Some do not even require the use of the oven and are the solution to what you were looking for if you want to make Christmas appetizers the day before!
This year a Christmas do not get caught unprepared and play in advance by making the appetizers already on day before. This way you can concentrate on the main courses and have more time to devote to your guests!
Goat and grape cheese balls with pistachio, pomegranate and flax seeds
A tasty one vegetarian Christmas appetizer which is prepared the day before and must rest in the fridge for at least 12 hours.
Ingredients for 4 people
12 large grapes of table grapes
150 g of fresh goat cheese
15 g of chopped pistachios
15 g of flax seeds
15 g of pomegranate grains
Method
Wash the grapes well and pat them dry with absorbent paper. In a bowl, work the goat cheese with a spatula until it becomes very creamy. Cover each grape entirely with the cheese and give it a circular shape with wet hands. Roll 4 balls in the chopped pistachios, 4 in the pomegranate grains and 4 in the linseed making them adhere well. Complete by sticking a toothpick into each ball and let it rest in the fridge until ready to serve.
Boiled eggs stuffed with salmon
Beautiful to look at and definitely tasty, they cannot be missing cold Christmas appetizers which can be prepared in advance.
Ingredients for 4 people
250 g of smoked salmon
150 g of fresh spreadable cheese
6 large fresh eggs
parsley to taste
Salt to taste.
black pepper to taste
Method
Put the eggs in a saucepan covered with water and bring to a boil. From the boil, cook for about ten minutes then turn off the heat and cool the hard-boiled eggs under running water. Shell them, cut them in half and remove the yolks. In a bowl put the firm egg yolks, the spreadable cheese, the smoked salmon leaving 50 grams for the final decoration, a sprig of chopped parsley, a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix with a fork and blend everything.
Transfer the mixture into one sac à poche and stuff the empty firm egg whites. Add a piece of salmon and a parsley leaf on each half and leave in the fridge until ready to serve.
Baskets of shortcrust pastry with Russian salad
L'Russian salad it's a classic starter of the parties that you can prepare in advance: here is our version to serve it as an elegant finger food.
Ingredients for 4 people
200 g of mayonnaise
150 g of peas
150 g of carrots
6 medium potatoes
2 hard-boiled eggs
extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste.
pepper as needed.
pasta brisee
Method
Peel the potatoes and peel the carrots. Cut the potatoes and carrots into 0.5 cm cubes. Steam i peas, the carrots and the potatoes taking into account that they have different cooking times. Start with the peas, then after 8 minutes add the potatoes and after another 10 minutes the carrots and cook for a further 5/6 minutes.
When the vegetables have cooled, cut the shelled hard-boiled eggs into cubes and gently mix everything together with a teaspoon of oil. Season with salt and pepper and add the mayonnaise. Transfer the Russian salad to the fridge for at least a couple of hours before serving.
Grease and flour 10 cavities of a muffin mold then line them with the shortcrust pastry. Prick the bottom with the tines of a fork and cook in a preheated oven at 180 ° C in static mode for 20 minutes or until the baskets are golden. Remove the baskets from the oven and let them cool. When ready to serve, stuff the baskets with plenty of Russian salad!
Stuffed mushroom heads with walnuts and gorgonzola
To do this Christmas appetizer very creative, get yourself Champignon mushrooms with a firm hat. By preparing this appetizer the day before, the following day you only have to reheat it briefly in the oven before serving!
Ingredients for 4 people
100 g of sweet gorgonzola
20 g of shelled walnuts
12 fairly large champignon mushrooms
2 pork sausages
2 slices of sandwich bread
1 clove of garlic
parsley to taste
Salt to taste.
extra virgin olive oil to taste
Method
Gently wash i mushrooms, remove the final part of the stem and separate the latter from the cap. Cut the stems into cubes and sauté them in a pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and the poached garlic clove. Season with salt, add the parsley minced and after a couple of minutes add the sausages without the skin and reduced to small pieces. Bring to cooking.
Put the sliced bread in a blender without the crust, the walnuts and the mushroom mixture. Blend briefly until you get a coarse mixture.
Preheat the oven to 180 ° C in static mode. Take a baking tray and cover it with parchment paper. Arrange the mushroom heads inside with the empty part facing up. Place a cube of gorgonzola cheese and a little of the sauce based on sausage, mushrooms and walnuts inside each head. Cook for at least 25 minutes or until they are golden on the surface. Turn off the oven, remove the pan, place an additional piece of gorgonzola on top of each mushroom and bake again without turning on the oven. When the cheese is melted, take it out of the oven and let it cool. Then transfer the stuffed champignon heads to the fridge until the following day. Remove from the fridge at least 2 hours before serving and heat them briefly in the oven for 5-10 minutes.
Spice canapé with foie gras pate
Prepare the spice cake a few days before because it can be stored wrapped in cling film for up to a week.
Ingredients for 4 people
200 g of flour 00
150 g of acacia honey
100 g of granulated sugar
50 g of almond flour
10 g of unsweetened cocoa powder
1 glass of milk
1 pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 pinch of ginger
1 teaspoon of nutmeg
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of star anise powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
160 g of foie gras pate
Method
Mix the two flours with the baking powder, baking soda, unsweetened cocoa powder, sugar and spices. Add the milk and honey, always mixing.
Transfer the mixture into a mold of plum cake covered with baking paper and cook for an hour and a half in a preheated oven at 140 ° C in static mode. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before cutting into slices.
When serving with a star-shaped mold, make some stars of spice cake and toast them briefly under the oven grill. Complete each crouton with plenty foie gras pate and serve.
