Easy Appetizer Recipes

When time is running short the following 20 easy appetizer recipes offer a great way to entertain guests or amaze the family. Some of the choices can be made of foods you are likely to already have in the fridge while others may require some prior planning and shopping at the grocery store.

1. Anchovies and Red Peppers: Use any good red pepper, such as piquillos that have been roasted. Drizzle olive oil over the pepper and place a high quality fillet of anchovy on top. Garnish with capers.

2. Rye flatbread is topped with thin yet crisp apple and herring. Use plain pickled or schmaltz herring, but not that that is in a cream sause.

3. A skirt steak is seared medium rare. This should take less than 8 minutes. The steak is cubed into pieces less than one inch. Place the steak on top of bread that has been spread using butter or mustard. Sprinkle with course salt.

4.  Mix the highest qualify crab you can afford with shallots that have been minced, a pinch of tarragon or lots of parsley or fresh basil. Bind together using good mayo. Serve on fresh leaves of lettuce.

5. Use a fork to mix high quality tuna with anchovies and garlic that have been minced. Add chopped olives which were cured in oil. If necessary, add olive oil.

6. Comfort food from New York: Begin with bagel chips or small bagels. Coat the tops of the bagels with crème fraîche. Use sturgeon, lox or sable as a topping. This is also great on black bread.

7. Cut goat cheese into slices. Use a brush to apply olive oil. Add chopped herbs, salt and pepper. Top with bread crumbs. Cook in 350 degree oven for ten minutes until soft. Best when served hot.

8. While this may not make the cut as the newest in ketchup, it is excellent. Place roasted red peppers or piquillos in a blender along with a little of the liquid from the container. Add olive oil and salt as the peppers are pureed. This can be served with other foods such as cheese or alone.

9. Butter bread and top using pickles (bread and butter work best) along with ham that has been shaved. For best flavor use country ham.

10. Dice shrimp very finely and sauté using just enough oil to coat a pan. Create a mixture of mayo and pest that will glue the mixture together. Combine with cooked shrimp and refrigerate. For a lower fat version, poach the shrimp instead of sautéing.

11. Tapenade: Add one pound of black olives (pitted) to the food processor, along with one quarter cup of capers that have been drained. Drop in two cloves of garlic and five anchovies. Sprinkle with black pepper and add olive oil as needed while processing so that a paste is formed. Makes a great dip, but it is strong, so use sparingly.

12. Moroccan tapenade: Follow directions from 11, using good quality green olives. Replace anchovies with tuna in oil and add capers and garlic. A little cumin can bring out the flavor.

13. Slowly cook fresh mushrooms that have been chopped and seasoned with pepper and salt in olive oil until soft. Add parsley and garlic (minced). Continue cooking to mellow the garlic. For even better flavor try adding dried porcini that has been reconstituted.

14, Season flour with paprika. Cut pieces of cheese from sheep’s milk such as Manchego into strips that are one half inches in thickness. Drege cheese slices into the flour mixture, then dip in egg. Coat with breadcrumbs. Quickly fry until brown on each side. Allow to drain using paper towels. Keep hot until served.

15. Beef Tartare: Choose beef of a good quality. Use a food processor to pulse meat. Add one egg for every pound of beef along with the following: One pinch minced garlic, one half cup scallions, chopped, 1 T. Worcestershire, 1 t. Dijon mustard and 1 t. dry mustard. Salt and pepper to taste.

16. Add a thick coating of good quality olive oil to a frying pan over low heat. Add a generous portion of thinly sliced garlic. When the oil begins to sizzle, add pimenton and shrimp. Increase heat slightly and cook until shrimp is pink. Add parsley. Coat heavy pieces of bread with oil and place shrimp on top to serve.

17. Season cornmeal using salt, pepper and chili powder. Add oil to a frying pan and heat. Use cornmeal mixture to dredge sliced chicken breasts, oysters or clams and fry for 2-3 minutes per so that each piece is crisp. Serve with bread spread using mayo. Alternatively, sprinkle using lime or lemon juice and serve using toothpicks.

18. Bruschetta: Best when made using high quality country bread. Slice bread thickly and brush using olive oil. Toast under a broiler, but avoid getting it too crisp. While still hot, use a cut garlic clove to rub one side of the bread if desired. Add a little more of the oil and salt. To serve, add tapenade or prosciutto.

19. For a quick but amazing snack, try using white beans that have been cooked until almost falling apart (canned work great) to top the bruchetta. Season using salt, sage and garlic. Lightly drizzle olive oil over the top.

20.  For a more complex flavor with little more work, mash the beans with a high quality can of tuna before topping the bruschetta.