Open House with Great Appetizers

My culinary skills are occasionally called for when one of the local realtors wants to make a real splash presentation to promote a higher end home for sale. Tetiana Althoff was holding such an open house a couple of weeks past, and she asked if I could make some of my tried and true Appetizers, making a lovely presentation for the home; the owners supplied wine to pair with the food. 

Andouille Coins in Puff Pastry

The appetizers she requested for this open house were Green Pea Pancakes with Smoked Salmon Mousse, Mini Sweet Peppers with Honey-Chevre Cream, Millard's Mini-Artichoke Quiches, Andouille Coins in Puff Pastry, Flank Steak Rolls with Gorgonzola Walnut Spread and Mini Pecan Tarts.  Some of these recipes were oldies but goodies (for me) and others were embellished as the muse struck. 

I love using the little mini sweet peppers, as they are colorful and add in a nice fresh note. This time I threw together a goat cheese and honey mixture that turned out absolutely delightful either used as I did here piped onto the peppers, or just used as a delicious spread for crackers. I used a large open star tip to pipe the mixture onto the peppers.

Chevre-Honey- Cream

Mini Sweet Peppers
with Chevre-Honey Cream

2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons good-quality extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
8 ounces Chevre or Montrachet goat cheese
3 tablespoons cream cheese 
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt

Heat together the olive oil and honey with the lemon zest. Allow to steep for at least 15 to 20 minutes, then strain the mixture. Aside, beat together the goat cheese with the cream cheese, then add in the strained honey-oil mixture and season with salt and pepper. Beat well to combine, then chill until needed.

If using as a dip or spread, the mixture may need to come to room temperature before using. If piping onto the peppers, use a large star tip to pipe one large star onto the pepper strip. This can be piped onto a cracker, a carrot strip, cucumber slice or any vegetable of your choosing. 

Green Pea Pancakes with Smoked Salmon Mousse

Whenever I go back to a recipe, no matter how wonderful, I cannot help but tweak. It seems to be a failing of mine - I can never leave well-enough alone. I tried adding things to the green pea pancakes, to enhance the flavor. Unfortunately in this case, I went too far. I scrapped the whole batch and started over, using the original recipe. They were absolutely delightful the first time. No need for more enhancement. For the recipe for these cute little appetizers, click on the title of the photo above or click here. If you serve these little appetizers, I can tell you, Prosecco is a fantastic pairing.

Flank Steak Rolls with Gorgonzola Walnut Spread

Another of the appetizers I am asked to make time and again, the Flank Steak Rolls with Gorgonzola Walnut Spread are unfailingly good. The combination just cries out for a nice bold dry red wine, which was what they were originally created to pair with. A really wonderful thing about this recipe for the flank steak is that it turns out perfect every time, and I have made it so many times now, for various events, I cannot even count anymore. The meat is fairly rare in the center, but this keeps it both moist and tender. Flank steak has little to no fat, so it can get very dry and tough, very quickly. A thing to note when slicing flank steak: slice it thinly and across the grain. Flank steak has a very strong one-way grain to the meat. Cutting along those lengths will result in a long and stringy meat with little hope of eating, much less eating gracefully. 

Millard's Mini Artichoke Quiches

One of the appetizers I have been making, perhaps more often than most any other, is Millard's Mini Artichoke Quiches. "Millard" was a neighbor when we lived in Florida, and he shared this recipe in the development's newsletter. I read the recipe and thought, "How could this possibly work?" But it does, and beautifully. I have most often made them as mini quiches (Millard called them "Muffins"), though his recipe stated that they can also be made larger, about 6 per recipe, in regular muffin tins. I did this once. They were fantastic. But I tell you, for quick and easy appetizers, these just take the cake. (If you like hot sauce, Sriracha is amazingly good dotted on top of these little things!) Millard's recipe called for saltine crackers crumbled into the mixture, or they can be left out. I have made them both ways. While delicious either way, I find that leaving out the saltines left the outcome with an odd texture. They still taste great. So I got thinking. Being conversant with gluten free cooking and baking, I have on some occasions used psyllium husks to simulate the structure given by the often called for xanthan gum. I have found I just do not like the flavor xanthan gum gives to foods. Psyllium offers the structure with no taste. I used 2 tablespoons of psyllium husks in this batch of these mini quiches and the texture was perfect. I may just use this method from here on out!


For a little sweetness, Tetiana and I decided on some little Pecan Tartlets. Again, these were made in the mini-muffin tins, so they are just a bite or two. Surprisingly easy to make, though the fitting of the crusts into the mini tins is a little bit of a chore. I have found that my marble pestle, which has the thicker end for crushing spices in the mortar, and the narrower end that you hold, works fantastically to fit the tart pastry into the mini tins. The dough is made and rolled into little balls, then chilled. Placing one little ball into a mini tart well, and with the larger end of the pestle, I press the dough in, creating a large dip, the beginning of the fit. Then with the narrow end of the pestle, I roll that tip pressing the sides to the edges of each well. This has worked for me for many years.

Pecan Nut Tarts

Pecan Nut Tarts

Makes 28

¼ cup unsalted butter
3 ounces cream cheese
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
Pinch of salt
2 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup pecans, chopped

With a pastry cutter combine the first three ingredients until they come together as dough. Chill until firm.  Then, divide the dough into 28 evenly sized balls. Set one ball into each of the wells of mini muffin tins and fit the pastry into bottom and up the sides. Set the tins in the refrigerator until ready to bake. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, egg, salt, vanilla, melted butter and pecans. Fill the pastry lined mini tart shells about 3/4 full with this mixture and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes. Do not over bake!

Holiday season is fast approaching (AGAIN!), so I hope maybe these recipes can provide easy party fare for whatever event you might be hosting. All these are excellent recipes. The hardest part is not overeating them!



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Flank Steak Rolls a Hit at Wine Tasting

Host, Ty, at left: gathering around the foods

Last evening an informal wine tasting was held at the lovely home of Ty and Ann Hanson. I made a few appetizers to contribute to the foods. I have to say I had more fun last evening than I have in a long while. The circle of friends attending were all lovely and convivial. I had a few people who love cooking, and with whom to bounce ideas back and forth. My husband had someone to talk computer geek stuff. We both came away from the evening happy and grateful for such lovely people and such a lovely time. 

Michelle Podoll setting out the wines

I wrote about this upcoming event about 10 days ago, when I was doing a trial run of a couple of the recipes I was planning. My goal is always to pair foods with wines in a way that brings out the best in both. I had created the Lemon Thyme Chicken Fillo Cups to pair with a Ferarri Carano Chardonnay and also with a Pinot Noir. I am happy to report, after last evening's event, that this appetizer paired well with both these wines. The wines presented ranged from about $13 to $73 in price. There was a Cabernet Sauvignon from Spain, a Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, two Zinfandels, a Rhone varietal blend and a Chardonnay from California, an Italian Chianti and a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. 

Asiago/cream cheese logs

The other appetizer I had made as a trial run on that same day needed a little modification. This second appetizer was Flank and Asiago Rolls. In the trial run I rolled a narrow rectangle of Asiago cheese with a sliver of scallion in the individual flank steak bites. The fact that Asiago will tend to crumble a bit meant that in some of the rolls, sticking the toothpick through the roll meant the cheese broke in half. Plus, the cheese was a bit overwhelming this way. My sister-in-law, who was there to taste these trial runs, suggested maybe grating the cheese and mixing with cream cheese. I thought this was a great idea. I wanted to keep the strength of flavor of the Asiago, being the component that would make it a good pairing with the strength of the Cabernet Sauvignons being served.

While prepping for the event of last evening, I did grate the Asiago cheese finely (using a small-holed grater (rendering thin strings much like the fresh grated Parmesan one finds in the grocery) and mix in just enough cream cheese to make the mixture form-able. I wanted to roll the cheese into narrow logs this time, making it easier to roll in the sliced meat segments. I ended up with 84 little logs, 6 to 7 grams, or .21 to .25 ounces each. I was completely happy because, as it turned out, I had only two thin bits of the flank steak left, after using the entire 84 cheese logs. Great eye for what was needed (as I pat myself on the back!).

Flank & Asiago Rolls, served

How many appetizers this recipe will yield depends on how one slices the flank steak, and how accurately the little cheese logs are weighed. The cheese logs can easily vary widely, so I used a little scale to ensure they did not vary beyond 6 grams. I have sliced many flank steaks for similar type appetizers, so I have some practice, but it is not a difficult thing to do. There will be waste involved (which we are happy to devour!). Ends that are too thick and not long enough to make into a roll - there is no getting around the waste there. Some slices will end up thicker than others. Just keep slicing and thinking "thin".

Flank & Asiago Rolls

Makes about 80 to 85, approximately

Flank & Asiago Rolls

MEAT:
2.3 pound flank steak
¼ cup Sweet Smoky Cocoa Rub
¼ cup olive oil
1½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chipotle powder
6 - 8 cloves garlic, minced finely

CHEESE:
12 ounces Asiago cheese, grated finely
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
¼ cup Hoisin Sauce
scallions, slivered for rolling
toothpicks for skewering

The hostess, Ann, prepping salad

One or two days before, Combine the Sweet Smoky Cocoa Rub with the olive oil, salt, chipotle powder and garlic. Place the flank steak into a gallon sized zip-top bag. Take one half of the oil mixture and rub evenly onto the steak in the bag. Flip over the bag, and apply the remaining mixture evenly onto that second side of the steak. Seal the bag and place in the refrigerator for 1 or 2 days.

Up to 3 days in advance, prepare the cheese. Grate the Asiago finely, and using hands or a hand mixer, thoroughly combine with the cream cheese. It is best to use a scale or some implement to make all the cheese logs of equal size. Measure out a small amount. Six grams is plenty. Roll this into a log about 2 inches long. Repeat with the remaining mixture, setting the logs into a container as shown in the photo above. Set waxed paper between layers.

Have ready the scallions. If larger, slice lengthwise down the scallion, then cut this into lengths about 2 or so inches long. Store these in a zip-top baggie in the fridge if making the day before or earlier in the day.

The day before, or early on the day needed, preheat the broiler with the oven rack on the second level from the top. Set a rack onto a low rimmed baking sheet (cover the baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup later), set the steak on the rack and place under the broiler for approximately 6 minutes per side. Remove from oven and tent with foil until cooled. The meat can be sliced at this point, but there will be far more mess. If possible, once the meat is cooled, wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight before slicing; once sliced, the slices can be stored one more night in the fridge.

Once ready to slice, begin at one end, cutting across the long grain of the meat. Set the knife at an angle away from you to get wider strips of meat. All that is vitally important is that all the slices be across the grain, ensuring tender meat. Slice the meat as thinly as possible. Once the meat is too wide for the knife to span easily, slice it into two sections lengthwise. Then, continue to slice off thin pieces until all the meat is used up. I used a 2.3 pound piece of flank to yield the 86 rolls. The slices of meat will need to be long enough to wrap around the cheese log and scallion sliver.

It takes about 40 minutes to make all the rolls. Set the Hoisin Sauce in a small bowl and have a pastry brush ready. Set the flank slices, cheese logs, scallions and toothpicks arrayed near you. Lay out a slice of meat and using the pastry brush, dab a small amount of Hoisin sauce on the slice. Set one cheese log and a sliver of scallion across the width of the meat and roll to encase. Skewer with a toothpick. Repeat with all the remaining meat. These should be eaten the day they are rolled as the scallions become soggy if kept too long.

My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.