Issue Date: December 10, 2006
Holiday Entertaining
6 fun ways to feed friends
You've been wined and dined by your friends all year, and now it's time to reciprocate. The following finger foods -- savory and sweet -- offer broad appeal without breaking the bank. Feed half the neighborhood with a spiral-cut ham and a relish that starts with canned cranberry sauce. Satisfy dozens of guests with chicken Caesar salad toasts made with a rotisserie bird. Eye-catching cheese balls get coated with wasabi peas. Finish with white fudge, mini pumpkin muffins and coconut cream tartlets made from egg roll wrappers.
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Mini Ham & Swiss Sandwiches with Cranberry-Onion Relish
If you run out of time to assemble the sandwiches, simply set out the spiral-cut ham along with the relish, mustard and rye bread, and let people assemble their own.
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 large onions, cut into medium dice
4 tsps. minced fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 16-ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce
1 16-ounce package cocktail rye bread
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 pounds thin ham slices from a baked spiral-cut ham (or substitute Black Forest ham), cut to fit rye bread
12 ounces thinly sliced Swiss cheese, cut to fit rye bread
Arugula or other baby salad greens, optional
Toothpicks
Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions; sauté until well-browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Add rosemary and cloves; continue to sauté until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Stir in cranberry sauce, and simmer until heated through. Removefrom heat and set aside. (Cranberry-Onion Relish can be cooled, covered and refrigerated up to 2 weeks ahead.)
To assemble: Working in batches, lay breads on a work surface and spread with about 1/4 tsp. mustard and 1 tsp. cranberry relish. Top half the breads with a portion of ham, cheese and arugula (optional), then the remaining bread slice. Halve each sandwich on the diagonal, sticking each half with a toothpick. (Sandwiches can be covered with a damp paper towel and plastic wrap and can remain at room temperature for 2 hours.)
MAKES 44 SANDWICH HALVES
PER SERVING: 118 calories, 7g protein, 10g carbohydrates, 5g fat (2g saturated), 19mg cholesterol, 1g fiber, 397mg sodium
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Chicken Caesar Toasts
8 garlic cloves
1/2 cup, plus 2 tsps. olive oil
2 baguettes, cut into 4 8 1/2-inch-thick slices
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. finely grated zest and 3 Tbs. juice from a large lemon
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus shavings for garnish
3 cups of shredded breast meat from a large rotisserie chicken
4 cups baby salad greens, romaine, if possible
Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 425 degrees.
Mince garlic in a food processor or blender. With motor running, slowly add 1/2 cup of the olive oil. Continue to process for about 30 seconds, then strain oil through a fine-mesh strainer. Add 2/3 of the garlic back into the oil, and reserve remaining garlic for the dressing.
Arrange bread on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Brush garlic oil over bread. Toast until crisp and golden, about 7 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk mayonnaise, lemon zest and 2 Tbs. lemon juice, Worcestershire, grated Parmesan, and reserved garlic in a small bowl. (It can be covered and refrigerated for several hours.)
When ready to serve, toss dressing with chicken; season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss salad with remaining 2 tsps. of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle in remaining 1 Tb. lemon juice; toss again. Top each toast with a portion of greens, chicken and a Parmesan shaving. (Toasts can stand uncovered for up to 2 hours.)
MAKES 48
PER TOAST: 114 calories, 5g protein, 10g carbohydrates, 6g fat (1g saturated), 9mg cholesterol, 1g fiber, 163mg sodium
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Crunchy Wasabi Cheese Balls
1 cup wasabi peas (about 4 ounces)
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 Tbs. snipped chives
1 1/2 tsps. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
Grind wasabi peas in a food processor to pebble and sand texture (or place peas in a 1-quart freezer bag and crush them with a rolling pin). Place in a shallow pan.
Mix cream cheese, chives, soy and pepper with a fork until well-blended. (Peas and cream cheese mixture can be covered and refrigerated for 2 days.)
About 30 minutes before serving, use a 1 tsp. measuring spoon to drop cheese mixture into the pan of wasabi peas; roll into balls, coating each with ground peas. Place on a serving platter.
MAKES 38
PER BALL: 38 calories, 2g protein, 3g carbohydrates, 2g fat (1g saturated), 6mg cholesterol, 1g fiber, 30mg sodium
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Coconut Cream Tarts
Variation: To make banana cream tarts instead, omit coconut and top each tart with 2 banana slices. Round wonton wrappers can be substituted for the egg roll wraps.
1/2 cup, plus 2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (4 whole crackers crushed in a food processor)
12 egg roll wraps, stacked and cut into 48 squares
6 Tbs. butter, melted, plus 2 Tbs. for custard
3/4 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1/4 cup cornstarch
5 large eggs yolks, lightly beaten
2 cups whole milk
1 5-ounce can evaporated milk
2 tsps. vanilla extract
Adjust oven racks to lowest and lower-middle positions, and heat oven to 325 degrees. Spray 48 mini-muffin cups with vegetable cooking spray.
Mix 1/2 cup of the sugar and graham cracker crumbs in a small bowl. Working in 4 batches, lay 12 cut egg roll wrap squares on work surface. Brush wrappers with melted butter on both sides, and roll each piece in the graham cracker mixture to coat, shaking off excess. Use fingers to fit wrappers in prepared muffin tins to form a cup.
Place 2 muffin tins each on oven racks and bake, switching tin positions after 10 minutes, until golden and crisp, 15 to 18 minutes. Immediately remove tarts from tins and place on a wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining wraps. (Cooled tart shells can be stored in an airtight tin for up to 1 week.)
Scatter coconut in an 8-inch baking pan. Bake on lower-middle rack, stirring every 5 minutes until evenly golden brown, about 15 minutes. For the filling, whisk cornstarch and remaining 2/3 cup sugar in a medium saucepan. Whisk in yolks, immediately followed by the milks. Turn heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently at first, then constantly as mixture starts to thicken, 8 to 10 minutes. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute longer. Stir in vanilla, remaining 2 Tbs. of butter and 1/2 cup of the toasted coconut. Put plastic wrap directly over the surface to prevent a skin from forming, let cool, then refrigerate. (Filling can be refrigerated up to 2 days.)
When ready to assemble, arrange tart shells on a serving tray. Spoon a tablespoon of filling into each shell, sprinkle with toasted coconut, and serve.
MAKES 48
PER TART: 70 calories, 1g protein, 9g carbohydrates, 4g fat (2g saturated), 30mg cholesterol, 0.1g fiber, 48mg sodium
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Trail Mix White Fudge
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup dried apricots, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 cup roasted pistachios, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup crystallized ginger, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 5-ounce can evaporated milk
1/4 tsp. salt
8 ounces (1 1/2 cups) white chocolate chips (or a bar, cut into medium dice)
1 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows
Like fruitcake batter, there's just enough fudge to hold the fruit and nuts together.
Spray an 8-inch square pan with cooking spray. Fit an 8-by-16-inch sheet of foil in the pan so that you can use the foil overhang as a handle to pull fudge from the pan.
Place cranberries, apricots, pistachios and ginger in a medium bowl. Then bring sugar, milk and salt to a full rolling boil in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Simmer, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and starts to turn a pale caramel, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, quickly stir in marshmallows, then chocolate, and stir vigorously until the marshmallows start to melt.
Pour mixture into bowl with fruit and nuts; continue to mixvigorously (hands work well once mixture has cooled to warm) until fruit and nuts are evenly distributed. Press fudge into prepared pan. Refrigerate until cool and hard, about 1 1/2 hours.
MAKES 42 PIECES
PER PIECE: 73 calories, 1g protein, 12g carbohydrates, 3g fat (1g saturated), 2mg cholesterol, 0.4g fiber, 32mg sodium
This fudge features fruit and nuts.
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Mini Pumpkin Muffins with Orange Drizzle
1 15-ounce can 100% pure pumpkin
1 1/2 tsps. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
Orange Drizzle:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 tsp. finely grated orange zest
4 tsps. orange juice
Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Spray 36 mini-muffin cups with vegetable cooking spray.
Bring pumpkin, ginger, cinnamon and cloves to a simmer in a medium saucepan until purée thickens enough to start sticking to pan bottom, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn hot purée into a bowl. Whisk in brown sugar and oil, then slowly beatin eggs.
Meanwhile, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; whisk into pumpkin mixture until just combined.
Divide batter among the muffin cups and bake until golden and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Let stand a few minutes, then transfer mini-muffins to a wire rack to cool. Mix the drizzle ingredients together and drizzle over warm muffins.
MAKES 36
PER MUFFIN: 91 calories, 1g protein, 14g carbohydrates, 3g fat (1g saturated), 12mg cholesterol, 1g fiber, 89mg sodium
Pam Anderson is the author of four cookbooks: "Perfect Recipes for Having People Over," "CookSmart," "How to Cook Without a Book" and "The Perfect Recipe." She entertains family and friends with husband David in their Connecticut home. Find more finger food ideas online at Allrecipes.com.
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