Family-Friendly New Year's Party Snacks
by Houston Family Magazine
Throwing a New Year’s Eve party? Whether you’re hosting a few friends or half the neighborhood, one thing’s for sure—you’ll need some party snacks! We’ve put together a few easy-to-make, appealing, family-friendly party recipes, and we hope some of them help to make your New Year’s party the best yet. Happy 2012 from HFM!
Bite-Sized Quiche
Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 1/2 head broccoli, thick stems removed and separated into florets
- 6 large eggs
- 6 large egg yolks
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly spray two 24-cup mini muffin pans with cooking spray or line with paper liners.
2. Have ready a bowl of ice water. Bring a saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the broccoli and blanch until bright green and softened but still crisp, about 30 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, transfer immediately to the ice water to stop the cooking. When cool, drain thoroughly and pat dry. Chop coarsely and set aside.
3. In a bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, milk, cream, salt, and pepper. (If you like, heat a small frying pan over medium-low heat, pour in about 1 tbsp of the mixture, and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, just until soft curds form and are cooked through. Taste and adjust the seasoning.) Transfer to a large glass measuring pitcher.
4. Place the prepared muffin pans on 1 or 2 rimmed baking sheets to catch any drips. Add a few small pieces of broccoli and a generous pinch of cheese to each of the cups. Pour the egg mixture over the broccoli and cheese in each cup, filling as many as you can to just below the rim. Add a small piece of broccoli and a pinch of cheese to the top of each quiche.
5. Bake until the tops are puffed and just beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to wire racks and let cool for about 5 minutes, then turn the quiches out of the pans, arrange on a platter or individual plates, and serve.
Jerk Pork on Plantain Chips
Ingredients
- 1 (4-inch-long) piece pork tenderloin
- 2 teaspoons jerk seasoning paste
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons cocktail onions, rinsed
- 1/3 cup packed cilantro leaves
- 24 plantain chips
Directions
1. Quarter pork lengthwise and pat dry. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and rub jerk paste into pork.
2. Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add pork and sear, turning several times, 4 – 5 minutes. Let cool on cutting board, then cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
3. Finely chop onions and cilantro together. Top plantain chips with jerk pork, then with onion salsa.
Easy Potstickers
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 medium celery ribs, leaves reserved
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/4 pound ground dark meat chicken
- 3 1/2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
- 20 wonton or gyoza wrappers
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (not seasoned)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup water
Directions
1. Make filling: Cut celery into 2-inch pieces. With food processor running, drop in celery and garlic and finely chop. Stop motor and add chicken, 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce, sesame oil, and 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Pulse until just combined.
2. Form dumplings: Put 2 wrappers on a dry surface, keeping remaining wrappers in package, and lightly brush edges with water. Mound a rounded teaspoon filling in center of each wrapper. Fold in half, into triangles or half-moons, and pinch edges tightly to seal. Make 18 more dumplings in same manner.
3. Make dipping sauce: Chop enough celery leaves to measure 1 1/2 tablespoons and stir together with remaining 3 tablespoons soy sauce and vinegar.
4. Fry dumplings: Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot, then arrange dumplings, slightly overlapping, in a spiral pattern and fry until bottoms are pale golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Add water, tilting skillet to distribute, then cover tightly with lid and cook until liquid has evaporated and bottoms of dumplings are crisp and golden, 6 to 7 minutes. (Use a spatula to loosen and lift edges to check bottoms; replace lid and continue cooking if necessary, checking after 1 to 2 minutes.) Remove lid and invert a large plate with a rim over skillet. Holding plate and skillet tightly together, invert dumplings onto plate. Serve immediately, with dipping sauce.
Garlic & Cheese Bread
Ingredients
- 24 baguette slices
- 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
- 3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 5 large garlic cloves, minced
- Kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
2. Arrange bread slices in 1 layer on a large baking sheet and brush tops with 3 tablespoons oil.
3. Stir together remaining tablespoon oil, cheese, garlic, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl. Sprinkle each slice with about 1 teaspoon cheese mixture, mounding it slightly.
4. Bake until topping just starts to melt, 6 to 8 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and kosher salt to taste. Serve warm.
Fruitcake Trifle
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar, packed
- 3 tablespoons light butter
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/3 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
- Vegetable oil cooking spray
- 1/4 cup hazelnuts
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup 1% milk
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons chopped dried cherries
- 2 tablespoons chopped dried pineapple
- 2 tablespoons chopped dried apricots
- 25 plastic shot glasses
Directions
1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. In a bowl, mix 1/2 cup sugar and butter until smooth and creamy. Mix in egg and vanilla extract until well combined.
3. In a second bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, ginger and cloves. Add half of dry ingredients to butter-egg mixture; mix until just combined. Add yogurt; mix until just combined. Add remaining half of dry ingredients; mix until just combined.
4. Coat a half-loaf pan with cooking spray; add batter; tap bottom of pan on a hard surface several times to remove air bubbles. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Flip cake onto a wire rack and let cool completely.
5. Spread nuts evenly on a baking sheet; toast until light brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Place nuts in a clean towel; rub gently to remove skins; chop.
6. In a small saucepan, whisk cornstarch into milk until fully dissolved. Bring milk-cornstarch mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally; remove from heat.
7. In a bowl, combine remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and egg yolk. Add one third of milk-cornstarch mixture to sugar mixture, whisking constantly; pour into same saucepan; cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until pastry cream thickens, about 2 minutes. Pour cream into a shallow dish; set plastic wrap on surface of cream and let cool completely.
8. Tear cake into chunks. In each of 25 shot glasses, divide and layer cake chunks, cooled cream, and dried fruit and nuts; repeat layers. Refrigerate at least 1 hour; remove from fridge 45 minutes before serving.
Frozen Banana-Split Bites
Ingredients
- 2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- Assorted toppings for coating bananas (such as crushed Oreos, chopped nuts, chopped candy bars, or shredded coconut)
- 3 ripe bananas, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
Directions
1. Stir chocolate and oil in heavy small saucepan over low heat just until smooth. Let stand 15 minutes to cool.
2. Place each topping in separate shallow dish. Line baking sheet with foil. Arrange banana slices on foil. Using fingers, dip 1 banana slice in chocolate, coating completely. Shake off excess chocolate. Drop dipped banana in 1 topping. Using clean hand, sprinkle more topping over banana to coat; transfer to foil-lined sheet. Repeat with remaining bananas, chocolate, and toppings. Freeze until firm, about 3 hours, then serve.
