Appetizers
One of the goals of this webpage is to to include 100 of the best fruit and or vegetable recipes for three categories: appetizers, side dishes and desserts. Your contributions are needed and welcome. E-mail or fax them to me. The address and fax number are under Contact Us.
Appetizer recipes so far (scroll down to find them):
Quick Vegetable Soup
Asparagus with Wasabi Mayonnaise
Broiled Zuchini Rings with black olives and red pepper
Three No-Fuss Almost Ready-to- Serve Veggie appetizers
Quick and Easy Artichoke Dip
Roasted Cauliflower
Portobello Pizza
Apple, Blue cheese and Hazelnut salad on Endive Leaves
Sesame Carrot Butter Spread or Dip
- Place the carrots, onion, and celery in a 3 quart saucepan add broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for five minutes.
- Add all remaining ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for twenty minutes. Serve warm; refrigerate leftovers for up to four days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Asparagus with Wasabi Mayonnaise
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine
1 pound asparagus
½ cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoons wasabi paste *
- Trim the asparagus ends. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the asparagus in the water for two minutes, remove and immediately rinse with or plunge in cold water to stop the cooking. You want the stems to stay firm. Chill until cold. Cut into 3 inch pieces before serving.
- To make the dip: combine all the ingredients and chill. Serve with the cold asparagus.
*Wasabi is the spicy green “mustard” served with sushi. You can find it in many grocery stores and Asian markets.
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Broiled Zucchini Rings with olives and peppers
One medium zucchini cut into ¼ inch rings about 20 slices
Olive oil
3 tablespoons minced black olives or prepared black olive tapenade (available prepared in most stores)
2 tablespoons chopped roasted red pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 F.
Toss the zucchini with the olive oil, place on a baking sheet and roast the rings for 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Top with an equal amount of black olives topped with red pepper. Bake again ten minutes. Serve immediately
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Three No-Fuss Almost Ready-to- Serve Veggie appetizers
Keep a jar of salsa, fried peppers and canned artichokes in your cupboard and you will be able to produce a delicious veggie- based snack at a moments notice.
Salsa- choose your favorite jarred salsa and serve with sliced peppers – red, green or yellow or whole grain corn tortilla chips. Salsa is made almost entirely of vegetables.
Mancini Fried Peppers (available in most markets or search on-line) serve on top of whole grain crackers. The name suggests they would be high in nasty fat but an entire 12 ounce jar (much more than you can eat) contains only 275 calories, less than 17 grams of fat and plenty of fiber and vitamin C. They do contain sodium about 160 mg per one ounce portion.
Canned whole artichokes (not marinated). Open the can, drain and slice the artichokes in half, place in a single layer in a small, lightly oiled oven-safe dish. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon grated cheese. Turn the oven to broil with the rack set three inches from the top and heat about 5-8 minutes. The cheese should turn golden and the artichokes should be hot. Serve on small plates with a fork or with a good cracker.
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Quick and Easy Artichoke Dip
I recently told my neighbor about the FLOF project. She asked “Do you have recipes? Every time I go somewhere I always bring the same unhealthy thing- Artichoke Dip- because it is quick and easy.” Here is a quick and delicious Artichoke Dip alternative to the mayonnaise and cheese version most of us know.
1 7.5 ounce jar marinated artichokes drained, reserving 2 tbsp of marinade
1 15 ounce can whole artichokes in water
2 tbsp grated parmesan
Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a small food processor puree the artichokes with 1 or 2 tablespoons reserved marinade until smooth. It is OK if a few small lumps remain. Transfer to a one cup ovenproof dish, sprinkle with cheese and bake until the edges just start to brown about 15-20 minutes. Serve warm with crisp crackers, pepper or carrot sticks.
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Roasted Cauliflower-Appetizer
The first time I told my family I was serving roasted cauliflower as an appetizer for a family gathering they all thought it would be bland and boring. What they didn’t know was that something magical happens to the flavor and texture of cauliflower when it is roasted at high heat. It turned out to be a hit, disappeared in minutes, and now everyone looks forward to it when I put it on the menu.
1 large head white cauliflower
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 400 F. Rinse the cauliflower remove the core and leaves, cut the “flowers” into individual pieces as equal in size as possible, flowers should be about one inch in diameter.
Place the prepared cauliflower into a plastic bag, add oil and salt and toss until every piece of cauliflower is lightly coated.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread the cauliflower over the pan so it is in an even layer.
Roast fifteen to twenty minutes, turning after ten minutes. The cauliflower is done when the edges just start to brown. Serve hot and eat it like popcorn.
Portobello Pizza- Appetizer
When I was a child my mother made what she called “mock pizza” using an English muffin. I use the same recipe substituting a Portobello mushroom cap for the English muffin.
4 large Portobello mushroom caps, stems snapped off and saved for another use
2 ripe red tomatoes sliced into 8 slices
8 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, cut into 8 even slices
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Preheat the oven to 400 F. Place 2 slices of tomato on each mushroom and top with 2 slices of cheese. Cut or arrange the tomato and cheese so they fit the cap evenly. Sprinkle an even amount of oregano on top and bake 4-6 minutes until the cheese starts to bubble.
Cut into wedges or serve whole as an appetizer. Try serving this instead of traditional pizza at lunch or dinner.
Apple, Blue cheese and Hazelnut salad on Endive Leaves- Appetizer
Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine
1 large tart apple
3 ounce blue cheese, crumbled
¾ cub finely chopped celery
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
5 Belgian endives, leaves separated, smallest leaves saved for another use
½ cup toasted hazelnuts or walnuts, coarsely chopped
- Combine the blue cheese, celery mayonnaise and lemon juice. Stir gently to combine. Core and cut the apple into 1/8 inch dice right before ready to mix and serve (the apple will brown if cut too soon).
- Toss the apple with the other ingredients and fill each endive “boat” with a tablespoon of the mixture sprinkle with nuts and serve.
Sesame Carrot Butter
This spread does not “melt” like real butter but it is delicious and a great alternative to cheese or oil based dips; serve it on slices of French bread, cucumber slices or with celery sticks as a dip. Makes an interesting sandwich filling; combine it with lettuce, tomato and slices of red onion.
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 pound carrots, peeled, and chopped
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon ground ginger
In a heavy saucepan toast sesame seeds about two minutes until they start to darken. Add all remaining ingredients and cook covered on low heat until carrots are tender, about twenty minutes.
Puree entire mixture in a food processor, the seeds will remain whole and add a nice texture. Serve at room temperature. Keep refrigerated for up to three days.