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Apéro Mini Vol-au-Vent

For apéritif we handle them quickly! At our house we are not planning to conjure up a big party menu this Christmas and New Year’s Eve. We don’t have any guests and actually “apéro dining” is something we do every Friday evening anyway; just a lot of snacks we like with a cocktail or a bottle of Cava and a nice movie. For us it’s a cozy, relaxing way to end the week. When I prepare vol-au-vent as a meal, it involves a lot of work and love. “In grandmother’s way” you know… I don’t do that for apéro-dining. First, not much filling is needed for the mini-pastries, and second it shouldn’t take so much of my time. These mini vol-au-vents are tasty AND quick.Ingredients and preparation – mini-vol-au-vent For 24 – 30 mini-pastries 2 chicken breasts cut into small pieces 1/2 lemon – juiced 50g/50g butter and plain flour …

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Lettuce wraps with beets, endive, and apple (v)

So crispy fresh and delicious It’s a salad, yes. How does a salad become finger food? Simple, by cutting everything extra fine and serving it as a wrap. A lettuce wrap – or in this case I also used endive leaf ‘boats’ – that is at once refreshing, crispy, slightly tart and goes well with any of our other apéro suggestions. It’s just wonderful and I can’t imagine it wouldn’t be equally awesome as a stand alone salad throughout the summer season, or as part of a picnic. I’ll be honest, people who don’t like vegetables might not like this. But that’s okay… more for those who do like this kind of thing!Ingredients and preparation – Lettuce wraps with beets, endive, and apple – Vegetarian Makes about 10 wraps plus some extra (see cup) 1 fresh butterhead lettuce (laitue) 1 sweet apple peeled (preferably Pink-Lady) 1 stalk endive cut in …

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Apéro-time Empanadas

The appetizer that works every time! Empanadas are the Central -and South American version of pasties, crescent-shaped, savory pastries filled with a variety of ingredients. They are usually fried, but we prefer baking them to golden perfection. They are quite versatile and can be filled with meat or even made in a delicious Caribbean-style vegetarian version simply by replacing the meat with boiled and shredded  (sweet)potato and carrots. Even better… you can make them ahead of time and freeze, so you always have something to serve unexpected guests that is (almost completely) homemade and thaws/ reheats/ bakes quickly. When we have a party or for any fancy occasion like Christmas -or New Year’s eve, these beef-olive-raisin empanadas are on the menu as a favorite finger food. Hope you enjoy!Ingredients and preparation – Appetizer Empanadas For about 40 appetizers 175 gr lean minced beef – for this recipe, minced turkey or …