Hors D'oeuvres Ideas For Christmas Eve

[wildwood]

On Christmas Eve every year, instead of dinner we have hors d'oeuvres all evening and play games. I was hoping some of you would share some of your recipes. My daughter and her friend are both celiac so I make all of the dishes gluten free. I have attempted to recreate phyllo dough several times, but regrettably I must admit defeat. I did find a good recipe on the Land O Lakes site for a tart pastry. I use the pastry from their cranberry tart recipe (I have never made the cranberry tarts though). I put it in the mini muffin tins and fill it with my spanakopita filling. I did a "test run" a couple of weeks ago. My other daughter who is gluten eating said they were just as good if not better than the ones I make using phyllo dough. This says a lot because she tends to be averse to anything I bake that is gluten free. I made puff pastry last year. It was good, but took so much time. This gives the same flavor as a puff pastry in a fraction of the time.

I would appreciate any other ideas some of you may have. Here is my typical Christmas Eve spread:

Spanakopita tarts (described above)

Shrimp cocktail

Jalapeno poppers (I make ahead of time using Schar Breadcrumbs and freeze)

Chicken bites wrapped in bacon (this is similar to the scallops in bacon, but my daughter and I are allergic to scallops)

crudites

tortilla chips with salsa and hummus

cheese and pepperoni

If I have time, I will also make some gluten free flour tortillas and make spinach rolls with roasted red pepper dip. I made the flour tortillas about 6 months ago and they were really good. I have not tried making them ahead and freezing yet. This year December somehow got away from me so I may not get to these this year.

[sa1937]

We also do hors d'oeuvres on Christmas Eve. This month has gotten away from me, too...and apparently my DIL as well as her parents. We usually vaguely come up with a few ideas on Thanksgiving Day as to what we're doing. Not so this year. We are disorganized!!! Right now we're winging it...

I miss those mini phyllo shells! ARGH!

Last year I also made chicken bites with bacon dipped in a brown sugar/chili powder mix and broiled...very yummy but a diddly project. Took me much longer than anticipated and I don't feel like repeating it.

I am making mini crustless quiches...I did a test run on a spinach quiche a week or two ago and was not happy with the crust. No time to fool around with it any more. I used to make a good spinach quiche using Strouffer's Spinach Souffle as the base...can't now as it contains wheat.

We usually have shrimp of some sort.

Cheese ball with gluten-free crackers.

Parmesan Cheese Rounds - mix together Parmesan cheese, chopped green onion tops, a dash of worcheshire sauce (Lea & Perrins is gluten-free) and enough mayo to old it together. Spread on gluten-free crackers and either bake or broil until the cheese melts. I used to use London rounds

Onion dip with potato chips

Meat balls (maybe) or maybe I'll just slice up that summer sausage I bought when the little guy next door hit me up selling things for a school fundraiser.

Maybe veggies and dip

Looking forward to hearing what others are making as time is running out and I need to get to the store to avoid the mad rush at the last minute. I know our Christmas Eve will come together and we always have tons of food without any one of us killing outselves. I need to spend time cleaning the house as Christmas Eve is at my house and it looks like a bomb went off! LOL

[pricklypear1971]

Asparagus rolls-everyone loves these.

A slice of good quality salty ham (Boars Head sliced thick sandwich thickness)

Canned asparagus spears - I use the fancy ones but not pickled

Cream cheese

Spread 1-2 tbsp. of cheese on a piece of ham, lay an asparagus spear on top, roll and secure with toothpick . Cut in half.

[Darn210]

This goes over well everywhere I take it. Super easy to make, it's just a matter of buying the ingredients. Cook on the stove then keep warm in a crock pot if you need it to stay warm for a while.

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (It's a knock-off of the PF Changs wraps)

2 garlic cloves minced (I use the minced stuff in the jar (but not dehydrated))

1 pound ground chicken (can make yourself using boneless skinless chicken breast coarsely chopped then food processed or buy ground chicken in the meat dept)

1 Tbsp dark sesame oil

3 Tbsp teriyaki sauce (I use LaChoy)

2 Tbsp peanut butter

¼ cup peanuts

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp chili-garlic paste (more if you like it spicier)

1/2 tsp dried ground ginger

2 green onions chopped (I usually skip this and just add more onion powder)

½ tsp onion powder

½ teaspoon rice vinegar (optional Ive got rice vinegar so I use it)

Lettuce Leaves of choice (we use Romaine)

Cook chicken/garlic in hot sesame oil in large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally until chicken is done. Drain chicken. Stir in the rest of the ingredients except for the lettuce. Cook until thoroughly heated. Spoon onto lettuce leaves or directly into mouth.

The recipe is very forgiving . . . I measure everything half-a$$ed. I go extra heavy on the peanut butter and the teriyaki sauce (probably 1 ½ of what it calls for).

If you make your own ground chicken (in a food processor) it is a lot lower in fat . . . but also means more work and youve got to clean a food processor. I just buy the ground chicken in the store and drain well after browning. Then Ill add a touch of sesame oil back in just for flavor.

When I make a large batch (3 pounds of chicken or more), I add an 8oz can of chopped up water chestnuts just to add a little more crunch.

I use Lee Kum Kee Chili Garlic Sauce (in the Kroger Asian section). Over the years, this is the sauce that has a nice balance of flavor and spice. Ive had some that tasted more like shrimp cocktail sauce.

[pricklypear1971]

If you can fInd the ingredients....

A slice of good tomato - Roma, heirloom

Slice of buffalo mozzarella

1 fresh basil leaf

Balsamic vinegar

Layer basil on top of tomato, cheese on top of basil, drizzle balsamic vinegar on top.

[Lisa]

This goes over well everywhere I take it. Super easy to make, it's just a matter of buying the ingredients. Cook on the stove then keep warm in a crock pot if you need it to stay warm for a while.

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (It's a knock-off of the PF Changs wraps)

2 garlic cloves minced (I use the minced stuff in the jar (but not dehydrated))

1 pound ground chicken (can make yourself using boneless skinless chicken breast coarsely chopped then food processed or buy ground chicken in the meat dept)

1 Tbsp dark sesame oil

3 Tbsp teriyaki sauce (I use LaChoy)

2 Tbsp peanut butter

[IrishHeart]

This guy has created gluten-free phyllo dough to make baklava! I am part Armenian and the thought of losing baklava and phyllo dough made me cry for a few days.

It is very labor intensive, but he makes it look so easy.

No, I have not tried it--my back wouldn't permit this much work--but someday, I'm going to...

He uses Jules' flour.

Take a look!

[pricklypear1971]

This guy has created gluten-free phyllo dough to make baklava! I am part Armenian and the thought of losing baklava and phyllo dough made me cry for a few days.

It is very labor intensive, but he makes it look so easy.

No, I have not tried it--my back wouldn't permit this much work--but someday, I'm going to...

He uses Jules' flour.

Take a look!

Oh my goodness. So tempting...

[wildwood]

Someone here on the forum had directed me towards this video for phyllo dough last year and I did give it a try. He makes it look so easy and I thought I was doing everything just the way he showed, but the layers melded together and it was nothing like phyllo dough. It was a very time consuming process and I guess I cannot bring myself to try again because the result was so disappointing given the effort I put into it.

[IrishHeart]

Someone here on the forum had directed me towards this video for phyllo dough last year and I did give it a try. He makes it look so easy and I thought I was doing everything just the way he showed, but the layers melded together and it was nothing like phyllo dough. It was a very time consuming process and I guess I cannot bring myself to try again because the result was so disappointing given the effort I put into it.

aha! well, thank you for reporting this to us.

That is disappointing. Bummer....

[pricklypear1971]

aha! well, thank you for reporting this to us.

That is disappointing. Bummer....

What about using rice paper? Someone mentioned that before and I see them all the time. Tempting to try.

[wildwood]

I have used rice paper. I put the spinach filling in and then roll them like an egg roll. I like them this way. You can't eat them expecting phyllo dough just to warn you. They have a chewy texture that I actually enjoy. My daughter liked them this way too, but when I made the puff pastry last time she fell in love with it and asked that I do it with puff pastry again. She is coming home tonight so I am going to have her try one of the spinach tarts I made using the Land O Lakes recipe to see if she likes those as much. I hope so The tarts are so easy compared to the puff pastry.