2. CANAPES AND APPETIZERS

THE FREE LUNCH, or canapés

The expression "free lunch" originated in Victorian saloons —when immense platters of excellent cold meats, potato salad and cheeses were strategically placed along a bar to encourage the greater consumption of beer. In those halcyon days, a nickel glass of beer assured the impecunious of as much food as he could tuck away in preparation for the next 24 hours.

Today's canapé tray is entirely different—due to rising costs, increased knowledge of calories, and so on. It may be no more than a well-ripened Camembert, a tin of smoked mussels or pate de foie gras with salty crackers—or there may be a special titbit. There are three points to remember:

First: No more than two drinks should ever be served be­fore dinner . . . and food (in the form of canapés, titbits or bouchees) should accompany the liquor. This is an absolute and positive rule among true gastronomes and it must not be broken! For one thing, there is little point in creating a gorgeous dinner for a group who have drunk too much to appreciate it.
Second: No matter how simple or few the components, a cocktail tray must look inviting . . . and black olives, crisp carrot sticks or bright radishes will fill innumerable chinks.

Third: The service of a special cocktail titbit may often gain an extra 15 minutes for the harassed chef to create the dinner masterpiece!

GUACAMOLE

A traditional south-of-the-border cocktail dip, to serve with sturdy potato chips or crisp crackers.

2 peeled ripe avocados

½ tsp black pepper

1 small white onion, grated

juice of half a lemon

1 tsp salt

Mash the avocados through a sieve, add other ingredients, mix very smoothly and serve in a bowl lined with a few let­tuce leaves. Dust the top with paprika.

NOTES: Avocados quickly blacken with air; guacamole should never be made more than half an hour in advance— in which case, cover the bowl with Saran wrap and keep in the refrigerator until the final moment.

Guacamole variations: add 2 crumbled crisp-cooked cold bacon slices—or 2 tablespoons of ground nuts (almonds, cashews, peanuts)—or a tablespoon of chili sauce—or a tablespoon of grated raw carrot—or a tablespoon of sherry and 6 minced black olives. . . .

STUFFED EGGS (2-Step Cookery)

Anyone can make deviled eggs, but a gourmet cook is not content with the dull mustard-cayenne variety. Stuffed eggs are best prepared in advance and allowed to chill gently for a minimum of two hours before serving.

For a very special cocktail hour, provide two or even three different stuffings. All start with peeled, halved hardboiled eggs—place the yolks in a bowl and mash:

1. 6 mashed hardboiled egg yolks, 1 T curry, 1 T mayonnaise, 1 tsp prepared mustard, 4 T fish or chicken paste. Garnish with drained capers.
   
   
2. 6 egg yolks mashed, 2 T whipped cream cheese, ¼ tsp anchovy paste, 1 T mayonnaise. (This should be a stiffer paste.)
   
   
3. 6 egg yolks mashed, 1 tsp chili sauce and 2 T flaked crabmeat, shrimp or lobstermeat… place in the empty egg whites, and mask with the following mixture: 2 T mayonnaise, combined with 1 tsp curry powder. Garnish with an anchovy fillet.

4. 6 egg yolks mashed, 6 minced black olives, 2 T Roque­ fort or Bleu cheese. Mash thoroughly, and thin with a few drops of milk if necessary. Garnish with toasted slivers of almonds, or pistachio nuts.

5. 6 egg yolks mashed, 2 T liver paste (or 2 mashed cooked chicken livers), 1 tsp curry powder, 1 T mayon­ naise, salt and pepper.
Garnish with fresh parsley.

6. 6 egg yolks mashed, 3 T pate de foie gras, 1 tsp each of chervil, parsley and chives, salt and pepper. Garnish with a black olive.

ANGELS ON HORSEBACK

8 oysters  

salt, pepper, paprika

8 thin slices of bacon

Sprinkle oysters with salt, pepper and paprika. Wrap each oyster in a thin slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick. Broil until bacon is crisp, turning once to brown evenly. Serve hot.

PARMESAN CUBES

Bread cut in 1-inch cubes(day-old French bread or Italian)

1 cup grated Parmesan

½ pound melted butter

Dunk the bread cubes in the butter—briefly, or they will absorb too much!—roll in grated Parmesan, and bake in the oven until golden brown—about 5 to 10 minutes in a very hot oven.

ROLLED CHEESE TOAST

8 slices very fresh white bread, crusts removed  

Butter

Soft Cheddar spread

Butter the bread, spread with cheese; roll up the slices— easily done by placing the bread buttered-side up on a damp kitchen towel. Fasten the rolls either with extra butter or by a toothpick; place in a shallow pan beneath the broiler flame and toast evenly on all sides . . . about 5 minutes over all.

PATE MAISON (2-Step Cookery)

A traditional molded chicken liver paste, to be used either as a cocktail spread with salted crackers or served in a small wedge as part of an hors d’oeuvres plate.

1 pound chicken livers

¼ tsp nutmeg

1 white onion

1½ tsp dry mustard

¾ cup rendered chicken fat(or melted butter)

⅛tsp ancovy paste

4T grated white onion

1 tsp salt

1 T cognac brandy

½ tsp mace

Step 1:

Wash livers, trim away any discolorations, place in a saucepan, add the whole peeled onion, barely cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Drain and discard the onion.

Grind the livers very very finely, using the finest blade of the grinder and putting them through a second time if neces­sary to reduce them to a smooth paste.

Add all the other ingredients, mixing very thoroughly. Pack in a straight-sided mold, cover with waxed paper, and chill overnight.

Step 2:

Unmold on a plate and slice thinly, for hors d'oeuvres— or serve in a ring of crisp salted crackers, for cocktail hour.

APPETIZERS

Classic first courses for a gourmet dinner are:

Hors d'Oeuvres (French)

Smorgasbord (Swedish)

Antipasto (Italian)

There are small but important differences between these, traditionally . . . and tradition is important in gourmet cookery.

Smorgasbord is an array of innumerable dishes, spread upon a separate buffet table, from which guests choose what­ever they fancy and serve themselves on a salad-sized plate. It is served either as a first course, to be followed by meat-salad-dessert, or may be used as the main meal—in which case, guests are expected to return to the Smorgasbord table for second and third helpings, if they wish, and the meal is complete with dessert and coffee.

A true Smorgasbord offers a huge bowl of cold boiled shrimps, a whole turkey, and a large cold roast of beef, plus cole slaw, cucumber salad, potato salad, and a variety of molded fruit gelatines, flanked by dishes of cold salmon, herring fillets, tuna fish, all the usual garnishes of olives, pickles, carrot sticks, etc. There are usually also hot dishes of tiny boiled potatoes, meat balls, tiny frankfurters and baked beans.

A real Smorgasbord provides enough food for a small army! It is impossible to scale down a Smorgasbord for four—or even eight—people, but it can be presented to great advan­tage for the large buffet party.

Antipasto is prepared on individual plates in the kitchen, and served with a cruet of red wine vinegar and olive oil.

Hors d'Oeuvres, like the French who originated them, may go either way: served ready-prepared in the kitchen on in­dividual plates, or in a series of dishes on rolling tea cart or Lazy Susan, from which seated guests select what they fancy.

The major difference between antipasto and hors d'oeuvres is that the latter are ready-mixed in their correct sauces, while Italian appetizers are plain and to be sprinkled at table with oil and vinegar. Salad-sized plates are used in all cases.

TRADITIONAL ANTIPASTO(for each serving)

Half a hardboiled egg

Tomato slice

1 slice of salami

Celery stalk

2 or 3 drained sardines

Radishes, green and black olives, Greek olives

¼ tin of tuna fish, drained and sprinkled with lemon juice

Pimiento section, criss-crossed with 2 anchovy fillets

A cooked cold vegetable: asparagus tips, green beans, beets

Lentils, or chickpeas(Garbanzos beans)-1 T drained

Arrange the components attractively, starting with a table­spoon of lentils in the center, covered with pimiento and anchovy fillets, and surrounded by sardines next to salami, and tuna fish next to tomato slice, with the egg, celery, and gar­nishes used for color accents, and so on.

HORS D'OEUVRES

Includes many of the same ingredients used in Antipasto, but each is varied by the sauce. A traditional hors d'oeuvres includes:

Hardboiled egg, masked with mayonnaise and decorated with drained capers Celery stalk and scallion, radishes, olives A small slice of Pate Maison Sardines and tuna fish, but put a dab of mayonnaise on the tuna fish and decorate with a strip of pimiento Tomato slices Haricots Blancs (white bean salad) Vegetable Salads—any plain-cooked chilled vegetable, coated with Vinaigrette dressing Celeri Remoulade Artichoke Hearts Anchovy fillets

The essential dressings for an hors d'oeuvres are mayon­naise; and Vinaigrette, which is also the true French dressing used for salads. (See Chapter 12.)

For last minute preparation of hors d'oeuvres vegetables, a basic Vinaigrette is 1 tablespoon of vinegar to 3 tablespoons of good olive oil, plus salt and pepper to taste, and these may be sprinkled directly into a mixing bowl after which the gentle mixing and turning will suffice to combine the dress­ing.

HARICOTS BLANCS (2-Step Cookery because it needs overnight chilling)

A white bean salad, usually pea or Navy beans, but a quick substitute is chickpeas (also called Garbanzos beans).

1 can chickpeas, drained

½ cup Vinaigrette dressing

2 white onions, peeled and very thinly sliced

¼ cup finely minced fresh parsley

Place a layer of chickpeas in a dish, cover with some of the sliced onions and parsley, and repeat until all ingredients are used. Pour Vinaigrette dressing over the dish, and mix very thoroughly. Chill overnight in the refrigerator.

LENTIL SALAD

1 can drained chilled lentils

¼ cup Vinaigrette dressing

Combine and mix thoroughly; serve 2 small tablespoons for each hors d'oeuvres plate.

VEGETABLE SALADES

All true hors d'oeuvres present one or more vegetable salades—which are simply a thrifty French way to use up leftovers!

Suitable vegetables are: cauliflower, asparagus tips, French-style green beans, beets, carrots, a mixture of peas-limas-corn, artichoke hearts.

All vegetable salades are simply cold cooked vegetables coated with Vinaigrette dressing . . . and for home presenta­tion, there is nothing wrong with placing different single-portion leftovers on each plate.

Vegetable salades are equally good in a Remoulade Sauce (see below): 2 cups mixed cold leftover vegetables, to V4 cup Remoulade mixed with 1 T Vinaigrette dressing.

CELERI REMOULADE (2-Step Cookery)

Celeriac marinated in French dressing, and served with a mustard-mayonnaise, either by itself or as part of a typical French hors d'oeuvres plate.

1. Peel a celery knob and cut in julienne strips. Cover with plain French dressing (1 tablespoon of vinegar to 3 tablespoons of olive oil, plus salt and pepper). Mix thoroughly to coat every piece of the celeriac with dressing; cover tightly and chill overnight.
   
   
2. Drain off the marinade, and replace with Remoulade Sauce, mixing well until celery is completely coated.

REMOULADE SAUCE

2 cups mayonnaise

1 T prepared mustard

½ cup sweet gherkins

1 T each minced parsley, tarragon, chervil

3 T drained capers

Drain gherkins and capers; chop together finely and drain away any liquid. Combine all other ingredients and mix smoothly.

Variation:

Substitute 3 anchovy fillets for gherkins and a small tin of tomato paste for mustard. Substitute minced green pepper for 1 tablespoon of capers.

CELERIAC CHARPENTIER(2-Step Cookery)

1 celery root, scraped and cut in julienne strips

½ tsp pepper

2 T tarragon vinegar

1 tsp salt

Mix, cover tightly, and chill overnight.

Sauce:

2 T heavy cream

1 tsp meat stock(Bovril, Kitchen Bouquet)

1 tsp dry mustard

1 egg yolk

½ tsp salt

1 T olive oil

¼ tsp pepper

1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1 pony of brandy(¾ ounce)

Mix the sauce thoroughly. Drain the celeriac and add to the sauce, turning gently to coat each sliver.

To serve: place a lettuce leaf on each plate, top with a slice of ripe tomato, and cover with the celeriac. Dust with paprika.

SPECIAL APPETIZERS

Aside from hors d'oeuvres and antipasto the shrimp cock­tail is probably best known . . . and fresh crabmeat or lobster is interchangeable with shrimps.

FISH COCKTAIL SAUCE #1-bland

¼ cup mayonnaise

½ tsp sugar

½ cup chili sauce

½ tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1 T each: horseradish, lemon, juice, grated onion

Mix thoroughly, cover and chill before using

FISH COCLTAIL SAUCE #2-sharp

½ cup catsup

1 T chopped green pepper

¼ cup chili sauce

1 T chopped scallions

1 T lemon juice

¼ tsp celery seed

1 tsp horseradish

2 T dry sherry

1 tsp chopped parsley

Mix thoroughly, chill before using.

HOT SHRIMPS

½ pound raw cleaned shrimps(or a thawed frozen package)

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp soy sauce

½ tsp salt

¼ cup butter

⅛tsp Nepal pepper(or ¼ tsp black pepper)

4 large fresh mushrooms, coarsely chopped

1 tsp paprika

Saute shrimps in butter for 4 minutes, add mushrooms and cook 10 minutes over gentle heat.

Separately combine sour cream and seasonings, color with the paprika and heat.

Combine shrimps and sauce, cook gently for 10 minutes or until thick and velvety.

Spoon the mixture into 4 buttered ramekins or large scallop shells, dust with grated Parmesan, and brown for a minute under broiler flame.

FRUITS DE MER

A thin pancake, rolled around creamed seafood, topped with Parmesan cheese, lightly broiled before serving.

These are not too difficult to prepare—and sometimes a double portion might take the place of an entree.

1 cooked lobster tail, or a small tin of lobster meat

¼ cup Madeira, Marsala or dry sherry

½ cup fresh crabmeat, or a cleaned medium-sized tin

1 tsp lemon juice

½ tsp paprika

6 cooked shrimps, coarsely cut

1 tsp chopped chives

1 T minced parsley

6 scallops, coarsely cut

1 T butter

4 cherrystone clams

1 T cream

4 oysters

salt, fresh pepper, grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup mushroom soup, condensed

4 thin pancakes or 4 large scallop shells

Fruits de mer literally means "fruits of the sea." While it is usually served in a crepe (thin French pancake), it may also appear in scallop shells, buttered ramekins, or simply atop a buttered toast triangle.

Heat oven to 500.

Combine fish and shellfish with condensed mushroom soup, chopped fresh mushrooms, cream and wine, stir constantly and bring to high heat, then place over boiling water in a double boiler. Simmer gently while you prepare pancakes from any packaged mix. The pancakes should be very thin, cooked individually in butter, in a small skillet. Set them aside to keep warm.

Add all other ingredients (seasonings) to fish mixture and continue simmering for 5 minutes, while you butter a long shallow baking dish.

Place the pancakes one at a time: that is, place one at the end of the dish, spoon some of the creamed mixture into the center and fold over both pancake edges to cover the filling. Place the next pancake beside the first, etc. until all four crepes have been filled and are neatly distributed along the baking dish.

Cover with the remaining sauce, sprinkle generously with grated Parmesan cheese, and broil for 3 minutes or until tops are golden brown.

VEGETABLES A LA GRECQUE (2-Step Cookery)

A marinade in which to cook vegetables for appetizers or hots d’foeuvres. Greek cuisine uses even more olive oil than Italian . . .

2 cups water

1 bay leaf

½ cup olive oil

1 stalk of celery

¼ cup lemon juice, or white wine vinegar

1 tsp minced parsley

Combine in a saucepan, add a package of almost any frozen vegetable (or 1½ cups suitable raw vegetable) and cook gently for 15 minutes. Chill the vegetable in the cooking liquor overnight before serving.

Suitable vegetables: artichoke hearts, French-style beans, tiny Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, celery root, mixed veg­etables.

HORS D’OEUVRE MUSHROOMS

1 tiny button mushrooms

6 T French(vinaigrette) dressing

5 T olive oil

3 peeled sliced cold boiled potatoes

2 T butter

4 minced shallots

2 large chopped peeled ripe tomatoes

1 T minced parsley

4 lettuce leaves

Place lettuce leaves on 4 plates, top with chopped toma­toes surrounded by sliced potatoes.

Saute the whole tiny mushrooms in olive oil for 5 minutes. Add butter.

Mix shallots, garlic and parsley and sprinkle over mush­rooms. Cook 1 minute, remove from fire, and thoroughly stir in the Vinaigrette dressing.

Pour the hot mushroom mixture over the tomatoes and potatoes.

Are You Ready To Move Onto The Next Lesson? Click Here...