Easy Appetizers

Father’s Day – Gifts for Him

Want to give your Dad or the special family guy in your life a unique gift? Why not give him a gift of flavorful Spain? Spaniards love a fiesta – gathering friends and family together to enjoy great food and wine is second nature.

Here are some great gift ideas to help you celebrate Father’s Day in the Spanish style – paella burners for an outdoor paella party, distinctive Spanish grilling sausages, and festive porron wine pitchers are just a few ways to celebrate Spanish-style. Show Dad how much you love him.

Paella Burner with Rolling Stand – Roll this solid paella burner out, hook it up to a standard propane bottle, and you are ready to cook a paella, as easy as that! All you need to do is start cooking (attaches to a normal U.S. propane tank.) Read more about it here.

Glass Porrón Wine Pitcher – The porrón wine pitcher is a festive way to serve wine or sangria. Just pick up the porrón and tilt it so that a thin stream of wine pours directly into your mouth! It takes some skill, but it is fun at a party to see how well you and your friends master the technique. Each porrón holds 1 liter, well over a bottle of wine. Read more about it here.

Grilling Sampler of Spanish Sausages – A selection of three distinct sausages of Spain… all ready for the grill! Slice them in 2 inch chunks for crispy, flavorful bites, or roast them whole. Read more about it here.

Spanish Wine and Cheese Party – Have a pleasant wine and cheese party, with no effort at all! You and your friends can savor three of Spain’s finest artisan cheeses – and then cleanse your palates with a tasty red wine. Read more about it here.

Happy Father’s Day!

Those cute little stuffed cherry tomatoes are so cheerful looking. But best of all, they are delicious, adding a nice touch to your repertoire of simple appetizers. Even if you think you don’t like tomatoes, I bet you’ll change your mind just a little if you tried this easy recipe. These cherry tomatoes are tiny, and stuffed with great flavor. Basically, the tomato acts like a little holder or a cup. And, they present nicely. Try it, you tomato-haters might change your mind!

What you’ll need:
- 48 cherry tomatoes
- Salt
- 1/2 lb sharp cheddar cheese (grated)
- 3 oz. cream cheese
- 2 Tbsp cognac or other good brandy
- 2 oz. pimiento stuffed green olives(chopped)
- Tobasco sauce
- 1/2 cup parsley (minced)

What to do:
First, cut a thin slice from the stem end of each tomato and scoop out center pulp. Yes, it’s a bit labor-intensive and you are wondering where is the “easy” part of this appetizer recipe? Well, what’s easy about it, is the eating part. REAL easy.

Next, sprinkle inside with salt and invert the tomatoes on a paper towel for 10 or 15 minutes. Combine the cheeses and cognac. Blend until smooth and then add olives and 2 or 3 dashes of Tobasco sauce. Fill the drained tomatoes with the cheese mixture, sprinkle with parsley and serve it up!

Serve this easy appetizer on your favorite party platter. Enjoy!

Great Appetizers, Snacks and Man-food for Father’s Day

Dad’s Day is less than a week away. What are you going to do for the special Dad in your life? We’re going to our local airport (small airport) and watch a helicopter show. That’s what the Dad in our family wants to do so that’s what we’re doing. Can’t wait. (No, really!)

Actually, I saw the show last year and it was AMAZING to see the kinds of tricks helicopters can do! But, I’m getting off topic here. Let’s get back to great appetizers and recipes for your Father. Here are a few ideas to spark  your imagination. Even if Dad loves to cook, give him the day off and fill up his plate with some fun MAN-food. He works hard. He deserves it.

Starting with Breakfast:

Hashbrown Casserole
Oh yeah. This is a delicious small feast – bakes up like a dream.
The man in your life will love it!

Move on to lunch (here’s a few ideas to get the ball rolling):

Chicken Wings Recipes
What Dad doesn’t like good ol’ Buffalo Wings or other types of chicken wings.
Here’s a really nice variety of flavors.

Read the rest of this entry »

Schools out, and summer is here – and so are all those delicious fresh fruits. Take a little extra time to make some wonderful healthy fruit snacks that you can serve your kids, your friends, YOURSELF! Fruit is so good for you and these snack ideas will make eating fruit a pleasure. Enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon Snack Mix – It’s a little more involved than other snack mixes, but the extra effort is well worth it.

Apple Pizza – Is this a great after school snack? Or a terrific, yummy dessert? You choose.

Brown Sugar Cherries – This tangy-sweet dip for cherries could be used for any number of fruits or berries, and the cherry stems make dipping extra fun in this great snack.

For more great ideas, visit our Fruit Snacks page.

By now you know I love Spanish food and yes, their cheese is to die for. Manchego cheese is my favorite and as it happens, La Tienda, my favorite Spanish food place online is having a half-off sale on Manchego.

Here’s what La Tienda says about their offering:

Villajos Reserva is an authentic hand-made, raw sheep’s milk cheese. The aged Manchego has a full rich flavor with a healthy sharpness. Slice and serve with olives and sliced Serrano ham for the authentic flavor of Spain. Packed in a wooden box, it would make a superb gift. Read more here.

What is Manchego and what makes it so delicious? It’s a raw sheep’s milk cheese. It’s natural sharpness is a perfect match for the sweet flavor of Membrillo and a perfect way to end a great meal.

One of the things I love about this cheese is how good it tastes with other flavors married to it. For example, Manchego is used as a dessert when paired with a favorite Spanish jelly called Membrillo quince. I have to say, this is my favorite way to eat this cheese.

But Manchego also works well with the tart goodness of Jamon Serrano ham. This combination makes for an excellent addition to your Tapas servings.

However you decide to use Manchego cheese, you’ll enjoy it. It’s a flavor that takes you instantly to Spain. Find out more at La Tienda.com.

With summer just starting and the weather getting hotter every day, grilling your food outdoors is a lot more pleasant that slaving over a hot stove inside. I was reading Fitness magazine the other day and came across these fun grilling facts. Take a look:

- 76 percentage of women who like to grill
- 150 millions of hot dogs Americans eat over Memorial Day weekend
- 100 calories in a turkey dog
- 148 calories in a regular dog
- 49 percentage of grillers who think it’s acceptable to bring their own sauce to a barbecue
- 121 calories you save by grilling  a chicken breast instead of frying it

Now that you know all about the facts of grilling, here’s a really easy appetizer to grill while you are sipping cocktails on the patio.

Mushroom Bacon Bites

What you need:
- 24 medium fresh mushrooms
- 12 bacon strips, halved
- 1 cup of you favorite barbecue sauce

What to Do
1. Wrap each mushroom with a piece of bacon; secure with a toothpick.
2. Thread onto metal or soaked bamboo skewers; brush with barbecue sauce.
3. Grill, uncovered, over indirect medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes or until the bacon is crisp and the mushrooms are tender, turning and basting occasionally with remaining barbecue sauce.

This easy appetizer recipe makes 2 dozen. For more wonderful grilled appetizer recipes, visit our Simple Appetizer Recipes page.

Well, the Spanish food kick I am on continues. It’s just that the food from the Spanish culture is so good. Or maybe it’s because I want to go to Spain and be a part of the Tapeo bar hopping, and the many festivals that each and every small town has each year. So, since that’s not part of my immediate future, I will enjoy making the foods from this warm and lovely culture. Here’s a great cookbook to indulge yourself with.

1080 Recipes
- English edition, 912 pages
- Fantastic collection of recipes from all of Spain
- Over 300 illustrations and pictures

1080 Recipes is the definitive book on traditional and authentic Spanish home cooking, trusted throughout Spain for over thirty years. Written by Spain’s best-loved food authorities, it showcases the fastest growing cuisine in popularity, with Spanish restaurants and tapas bars opening in cities all over the world. A bestseller since publication, 1080 Recipes has sold millions of copies in Spain.

It contains 1080 recipes from all Spanish regions, covering everything from appetizers to stews, from vegetables to desserts. 1080 Recipes is designed by Javier Mariscal, the famous Spanish graphic designer and illustrator, and it includes over 200 illustrations he has created exclusively for this edition along with 100 specially commissioned photographs.

It’s a beautiful cookbook!

For more great ideas for soup appetizers (and other kinds of appetizers too), please visit our Soup Appetizers page.

I’m still on a Spanish food kick. And with hot weather upon us, eating hot foods isn’t always appealing. That’s where traditional Gazpacho comes in and saves the day. Even those who think they don’t like soup – particularly vegetable soup, will change their minds once they’ve tried a sip of this yummy gazpacho.

This basic version is what you’d find if you were traveling around Spain. But, basic does not mean boring, in fact, it is chock full of flavor. But, what is even better about this cold soup, is that it’s filling and can be used as a main course, or just serve a little half cup or so for a delicious appetizer. Enjoy!

What  you’ll need:
- 10 oz of bread
- 21 oz. of tomato
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 onions
- 2 red and green peppers
- 1 cucumber (optional)
- 7 Tbsp of oil
- 2 Tbsp of vinegar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp of water
- Cumin (optional)

What to do:
In a big mortar mash the cumin, the garlic and the soaked bread. Then, in a plastic bowl mix the chopped onion, the chopped tomato, the oil, the vinegar, the salt and the contents of the mortar. Mash it with the mixer and add very cold water to mix everything. Add salt and strain it. Keep it in the fridge until served.

Serve with the tomato, the cucumber, the pepper and the toasted bread cut up. You can sprinkle these toppings on each serving of soup, or serve them in small bowls and let your guests pick which toppings they want to put on the soup.

This easy appetizer recipe serves 4.

Spanish Food
Spain is famous for many things, but one of the best things is it’s food! Spain produces a wealth of natural, healthy foods such as olive oil, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seafood. All of this forms the basis of its traditional recipes.

As my blog reader, you know that I love the Spanish food of Tapas. I am enamored with how you can create beautiful small plates with such simple ingredients. So, I decided to share with you some of those yummy ingredients that you can easily get by going to your local specialty market or by visiting my favorite place online for buying GREAT Spanish food, La Tienda.

Here’s a list of some delicious ingredients. Then visit my Tapas Small Plates page to get some great ideas for Tapas. Enjoy!

Jamón Serrano or Serrano Ham is the famous dry-cured ham of Spain, with Jamón Ibérico the king of Serrano hams. Depending on the recipe, its easy to replace with bacon, or your local ham – such as York ham or Virginia ham.

Chorizo is Spain´s spicy sausage. Other Spanish sausages include Morcilla, made from blood and similar to English black pudding, and Butifarra – a white sausage made from pork, tripe, and pine-nuts. If you can’t find it, you can always replace with a spicy sausage, black pudding, or white sausage from your
own country.

Piquillo Peppers – are small, pointed red peppers from the region of Navarre, which are canned and sold throughout Spain. Replace with canned, ordinary red peppers, or roast a fresh red pepper yourself.

Saffron – is derived from a certain strain of crocus, and used to flavor and bestow that golden-yellow color to dishes.

Cheese – Spain has numerous regional artisan cheeses and, when a certain one is specified, a description of its type follows in brackets, [hard, soft, blue, etc.] Use your local equivalent.

It’s great if you can use authentic ingredients from Spain for your Tapas and cooking Spanish foods, but if not, then use the equivalent. It’s all good!

I wrote a post not too long ago about the history of Tapas Small Plates because tapas are one of my favorite ways to serve appetizers. I think the Spanish did it up right – even from such humble beginnings.

Tapas Small Plates are a wonderful way to entertain guests. Not only does it satisfy the creative chef within, it also is a way to present many small packages of food that represent a wide variety of flavors, plus tapas are easy appetizers to make.

People LOVE appetizers, tapas are Spain’s way of serving them up. I have lots of great ideas and recipes for these Spanish appetizers. Just visit my page at Tapas Small Plates.

Below are a selection of some of my favorite Tapas recipes. And if you don’t have the time or inclination to make your own Tapas small plates, simple visit my favorite site for Spanish food and they will help you out. La Tienda has a wonderful selection for creating a Tapas party.

Bread and Olive Tapas – Delicious and satisfying tapas to make are simply chunks of bread with marinated olives.

Smoked Ham Tapas with Tomato, Garlic and Toasted Bread – (Pan con Tomate, Ajo y Jamon) – Delightfully fragrant and flavorful, this extremely simple smoked ham tapas is made with slices of toasted bread and a few other ingredients.

Figs and Ham Tapas – (Higos con Jamon) – Who would have thought that a combination figs and ham tapas could make such a yummy and simple appetizer?