goat cheese.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Arrange the baguette slices in a single layer on a baking sheet, and toast them in the oven for about 5 minutes.
- Top the baguette slices with a teaspoon of the avocado mixture, tomatoes and the rest of the onions.
Zucchini cheese bites
Ingredients:
- 5 zucchini
- 1/2 cup blue cheese
- 4 tablespoons Parmesan
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced
- 1 teaspoon dried or fresh basil
- Pinch of salt and pepper
Directions:
- Cut the zucchini into 1-inch slices. Using a teaspoon, hollow them out, but keep the bottoms intact. Lay the little zucchini cups on a greased baking sheet.
- Place about half a teaspoon of blue cheese into each cup. Combine the Parmesan, basil, salt and pepper. Scoop the mixture on top of the blue cheese (leave a little bit for the final topping). Place a slice of the cherry tomato on every zucchini cup, and top with the remainder of the Parmesan mixture.
- Bake at 400 degrees F for about 7 minutes.
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Chinese dumplings
Ingredients:
- Won ton wrappers
- 1/2 cup lean ground turkey
- 3 green onion stalks, minced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Directions:
- Combine 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, the cornstarch and the ginger in a medium bowl. Add the cilantro, green onions and the ground turkey. Mix.
- Place the won ton wrappers on your work surface, and put a teaspoon of the mixture in the centres. Brush the edges with water, fold the wrappers, and pinch or pleat the edges to seal.
- Steam the dumplings in either a special dim sum container or by placing a heatproof plate on a cake rack in a skillet filled with water (home-improvised steamer!) for 5 minutes.
- For the sauce, combine the rest of the soy sauce, lime juice and sugar in a small saucer, and cook on low heat for 1 minute.
Smoked salmon asparagus pinwheels
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup light cream cheese, softened
- 2 tablespoons light mayonnaise
- 1 cup smoked salmon
- 3 slices of a bread loaf (sliced horizontally)
- 3 asparagus spears, cooked
Directions:
- Trim the crust off the bread and, using a rolling pin, flatten the slices slightly. Mix the cream cheese and mayonnaise together. Spread the cheese mixture on the bread, and place the salmon on top.
- Put an asparagus spear at the edge of each, and roll up the bread. Cover with saran wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour. Cut in 1-inch slices.
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