Holiday Appetizer #4 Mini Meatballs & Dip

Meatballs are always a hit, and by making them mini, you don't need to use a lot of meat to get a lot of meatballs. I use lean ground beef for mine and keep the flavour pretty basic so that they can be paired with any sauce I happen to feel like using. This time I paired them with a bottled Sweet Chili Thai Sauce, but they would be excellent with a BBQ Sauce, a Cranberry or other fruit sauce, or even with an Asian-inspired Soy-Ginger Sauce. I made 48 of these meatballs on Friday, and my husband and sons have almost finished them already.

 

Holiday Appetizer #4: Mini-Meatballs & Dip

 

 

Holiday Appetizer #3: Quesadilla Bites

Everyone loves appetizers that are cheesy, crispy, and can be dipped. These quesadilla bites are perfect for little fingers as well as adult tastes, and the flavours can be adapted and changed to suit the audience. These take no time to put together, and are inexpensive to make. Definite crowd pleasers!

Holiday Appetizer #3 Quesadilla Bites

 

 

Holiday Appetizer #2: Mascarpone Stuffed Dates Wrapped in Prosciutto

Dates are often thought of as a dessert item due to their natural sweetness, but paired with mascarpone and prosciutto, they make an incredible appetizer. I had a hunch that these would be good, but I was actually surprised at just how addictive they turned out. The sweetness of the dates is tempered by the creaminess of the mascarpone and the prosciutto adds a touch of saltiness to balance everything out. These are impossible to get wrong. Use pitted dates for even quicker assembly.

Mascarpone cheese is a mild, spreadable Italian cheese that is often flavoured with sweet or savoury flavours to match the dish. It's the cheese used to make tiramisu, the popular Italian dessert. Prosciutto is a type of dried ham, served in thin slices.

Appetizer #2 Mascarpone Stuffed Dates Wrapped in Prosciutto

 

Holiday Appetizer #1 Cream Cheese & Cucumber Roll-ups

Last year I posted 12 holiday dessert recipes, so this year I decided to do something a little bit different. Appetizers are a huge part of most holiday entertaining, and sometimes I spend more time figuring out what to serve as appetizers than I do on the actual meal.

The goal here is to provide some simple appetizer ideas that are easy to cook or even just assemble. There's enough to do over the holidays. Food should be simple to prepare and delicious to eat. Oh yeah, and gluten free! No complicated appetizers here. Just quick ideas that will get your party started in no time.

 

Appetizer #1 Cream Cheese & Cucumber Roll-Ups