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I have an unusual and definitely picky request. I am hosting a party this weekend called an hors'derby - each guest brings an appetizer as a contest entry and all the guests vote on a winner. We've done it twice before and the party is a lot of fun. Based on past winners/buzz, I think a winning combination is both spicy (and therefore memorable) and uses premium ingredients. The kicker is that since I am hosting the party I also would like to make something that can be made ahead and reheated or served at room temperature. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

ktb,
I keep returning to this thread for hors d'oeuvres suggestions.

Best,
Michael

This is one that my wife invented and I made recently that meets all of your criteria. It uses premium ingredients, can be made ahead, is spicy (if you want) and is easy to make.

First you have to find some smoked duck breast (surely there must be somewhere in your vast metropolis that sells it) with the skin intact and a nice layer of fat underneath. Then you need some quality puff pastry (e.g., Dufour). And then some fresh chiles - I use poblanos. And a good melting cheese (e.g. aged Fontina).

Roast the poblanos, peel, seed, and cut into squares. Slice the cheese. Slice the duck very thinly. Roll out the puff pastry (double the size), cut into 3" x 3" squares. Brush edges with beaten egg. Fill each square with a piece of chile, cheese and duck (wrap the duck around the cheese and chile) and seal well so no melted cheese leaks out. At this point you can place on a baking sheet, cover and place in the refrigerator. Before baking, brush each package with beaten egg. Bake @ 375 until golden brown (don't underbake).

You can increase/decrease the spiciness with the selection of the chile.

Bill/SFNM

Here's a truly memorable, spicy premium-ingredient appetizer idea -- that I picked up in the New York Times food section a couple of weeks ago. I've already made it twice -- and it's a HUGE hit.

Get a bunch of little bitty lamb chops. (the rib chop kind)

Sprinkle them HEAVILY with both Lawry's Seasoned Salt and Garlic Powder.

Brush them with melted butter.

Run them under a hot broiler -- 2 1/2 minutes on each side.

They are truly, surprisingly delicious.

Everyone will rave. Trust me.

Right now I'm feeling like some Vietnamese spring/summer rolls - easy to make. Refrigerate or store at cool room temp, dial up the spice in the filling and/or dipping sauce.

A bit hit at my family gatherings:

Hot Soppressata (a kind of salami, I get it at Caputo's).
Chunks of goat gouda (Midnight Moon from Sam's Wine is awesome here).

The Soppressata should come in largish rectangles. Cut them in half so you have two long strips.

Cut your goat gouda into chunks about 1/8 inch thick and 3/4 inch wide. Can be somewhat variable based on the part of the gouda triangle you're working on.

Place the gouda on one end of the soppressata and roll it up. If a little bit dangles off the end - cut it off and have as a snack.

I found they work pretty well just sitting on their folds.

Of course these are best when they've been out a bit, great at room temperature.

What I think it's really about is the heat of the Soppressata getting attenuated by the goat gouda, but the blend of flavors is pretty awesome.

Does it work with other cheeses? Don't know for sure but it does work with goat gouda (you're gonna have to go to Sam's, Binny's or perhaps Trader Joe's has it, or some other nice cheese shop). Or get the meat and just sample it with various cheeses.

If you go to Sam's, pick up some of the spicy greek olives with peppers. One person in the group liked eating them with the Soppressate rolls, but mostly people just liked them as a side.

Yes these are simple, but are memorable, hot and do use premium ingredients.

Nancy

Bill,

C'mon now. No home made puff dough? It only takes about three and a half hours to do six turns.

Although chicken wings are not a premium ingredient, this recipie for La Brea Tar Pit chicken wings is great. I've made them for "bring a dish" parties and they disappear within minutes. That there's only five ingredients adds to it's appeal. Here's the link to the recipie:

http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/fea ... cken.shtml

I usually up the ground ginger to 1 tsp or better yet, grate up a thumb sized fresh piece on a microplane.

What about some thin-crust pizzas? Get frozen dough, roll it out, add toppings and bake! A simple topping combo include mozzarella, garlic, basil and tomatoes (margherita), or BBQ sauce, choppped red onion, cooked chicken and cilantro (yum). You can go crazy with it and maybe guests can even pick their own toppings (though it would be a tad more work)!

Thank you for everyone's suggestions! The party was a great success but unfortunately I did not win. I ended up making the lamb chops. I used a french cut rack of lamb from Costco and sliced each chop individually - they actually made great appetizers because the long skinny bone can be easily negotiated to eat the chop. I think I used a little too much Lawry's because they were quite salty. But still really good. FYI the winner was an invention called the "Hoosier Dumpling" (by an Indiana native). It used chopped green onion, cream cheese, and spicy ground sausage as the filling inside a fried wonton. It was quite good - salty and very sinful. I think wontons do make a great tool for many appetizers. Other notable entries included one that I wanted to pass on - goat cheese stuffed jalapeno peppers wrapped in prosciutto. The recipe is fairly simple - you hollow out a jalapeno pepper (the extent to which you get out the ribs and seeds will affect the heat level). Then fill with goat cheese and wrap the outside of the pepper with a small piece of proscuitto. Bake at 375 (I think) for about 40 minutes. They are delicious and can be quite spicy. I think it would have been a winner but it had been entered before at another party. Anyway, thanks again!