Quick Hors Doeuvres From Whats On Hand

Within the following roster of hors d’oeuvres, most people will have the ingredients on hand to make some of them without a special shopping trip…especially if you are willing to use the idea but substitute what you do have on hand for what you don’t.

For example, if the roast beef rollups attract you, but you have no roast beef on hand, perhaps you have sliced deli ham. Hot pepper jelly would go well with that, but, looking down the list to the bread-based hors d’oeuvres, you might realize combining ham, onion marmalade and cream cheese would also be a tasty choice.

Use the following as a primer to create your own instant hors d’oeuvres…and you’ll never be more than ten minutes from offering unexpected guests a savoury treat, or treating expected ones to more than the simple dinner they might have been expecting. Also, you can take a look at adding some simple sauces to your main meal to lift the flavour and presentation a bit…or to enhance an entree that didn’t quite live up to your expectations.

Beef rollups, I

Ingredients

Sliced deli roast beef
Cream cheese
Either hot pepper jelly, or cumin/black pepper jelly

Method

1. Spread each slice of beef with cream cheese and then a smaller amount of jelly.
2. Roll up as tightly as possible and cut into wheels with a very sharp knife, taking care not to squash them. Secure with toothpicks if necessary.
3. Serve.

Beef rollups, II

Ingredients

Sliced deli roast beef
Cream cheese
Caponata
Grated parmesan

Method

1. Spread each slice of beef with cream cheese, then with caponata.
2. Sprinkle on grated parmesan to taste.
3. Roll up and secure every inch or so with toothpick.
4. Cut into wheels with a very sharp knife, taking care not to squash them.
5. Serve.

Savoury bread bites

This recipe can serve from one to hundreds, depending on how many slices of bread you use, figuring one per person whether eaten as a starter/appetizer whole (preferably served on salad leaves and with a knife and fork) or cut into bite-size pieces and passed on a canapé tray to a large crowd.

Following are successful combinations of toppings; let your imagination create more from the stock in your fridge and larder.

Basic ingredients to create several varieties of hors d’oeuvres

Pre-sliced bruschetta bread, or any Italian style large flat loaf, cut on the bias
Any of the following to create toppings:
Black olive tapenade
Green olive tapenade
Caponata
Onion or onion/garlic marmalade
Cream cheese
Emmenthal cheese
Grated parmesan
Grape tomatoes
Very thinly sliced red onions
Italian seasoning herb blend
Herbes de Provence
Black pepper
Salt
Olive oil

Tomato snacks

Method

1. Toast the bread lightly.
2. Spread it with either of the olive tapenades or cream cheese.
3. Top with halved grape tomatoes, flat side down, filling the space.
4. Brush tops of tomatoes with olive oil.
5. Sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning herb blend or herbes de Provence and parmesan.
6. Broil on high on next to top rack until tops of tomatoes begin to brown and wrinkle.
7. Remove.
8. Serve one whole slice as a starter/appetizer per person, or cut several slices into smaller pieces and arrange on a hors d’oeuvres tray to serve.

Savoury tomato/onion snack

Method

1. Toast the bread lightly.
2. Spread each slice with cream cheese.
3. Spread with caponata.
4. Top caponata with spaced dribbles of onion or onion/garlic marmalade.
5. Broil on high on next to top rack until tops of tomatoes begin to brown and wrinkle.
6. Remove.
7. Serve one whole slice as a starter/appetizer per person, or cut several slices into smaller pieces and arrange on a hors d’oeuvres tray to serve.

Cheesey bites

Method

1. Toast the bread lightly.
2. Spread each slice with cream cheese.
3. Place thinly sliced red onions on the cream cheese.
4. Break emmenthal slices into one-inch bits and sprinkle atop the onions.
5. Add a sprinkling of black pepper.
6. Broil on high on next to top rack until tops of tomatoes begin to brown and wrinkle.
7. Remove.
8. Serve one whole slice as a starter/appetizer per person, or cut several slices into smaller pieces and arrange on a hors d’oeuvres tray to serve.

NOTE: You can use almost any meltable cheese on hand. A pepper jack would be luscious. Cheddar would work, and you might think about adding a tiny bit of pickle as well as onion, making it a sort of Ploughman’s Lunch on the hoof. A runny brie would not need the cream cheese base and you might want to substitute very thinly sliced shallots, used sparingly, as the cheese itself has significant, elegant character.