AVIES HOME MADE CHRISTMAS

PARTY CHEATS

Parties at Christmas can be a right royal pain in the bum to the poor hostess who has probably spent the last few weeks scurrying round packed shops to buy gifts, staggered around a supermarket or two where the staff have heard Jingle Bells played so often that they have lost the will to live;and herds of customers who's Christmas spirit has like Elvis “left the building”.

I love cooking ,as is well known but,rule number one at Christmas is “It,s my holiday too.”

There are masses of party nibbles available in most food stores at his time of year and they all have one thing in common...they taste like cardboard! From as little as a pound for a tray of twenty you can provide your guests with something novel to stuff into the nearest pot plant. Other stores charge a small fortune for tiny bites of...what you will.. just because they are served on a blinni they taste every bit as awful and they are seldom if ever worth the money.

Now I know I always champion make it yourself ,but there is absolutely no virtue whatever in giving yourself a hard time over what to serve with the drinks,do as I do....cheat!

Wonders can be performed with a few jars of anti pasti and some ready rolled pastry(which can be purchased for as little as a pound)

CRAFTY CANAPES

1 small jar of sun-dried tomatoes in oil'

1 small jar of roasted peppers in oil

small jar of olives

half a pound of mushrooms sliced and fried in butter until soft

tomato purree

6 eggs

3 rolls of ready rolled shortcrust pastry,chilled

salt,pepper and a little garlic salt.

Grease 3 individual bun tins, twelve per tin. Unroll one of the pastry packs and using a cutter to match the depth of your tins, line each of the wells. Beat two of the eggs and add a little salt and pepper, Next finely chop a few sun-dried tomatoes and sprinkle them in to the cases. Add half an olive then spoon in the beaten egg until about two thirds full.

Repeat the process with another box of pastry this time using the finely sliced mushrooms and a little garlic salt before topping up with beaten egg. 4Finally fill the last set of cases with the roasted peppers first adding a small squeeze of tomato purree to the base of the pasty case.

Bake in the oven at 200oC foe about ten -fifteen minutes,all ovens are different so keep and eye on them. When they are well risen and browned a little remove from the oven and cool.

The same ingredients can be used to make individual size quiches which with a little salad make a great first course for a more formal party and both these and the canapés will freeze so you can ,make them in advance.

Make and freeze a few blanks so that if you run out of munchies you can quickly fill them with a little cream cheese topped with snippets of sun-dried tomato. These little tartlets are always the first things to go and I never seem too make enough,and if you are careful about the pastry they are fine for your vegetarian friends.

One more thing,save the oil from the jars of anti pasti and if you need a quick and tasty salad dressing mix in a little made mustard,add a squeeze of orange or lemon juice and season.