Hens Party Snacks
Roast Beef Canapes
Ingredients (serves 8)
- 30cm-long baguette bread
- olive oil cooking spray
- 200g sliced rare roast beef, cut into strips
- 200g roasted red capsicum, thinly sliced
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Horseradish mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup S&W whole-egg mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon horseradish cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dijon mustard
Method
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Preheat oven to 180°C. Trim ends from bread. Cut into 24, 5mm-thick slices. Place bread slices, in a single layer, on 2 oven trays. Spray with oil. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, swapping trays over halfway through cooking, or until light golden. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
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Make horseradish mayonnaise: Meanwhile, combine mayonnaise, horseradish cream and mustard in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
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Top each bread slice with roast beef. Dollop with horseradish mayonnaise and top with capsicum. Season with pepper. Serve immediately.
Notes
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Toasted bread can be made up to 1 day ahead. Store in an airtight container. Horseradish mayonnaise can be made up to 2 days ahead. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Variation: Replace horseradish and mustard with 2 tablespoons finely-chopped semi-dried tomatoes and 1 tablespoon chopped basil.
Blue cheese tarts with roasted cherry truss tomatoes
Ingredients
- 12 (about 1 x 240g pkt) cherry truss tomatoes
- Melted butter, to grease
- 2 sheets (25 x 25cm) frozen ready-rolled puff pastry, just thawed
- 150g Castello blue cheese
- 12 small fresh basil leaves
Method
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Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Use scissors to cut the tomatoes from the truss, leaving tops intact. Place on the lined tray.
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Preheat oven to 220°C. Brush 12 mini muffin pans with melted butter to grease. Use a 7cm-diameter round pastry cutter to cut 12 discs from pastry. Line prepared pans with pastry discs. Line each pastry case with non-stick baking paper and fill with pastry weights or rice. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden. Set aside to cool.
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Reduce oven temperature to 180°C. Roast the tomatoes for 12 minutes or until the tomatoes soften slightly.
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Place the blue cheese in a small bowl. Use the back of a teaspoon to lightly press until the blue cheese softens. Season with pepper. Remove paper and pastry weights or rice from pastry cases.
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Divide the blue cheese among the pastry cases. Arrange the tarts on a serving platter. Place a basil leaf into each tart. Top with the tomatoes to serve.
Notes
Cook's tip: To ensure you cover the pastry cases completely before baking in step 2, cut your baking paper into 10cm squares. With a twist: Ricotta & chive tarts with roasted cherry truss tomatoes Omit basil. Replace the blue cheese with fresh ricotta. Stir chopped fresh chives into the ricotta in step 4.
Antipasto platter
Ingredients (serves 8)
- 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed
- 100g Primo prosciutto, halved lengthways
- Olive oil cooking spray
- 100g (each) kalamata olives, artichoke hearts, chargrilled eggplant and chargrilled capsicum crackers, to serve
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Pesto dip
- 125g cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup basil pesto
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
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White bean dip
- 400g can cannellini beans, drained, rinsed
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Method
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Make pesto dip: Process cheese, pesto, lemon juice and 1 tablespoon cold water until almost smooth. Transfer to a bowl.
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Make white bean dip: Process beans, lemon juice, garlic and 1 1/2 tablespoons oil until almost smooth. Transfer to a bowl. Drizzle with remaining oil.
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Wrap asparagus in prosciutto. Spray a barbecue plate or chargrill with oil. Heat over medium-high heat. Cook asparagus, turning, for 4 to 6 minutes or until tender.
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Arrange asparagus, olives, artichokes, eggplant, capsicum and crackers on a platter. Serve with dips.
Notes
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You can make dips up to 1 day ahead. Refrigerate dips in separate containers.