Recipe of the Week – Frugal Entertaining – Try Small Plates
April 12, 2010 at 8:20 am Leave a comment
(From the Appetizers Category at www.emealsforyou.com)
Tomato Crostini
Coming off an extended period of cooking for company I thought it would be the ideal time to suggest scaling back on the food and saving money at the same time. In our house the term “small plates” refers to any number of small, colorful dishes (think tapas) that provide an interesting alternative to dinners, both large and small. My wife prefers several small options to one big meal, usually on Friday night.
Small plates are ideal for using up all the small containers of leftovers you find after a week of meals. Usually too little to provide a meal but when taken as a group will provide “ahs” from the crowd. For the cost of a baguette ($2.79 at Panara Bread) you can feed a large group when pairing the toasted bread with the leftovers in your frig. A basic salad, cut into smaller pieces, provides a wonderful and surprising addition. Yesterday I took the leftover pork chops from a dinner party and shredded them, added chopped onions, celery and garlic and wrapped them in flour tortillas. Cut them on the diagonal and you have another quick and “cheap” small plate. Plus you get the added smile of using those annoying plastic baggies and containers in the frig.
The bottom line here is to use your imagination. Leftover frozen ham becomes wonderful finger food when placed on refrigerator biscuits with a little pepper jelly added for zing. A container of olives become a great tapenade to spread on toasted slices of the baguette. The secret here is put a few on a serving platter, add a few more of another, bring out small dessert plates or even paper plates and you have an instant party or maybe an intimate dinner.
Fresh Tomato Crostini
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Appetizer |
| Meal: | Other (General) |
| 1 | medium | baguette |
| 24 | spritz | PAM |
| 1 | large | tomatoes, fresh |
| 2 | cloves | garlic, minced |
| 2 | Tb | onion, red |
| 3 | Tb | roasted red peppers |
| 2 | Tb | peppers, pickled rings |
| 1 | Tb | vinegar, red wine |
| 1 | Tb | parsley, flat leaf, chopped |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
Slice baguette diagonally in ½ inch slices. Spray both sides with Pam and place on a cookie sheet. Place in a 400 degree oven for 6 -8 minutes until lightly golden. Mince the garlic and place in a medium bowl; cut tomato, onion, red pepper, pepper rings and parsley into a small dice. Add to the bowl. Add vinegar, stir and add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon onto the toasted baguette and serve.
Entry filed under: Appetizer, Dinners, Meal Planning. Tags: appetizers, frugal entertaining, frugal meal planning, leftovers, Meal Planning, quick appetizers, small plates, tapas, tomatoes.
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed