Big Bend Eats
By Carolyn Brown Zniewski
all is the cocktail time of year, and
with cocktails come hors d’oeu-
vres. Good hors d’oeuves are more
than a plate of crackers and cheese. I
have incorporated some tasty tidbits
into my cocktail repertoire. I eliminated
as much prep time as possible, opting
for things like artichoke dip, cheese &
crackers and a bunch of grapes. But to
be really cool and classy I needed more
than that. I started tracking down some
recipes. I was sometimes surprised by
the ingredients. My three criteria were
good, easy and can it be prepared ahead
of time. Several of these keep well and
you can make a batch just as you would
cookies and bring them out when you
need a bite. Some are more of an eat-as-
you-go style. If you have kids or grand-
kids, they can help make them. These
work great for children’s birthday parties
too. The kids can graze until cake time.
If you are alone a glass of wine or a
smoke won’t hurt. I even have a vegan
hors d’oeuve that makes Not Dogs the
hit of the table. They are all easy if per-
haps a little shy on the healthy, whole
foods paradigm. But what’s the problem,
it’s a party, right? Between now and
January 1 the occasions just keep rolling
in. We can start with World Smile day on
the first Friday of October and move
right along through Yom Kipper and
Canadian Thanksgiving to Halloween.
November celebrates Dia de las Muertos,
veterans Day, Sadie Hawkins Day and
Thanksgiving. Come December we have
quite the pile up: Pearl Harbor Day, a
Friday the 13th, Chanukah, Solstice,
Christmas and New Year’s Eve. So, you
will find plenty of time to serve these
tasty little bites of numminess.
12-15 minutes until slightly golden. Let
cool. Store in an airtight container until
ready to serve. Also, really tasty.
F
BLUE PECAN BITES
1 cup crumbled blue cheese (about 4
1/2 ounces), chilled
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter,
room temperature
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black
pepper
DEVILS ON HORSEBACK
20 plump dates
20 ½ inch squares Swiss cheese
10 pieces of bacon
Cut a pocket in each date and stuff with
swiss cheese. (Blue cheese is good, too.)
wrap each date with ½ a piece of bacon.
Preheat oven to 425’. Put the little
Devils on a cookie sheet and roast for
15 minutes. Ready to serve.
ANGELS ON HORSEBACK
20 large, deveined shrimp
Teriyaki sauce
10 pieces of bacon
Dip the shrimp in Teriyaki sauce,
wrap each with ½ piece of bacon. Place
on cookie sheet. Preheat oven to 425’.
Roast angels for 15 minutes. Ready to
serve.
LITTLE DOGS
1 cup barbeque sauce
3/4 cup grape jelly
2 (16 ounce) packages cocktail
sausages
Photo courtesy of W endy Lynn W right
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
Blend blue cheese and butter, add
remaining ingredients and mix well.
Preheat oven to 350’. Shape dough into
1 ½ inch balls. Place on cookie sheet and
bake 12-15 minutes until slightly gold-
en. Let cool. Store in an airtight contain-
er until ready to serve. WOW these are
good.
VEGAN KABOBS
1 pkg Not Dogs (vegan hot dogs)
1 15oz. can pineapple chunks
Teriyaki sauce
Toothpicks
CHOLIVES
1/4 lb. (1 c.) sharp Cheddar cheese,
grated
1/4 c. butter (1/2 stick)
3/4 c. sifted flour
1 (8 oz.) jar large stuffed olives
Chop olives and pat dry. Mix cheese
and butter. Add flour and olives. Preheat
oven to 350’. Shape dough into 1 ½
inch balls. Put on cookie sheet and bake
Cenizo
Mix the jelly and barbeque sauce in
crockpot. Add cocktail sausages. Cook
on high for 2 hours. Time is very flexi-
ble. Turn Crockpot to low to serve.
Cut Not Dogs into 1 ½ inch pieces.
Put a piece of Not Dog and a pineapple
chunk on a toothpick, dip in sauce and
lay on oiled cookie sheet. Preheat oven
to 350’. Roast kabobs about 12 – 15
minutes. Ready to serve.
Fourth Quarter 2019
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