Seasons by the Sea: Tasty Little Bites

You can learn a lot about people by the type of food they serve at a cocktail party.

Some of my friends just put out a humongous cheese platter with grapes. Have you ever noticed that the blue cheese is always the last one left standing? Quite often you see the Citarella crudite assortment, still in its plastic compartmentalized platter with dill dip. In this case, it’s usually the broccoli florets that are left behind. Personally, I find cheese too filling and fattening before a meal. And crudites? As long as they’re served with more interesting savories, they’re okay. There are always virtuous dieters in our midst. Personally, I appreciate it when people make a little more effort for their friends, and I’m not talking pigs in a blanket!

Canapés, hors d’oeuvres, tapas, mezze, zakuski, bocas, pinchos, anju, smorgasbord. No matter what you call the little bites served with drinks around the world, they have an interesting history and serve a purpose. During Prohibition, tiny bites were served to patrons at the underground 21 Club so they wouldn’t reek of alcohol upon exiting the upscale boozery. In Spanish culture tapas and bocas are served to encourage conversation among guests because once the meal is served, everyone will be focused on their food.

Little bites of food are served with drinks to both act as a blotter to absorb alcohol and to stimulate the appetite, a delicate balance. Zakuski, literally translated to “little bites,” are attributed to Czar Peter the Great. By the 19th century, zakuski were served in a room specifically for this purpose. Guests would gather around the table, clink glasses, propose a toast, down a shot of vodka, and follow it with a bite of pickled herring or caviar. Vodka cleanses the palate, leaving it stimulated for the next taste.

Canape translates to “sofa” or “couch,” but originally meant “canopy” as in the netting that covered a bed or sofa. The canape is the “sofa” upon which you place the topping. Hors d’oeuvres translates to “outside of the work,” meaning smaller bites of food before the main meal. If you have trouble spelling it, just call them “eperons bachiques” as Rabelais did, meaning to “spur Bacchanalia,” or thirst. “Vol au vent” or “blown by the wind” are tiny round canapes made with puff pastry.

I have one friend who doesn’t serve anything during the cocktail hour. He is an excellent cook and believes it spoils his guests’ appetites to serve food before food. By the time people sit down to dinner they are bombed and starved. I heartily disagree with this method of entertaining.

At the other end of the spectrum, my friend Dickie B. likes to whip up hot little savories as the guests are hanging around the kitchen. While I like to be finished with my cooking and able to mingle with my friends, I have to admit people are always impressed and delighted to watch Dickie fry tiny corn fritters and salty zucchini strips. Party as performance art.

If you don’t want to do any, or very much work, by all means, get that layered Mexican dip from Round Swamp Farm and watch people go nuts over it. For a wee bit of expense, you can serve hors d’oeuvres from Loaves and Fishes, little mushroom profiteroles and spanikopita that are better than homemade.

I have a few easy cheats up my sleeve that people always love. Slice a log of plain goat cheese into three-quarter-inch discs and arrange on a deep platter. Top with lots of coarsely chopped garlic, fresh or dried thyme, drizzle with good olive oil, and serve with Carr’s Wheatmeal crackers which are slightly sweet and pair perfectly with the sharp garlic and mild cheese. Commercially made taramasalata (Greek carp roe dip) can be found at a few grocery stores and seafood shops out here. It’s even better when you whip in a few drops of olive oil, lemon juice, and grated onion. Serve it on simple Melba toast-type crackers.

For no-work-at-all appetizers, buy fancy truffled popcorn, salt and pepper pistachios from Trader Joe’s and supermarket hummus. You can doctor the hummus with smoked paprika, lemon juice, cumin, whatever you like. Provisions in Sag Harbor has pretty good vegan Thai spring rolls you can serve with sweet chili sauce.

My grandparents always served melted cheddar with a dab of chutney on crackers or small toast rounds, and peanut butter on crackers with a bit of crisp bacon on top. These are simple and easy hors d’oeuvres that strike the right balance of salty, sweet, and filling but not too filling.

If you want to serve olives, buy a variety and marinate them with strips of lemon and orange peel, some fennel seeds, sliced garlic, and the juice from the lemon and orange.

My cocktail party fare is usually determined by budget and how much time I have to prepare. Making homemade hors d’oeuvres, canapes, etc. is always more economical but not always

feasible. Do as much as you can to show your guests how much you care. A party is more about friends, but trust me, if you serve good food, they will remember. Don’t just serve Jack Benny’s definition of hors d’oeuvres — “a ham sandwich cut into 40 pieces.”

Here are some recipes to make your summer soiree more soignee.

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