How about some simple appetizers before dinner that are quick and easy to make and tasty on the tongue? There are a number of recipes that you could make in your kitchen in a matter of a few minutes. Appetizers come in handy when guests drop in unannounced. So, go for some homemade appetizers rather than your traditional bag of potato chips after a long working day. And if you are feeding guests, try impressing them with your culinary skills.
Jalapeno Pepper and Cheese
You need 10 fresh jalapeno peppers of medium size, 4 ounces of softened and 10 slices of cooked bacon. Cut the peppers lengthwise and remove the seeds and the membrane. Stuff each pepper half with approximately 2 ounces of cream cheese and wrap with bacon. Use a bamboo toothpick instead of a plastic or colored toothpick, to secure the bacon wrap. Bake the entire appetizer at 350 degrees Fahrenheit in an oven or broiler rack until the bacon turns crisp; this should take about 20 minutes. Take the appetizer from the rack, remove the toothpicks and serve it immediately. You can serve 20 people with the above ingredient quantities.
Meatballs on Toothpicks
Place a thick slice of white bread in a bowl and pour 1 cup of milk over it. Soak for five minutes. Squeeze the milk out of the bread. Take 1/2 pound of ground sirloin and 1/2 pound of ground pork; which can be purchased at your grocery store. Chop 1/2 cup of onions and grate 1/2 cup of fresh Parmesan. Mix the bread with ground sirloin, pork, onions and Parmesan. Add salt and pepper to taste to the mixture. The mixture should attain a pastelike consistency. Make 1-inch balls from the mixture. Add bread crumbs of up to 1/4 cup and an egg if the mixture doesn't come together properly. Broil the balls for five minutes turning them over now and then. Prick the meatballs with toothpicks and arrange them on a plate.
Bruschetta
Take eight to 10 small thick slices of country bread and set them aside. Prepare Bruschetta topping first. Take 2 large tomatoes and cut each into half vertically. Remove the seeds and pulp within. Chop the tomatoes finely to the size of big peas and put them in a bowl. To the bowl add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 tablespoon of chopped basil leaves and salt and ground pepper to taste. Stir the contents well and set the mixture aside for 15 minutes. Brush both sides of the bread slices lightly with olive oil and toast in the broiler for three to four minutes until lightly toasted. Cut a clove of garlic in half and rub the cut part on one side of the toast so that the garlic juice spreads into the bread. Apply the topping generously to each slice on the garlic-rubbed side. Drizzle with olive oil on the topping and serve the appetizer immediately.
Mushroom Delicacy
Chop fresh mushrooms first. Add olive oil in a pan on the stove top and cook the chopped mushrooms on low heat. Add salt and pepper to taste and cook for about five minutes until the mushrooms become soft. Chop garlic cloves and parsley leaves and add them to the mixture. Cook until the garlic softens. Serve the appetizer on a plate while hot; you can also add crackers or slices of bread to serve with it.
Tags: five minutes, pepper taste, cream cheese, ground sirloin, minutes until, pound ground, salt pepper