Now, For Your Easy Appetizer Recipes.

There are heaps of easy appetizer recipes, but do consider how you will carry them to the picnic and if they are suitable for a hot day out in the sun. Here are a few suggestions to get you started.

You will find they are wonderful to have with the drinks from wine basket while you set up your lunch.

...But if you find you really are pushed for time, these really simple appetizers are quicker and easier. We often use the really simple appetizer ideas for a last minute picnic....just raid the pantry or dash to the shop.

Now for the basics to set you up for easy appetizer recipes...  they do involve a little bit of preparation, but really are not complicated.                                                                                                  

  • Mayonnaise...or salad cream
  • Croutons
  • Pesto ...basil or rocket.

    • Then put together something from these great easy appetizer recipes... which are pretty easy to do, but you will still find them tasty and popular with your picnic friends.

  • Smoked salmon...on French sticks, wraps or with avocado
  • Basil, Bocconcini and cherry tomato
  • Tasy olive dip
  • Puff pastry squares...with caviar or pastrami
  • LuLu's bread dip
  • Avocado dip
  • Nance's cheese toasties

    • Picnic recipes and appetizer recipes often have mayonnaise or Salad Cream in them, so here is a recipe for you to start with.

    Mayonnaise…or Salad Cream.

    This homemade flavor is more delicate than commercial mayonnaise and will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for a week.

    This can be made using a blender, or by hand, or with an electric beater but a food processor is the easiest to use.

    This recipe will also be useful for salad recipes.

    You Need...

  • 2 egg yolks
  • ½ teaspoon creamy French mustard (Dijon )
  • Pinch salt
  • 1 cup olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar


    • To Put Together...

  • Beat together egg yolks, mustard and salt until combined
  • Add oil …slowly… drop by drop, then in a thin stream… while still beating mixture
  • When mixture is thickened, blend in lemon juice.

    • If you have a problem with curdling… Beat another fresh yolk and gradually blend that into the sauce.

    Croutons

    They are often tasty with these easy appetizer recipes … so here is a recipe for you.

    If this is too much of a fiddle when cooking the picnic recipes then just buy a packet, as I have when assembling really simple appetizers... but really it is pretty simple to do and you will be so pleased...and you can use them in salads too.

    What you need and what to do...

  • French bread stick sliced fairly thin... or pita bread cut into triangles.
  • Melt 60gm ( 2oz ) of butter and mixed with 1 table spoon of olive oil.
  • Brush this onto bread.
  • Bake in moderate oven for about 5 min or until golden and crisp. Yay, its done, so easy!





    • A Platter made from Easy Appetizer Recipes


    Pesto…Basil or Rocket

    Ingredients

  • 2 cups tightly packed with fresh basil or rocket …or half and half of each

  • 4 cloves garlic

  • ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

  • 1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts

  • 5-6 tablespoons olive oil

    • Method

  • Place basil or rocket, garlic and nuts in blender.

  • Pulse blender few times.

  • Add cheese and continue to blend with olive oil pouring in slowly.

  • If you like a chunky pesto, don’t pulse as long.

    • You will have a great tasty pesto which you can use as a dip with croutons.

    Other suggestions for Pesto…

  • Chopped, fresh vegetables sticks are great…and very healthy… in pesto for picnic recipes.

  • Also a desert spoon mixed into a 1/2 cup of olive oil or French dressing can make a yummy salad dressing for easy appetizer recipes…add more pesto for an even more tastier dressing.


    • Smoked Salmon


    Here are some of the appetizer recipes which our family and friends find most popular.

    Perhaps you might share some of your picnic recipes with us too...please contact us

    There are so many things… yummy things…you can do with this as an appetizer or main course.

    Please make sure you keep it cool.

    Smoked Salmon on French Stick Slices

    … an old favorite from our picnic recipes.

    Ingredients

  • A small French stick

  • 250 gm ( 8oz ) spreadable cream cheese

  • Prepared horseradish..approx 1 tablespoon…or more to taste

  • Packet sliced smoked salmon

  • Thinly sliced red onion rings

  • Caper berries

  • Finely sliced lemon cut into little triangles

    • Method

  • Cut the French stick into rounds

  • Mix horseradish into cream cheese with a fork

  • Spread on French stick quite generously

  • Small slices of smoked salmon are placed on this …just as they come from the packet and with a little upward twist so they look appetizing…or just flat if you prefer.

  • Top with an onion ring and a caper berry.

  • Finish with finely sliced lemon cut into little triangles

  • Cracked pepper is optional

    • Makes about 10 pieces.





    Instead of smoked salmon on French stick rounds, this is also tasty on biscuits or little pastry cases...Note the large caper berries too.


    Smoked Salmon Wraps

    Recently we took this from our picnic recipes and made smoked salmon wrapped around this filling...really yum appetizer recipes.

    See these above in the photo of the platter of easy appetizer recipes.

    For one…

  • A teaspoon of cream cheese( can add horseradish )

  • A caper berry

  • Small wedge of finely cut lemon

  • Tie together with a blanched chive

  • To blanch chives … Pour boiling water into a bowl or deep jug. Dip chives into this for a few seconds. Rinse under cold tap. This makes them pliable for tying.

    This easy picnic food looks soo good and is very popular in the picnic recipes.

    If you have access to large capers with stems still on, they have quite a delicate flavor and look very exotic. Smoked salmon and avocado go together very well too,for appetizer recipes.

  • Make sure you squeeze lemon over avocado to stop oxidation/browning.

    • This adds a tang to the flavor too.

  • Just use avocado chunks instead of cream cheese …or as well as.

  • Tie it with a blanched chive or use a tooth pick.

  • Dill and chives also go well with smoked salmon and you can add a little sprig in with the ingredients in picnic recipes…or sprinkle chopped chives, or dill, over them.


    • Basil, Bocconcini and Cherry Tomato for the Picnic Recipes

    This is so easy and looks and tastes great so do try it for one of your appetizer recipes.

    They also go well with a bowl of pesto to dip them into... see photo of the easy appetizer recipes platter.

    Ingredients

  • Pot of Bocconcini…those small mild cheese balls in brine

  • Cherry tomatoes…similar number and size as Bocconcini

  • Bunch fresh basil

  • Olive oil

    • Method

  • Cut small Bocconcini in halves

  • Cut cherry tomatoes of similar size, also in halves

  • Place a fresh basil leaf…or part of if they are too big

  • Between the cheese and tomato and hold together with a toothpick

  • They should be a good bite size with basil leaf showing out between the two

  • Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over these just as they are served


    • Try this Tasty Olive Dip from the easy appetizer recipes.

    Ingredients

  • 1/2 red onion

  • ½ cup fresh Italian parsley

  • 2 anchovy fillets

  • Approximately 2 teaspoons of capers

  • 6 pitted green or black olives

    • Method

  • Chop fairly finely these ingredients, separately and then combine in a bowl

  • Combine ¼ cup of good olive oil and 1tablespoon of lemon juice and pour over chopped ingredients and mix carefully

  • You can make this the day before with your picnic recipes…cover and store in fridge

    • This dip goes well with French bread, crackers, pita bread or croutons or vegetable sticks for picnic recipes.

    Puff Pastry Squares

    Here is another of the easy appetizer recipes to add to the picnic recipes, simple but tasty. …see photo of easy appetizer recipes.

    Ingredients and Method

  • Purchase a good brand of puff pastry and cut into little 2”-3” rectangles or rounds…easy to handle size

  • Follow instructions for cooking …but because they are such a small size they will only take a few minutes to cook

  • Just watch them go a golden color and take one out and taste to see if it is cooked

  • Split the pastry bits and fill with …

    • Caviar Filling

    Mix ingredients together…

  • 250 gm ( 8oz ) cream cheese

  • 2 tablespoons thick cream

  • 2 tablespoons sour cream

  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

  • 4 tablespoons red caviar

    • Or …

    Horseradish and pastrami filling

    Mix ingredients together…

  • 250 gm ( 8oz ) cream cheese

  • 1/4 pint thick cream

  • 2 tablespoons sour cream

  • 3 teaspoons Horseradish cream

  • 6 slices Pastrami, chopped

  • 2 small gherkins or dill cucumbers, chopped

    • When taking these pastry picnic recipes to a picnic, you will find it best to prepare them at home… and put the filling in just before eating.

    These easy appetizer recipes you can have hot or cold but obviously easier cold when you are picnicking in hot weather. Another of the really yum picnic recipes.

    LuLu’s Bread Dip

    This recipe from my sister is one to add to the easy appetizer recipes …great for hungry picnickers. I have been known to double the picnic recipes if a crowd of people is expected at the picnic.

    Ingredients

  • 1 Large round loaf of bread

  • 250gm Philly cheese (1 packet)

  • 6 Slices of ham… chop into small pieces

  • garlic crushed

  • pepper to taste

  • 6 spring onions…chopped finely

  • 3 tab spoons mayonnaise

  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice to taste

    • Method

  • Cut “lid” off bread and tear inner soft bread into bite size pieces…put to one side

  • Leave bread crust/ shell whole...like a bowl

  • Mix all other ingredients together and put into bread shell

  • Put “lid” back on bread and wrap bread in foil

  • Warm in oven 150⁰C (300⁰ F ) for 1hour 10 minutes

  • For the last 20 min take foil off bread and also put soft bread bits in oven to toast

    • These crunchy bits are dipped into the bread bowl….Yum! We like these picnic recipes either warm or cold.

    Avocado Dip

    Ingredients

  • 2 ripe avocados

  • A good squeeze of lemon

  • ½ cup sour cream

  • 1 ripe tomato

  • 1 small onion

  • 3 cloves garlic

  • Chilli sauce (optional) to taste

    • Method

  • Cut avocado in half lengthwise and remove seed

  • Crush with a fork into creamy chunky bits

  • Add lemon juice

  • Roughly chop tomato and onion…fairly fine

  • Crush or finely chop garlic

  • Combine avocado with roughly chopped tomato and onion and garlic

    • This dip is tasty with just these ingredients, but is also tasty with… The sour cream added. ...And chilli, if you like a bit of bite.

    Serve these appetizer recipes with corn chips or croutons.

    Nance’s Cheese Toasties

    An old family favourite from my Mother’s easy appetizer recipes...always popular with the picnic recipes.

    Ingredients

  • 9 slices of bread

  • 2 eggs

  • 2 cups tasty cheese

  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

  • Few drop Tabasco sauce

  • Pinch pepper and salt

  • Pinch mustard powder...or ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

  • 4-5 chopped rashers of bacon

  • Pinch Paprika

    • Method

  • Cut crusts off and butter bread ( I usually only butter bottom)

  • Cut rind and excess fat from bacon and chop into small pieces

  • Beat eggs

  • Put bacon and Paprika to one side

  • Combine all other ingredients into egg mixture

  • Mix together until thick and creamy

  • Spread on the bread slices

  • Sprinkle bacon on top

  • Sprinkle with a little paprika

  • Cook in oven 150°-160°C ( 300°-325° F ) until brown approx 10-15 mins

    • These easy appetizer recipes should help you when planning your picnic recipes… they are easy appetizer recipes you can use any time...hot or cold.



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