Who has some more original ideas other than wine and cheese?!
Who has some more original ideas other than wine and cheese?
Hubby & I are going out to dinner with 2 other couples tonight. We are all meeting at my house. I want to serve something before we go out other than 'wine and cheese' but, something that doesn't require a lot of cooking and prep. time. Any ideas?
Answers:
10 MINUTE PREP>>>>NO COOKING>>>NO CHILLING>>>
This may SOUND or look like it's a lot of work,-IT'S NOT!
Saw this on Rachel Ray a while back and used the idea myself for a pre-outing get together.....was a big hit!
Once you get all the stuff, it only took me 10 minutes at the most to assemble it all on the tray. When placing on the tray, there's no order....it doesn't have to look "placed"...just throw it on and make it look fun! You dont' have to go with these specific items, go with what you like or heck, things you may already have!
Take a large wooden tray or cutting board to use as your serving platter. (or if you have some other large flat tray)
*Get some nice pepperoni &/or summer sausage and cut into angled slices and place in a "cascading" row(s)....
*do the same with some good gourmet cheese of your choice (not the standard Kraft blocks!)...alternate w/rows of meat
*Get a large bell pepper (any color) cut off the top about 1/4 way down, hollow out and fill with some really good dip (bought or homemade you can even just used ranch dressing!), place on tray and surround with cut veggies
*take either pretzel rods or bread sticks(the crunchy kind) and stand them up in a large brandy snifter or some other cute display and set on the tray amongst the beef, cheese, veggies
*IF you have any other cute little glasses (wine, martini, small glass cocktail bowls) you can fill them with assortments of nuts, &/or gourmet stuffed olives from olive bars found in most grocery stores now by Delallo, and just place them randomly among the tray-or to the side if no more room
As far as drinks.....I had a mini bar set up in which they could make their own either: martinis, vodka tonics, or 7 and 7. I also had some beer on hand for the less fussy drinkers...lol.
My guests were QUITE impressed and said they really liked how comfortable it made them feel....it wasn't "stuffy"
Not counting the mini-bar...I only spent about $20-$25 on enought for 10 people...and actually had some left. Hope that this helps or maybe gives you some ideas!
Deviled eggs and a fruit and veggie tray
Salsa and chips. Or buy a cheese ball and crackers. Good luck and have fun!
a spinach dip, (using Knorr vegetable soup mix) served in a hollowed out sourdough bread....with sesame crackers on the side.
a jar of your favorite honey mustard poured over a slab of cream cheese and served with Ritz or something....
Grab a sourdough round on your way home. Cut the top off, hollow it out, and make a spinach and artichoke dip for filling. Serve with bread cubes, or crudites or chips. Nice appetizer.
Or just pick up some hummus from the store and make a quick parsley oil (epicurious.com) to float on top. My guests raved about it.
A small variety of really good beers, especially slightly obscure microbrews I hadn't seen before, with hot or cold finger foods from a place with a good take-away counter would work fine for me. You can here and there get variety packs of beers from the microbrewers. Some slightly spicy foods would go well with the beer; so would a platter resembling a ploughman's lunch.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ploughman's...
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe...
garlic bread, mexican dip w/ tortillas, fruit or veggie tray
Salmon rolls
Flour tortillas, smoked salmon, cream cheese, green onions and ground ginger
Spread a thick layer of cream cheese, then the salmon and sprinkle with ginger and green onion very finely chopped, then roll up, wrap in plastic and chill for 40 min.
Take off the plastic cover and slice, then eat :)
Cut some pita into triangles, lightly spread with olive oil and some sea salt, bake for just a few minutes so they are lightly toasted.
Serve with hummus!
How about an antipasto tray. Most of these items you can find in a jar at a good specialty market (trader Joes, Fresh Market, etc)
olives
roasted red peppers
marinated mushrooms
high quality salami/pepperoni
prosciutto
sun dried tomatoes
Make your own tacos: Prepare the fresh fixings and pre made taco shells.
Cheese and Chocloate. A wierd combo, I know, and it tastes really strange. Had to decribe. But its nice. I had Chocolate and Cheese bread, and it tastes a lot nicer than it sounds.
Cheese or chocolate fondue! Quite easy to make. Just get your fondue set and start with a few tablespoons of all-purpose cream... add the cheese or chocolates and then dip your preferred food!
if you still want to go with your cheese board, add some grapes (if in season) or nuts.
wine and carpaccio is great too! and minimal prep is needed! plus it taste so heavenly!
lastly, maybe you want to make flatbreads and pate? or how about a pesto/salsa dip? put some cheese too!
good luck!
chocolate and wine
Really fresh Croisants, good jam and butter served with coffee.
Tomatoes sliced with fresh basil and fresh mozzarell. Drizzle basalmic vinigar and good olive oil over it.
Have really good crusty french or italien bread that has been lightly toasted. serve with olives and good olive oil to dip the bread in. Also good with tapenade, or pesto. (Both come pre-made near the pizza sauce section or deli)
Fresh pitas (get them at the local greek restaurant) and taziki sauce.
No matter what you serve, have some nice background music going to help set the mood. Light a candle near the food where you are serving to give theings a glow.
Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get ready, so take care of the food plans in the early morning or the night before.
Sorry, but your cheese / wine / fruit sounds the best. A lot of the other suggestions sound really filling (good, but too filling before dinner).
On your way home, grab a nice french baguette..Most bakeries will even slice it for you...pick up some grated parmesan, if you dont already have it at home and some nice olive oil...Take home the baguette, slap it on a baking sheet, drizzle the olive oil on it and sprinkle parmesan cheese over the baguette slices...Place the oven on 350 and bake for about twenty minutes until nice and toasty....Its simple, its elegant and it wont spoil any dining you might be doing later.....Can also be served with some nice cheese spread or simply cream cheese and jalapeno jelly ( my favorite) ENJOY!!
Steamed artichokes (easy to make)
Ceviche (my local grocery has it already made in the deli)
Bruschetta! Thinly sliced baguette or de-crusted bread (if using store-bought bread, cut the slice into 6-8 pieces) brushed with butter or olive oil and topped with a bit of goats cheese or parmesan, olive pate, sundried tomato (or just about anything you like), popped briefly under the grill. Equally, you can do mini toasts with the thinly sliced baguette or bread, toasted and spread with pate (pork, crab, tuna, smoked salmon, whatever). You can decorate toasts with chopped pimeno, sliced olives or capers.