Lovely Experience – Finger Food

Well, this is a post I wish I had actually taken photos of the food, but I didn’t. My idea of preparing finger foods was because we were having a few friends over and there was not enough space for everyone to sit down at the table and have a proper meal. So, I did a little research on the web on how many finger foods needed for each person, ideas of recipes and how to serve. Here is how it went…

We were having around 9 people over and I needed around 15 finger food per person. I arranged the menu this way:

Nachos and Dips
Crisps
Bloody Mary Tomatoes (recipe here)
Mini Stuffed Mushrooms (a collection of recipes)
Mini Jacket Potatoes on Salt Crust
Spicy Chicken Kebabs (recipe here)
Brigadeiro de Colher with Digestive Biscuit Crumble (good mix between Brazil and England)

I prepared the Bloody Mary Tomatoes one day in advance, as described in the recipe. All the other I started preparing on the same day, which was crazy and left me with no time to take picture.

For the Mini Stuffed Mushrooms:

1 pack of white button mushrooms (washed and peeled)
Bread crumbs (2 slices of whole meal bread should do)
1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil
A tablespoon of butter
Half an onion (finely chopped)
Oregano

Preheat the oven to 250°C.

Initially, you have to take the stems off the mushrooms so you have space for the stuffing. The easiest way is to cut with a sharp knife around the stem, without cutting all the way into the cap. Chop the stems finely.

Place the mushrooms caps, stemmed sides down in a lightly oiled baking pan and bake until the mushrooms exude liquid. This takes approximately 10 minutes. After this, remove the mushrooms from the oven and set them aside.

I don’t have a food processor, which would possibly make the chore of crumbing the bread a lot easier. So, I toasted the two slices of bread and crumbed them by hand in a bowl. Mix the crumbs with olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread the mix in a shallow baking pan and bake until golden. 5-8 minutes should do. Then, transfer it back to a bowl.

While the mushroom caps and the bread crumbs are baking, melt the butter in a skillet until foam subsides, then add the chopped stems and onion until golden. Season with oregano, salt and pepper. Let this cool a bit and add the bread crumbs and the grated Parmesan cheese and toss well.

Turn the mushroom caps over and mould the stuffing in the caps, pressing gently. Place the stuffed mushrooms back in the oven until the mushrooms are tender and the stuffing is golden brown. This step should take about 15 minutes.

For the Mini Jacket Potatoes

1 kg of baby potatoes (washed and dried)
Olive oil
Coarse sea salt
A pack of smoked salmon
5 tablespoons of (hot) horseradish
5 tablespoons of cream cheese

Preheat the oven to 250°C.

Prepare a plate or a bowl with the salt. You can add herbs if you wish to. Grease the potatoes with olive oil and roll the potatoes on the salt. Place them in a baking pan and place it in the oven. It should take around 20 minutes for the potatoes to become soft and golden.

Meanwhile, prepare a paste mixing the cream cheese with the horseradish. Cut the smoked salmon into small pieces.

Once the potatoes are ready, wipe them with a paper towel to get rid of excess of salt. Cut them into halves and fill them with smoked salmon and the cream cheese and horseradish paste.

For the Brigadeiro de Colher with Digestive Biscuit Crumble:

1 tin of Carnation Condensed Milk
3 tablespoons of Cadbury Original Drinking Chocolate
Half a pack of Digestive Biscuits

Place the condensed milk and the chocolate in a bowl (suitable for microwave). Mix the two ingredients until a pale brown mix is formed. Place it in the microwave for 3 minutes and stir it well. Cook it in the microwave for another 3 minutes and stir it well. You will have a rich brown mix - brigadeiro.

Crumble the digestive biscuits. Place the brigadeiro in small bowls or roll them into balls. Either sprinkle the brigadeiro with the digestive biscuit crumble or roll the brigadeiro balls on the crumble, either way – it is heaven!

Everyone loved the finger food!