BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Party Planning Appetizer Suggestion Needed

I'm hosting a dinner party for hubby's side of the family tomorrow night. Sixteen guests.

I'm making homemade spaghetti and meatballs (as in homemade pasta too) along with a salad, garlic bread, and ice cream cake (from scratch) for dessert.

Since I'm making everything from scratch, I'd like to serve something easy for appetizers. Many things that come to mind are Asian or Mexican rather than Italian.

Anyone have any ideas? I'm leaning towards just veggies and dip.

Since you're doing an Italian theme, how about some proscuitto wrapped breadsticks? Just buy those long, hard breadsticks, maybe spread a bit of herbed cream cheese on one end, and wrap proscuitto around it. It's become one of my favorite appetizers.

Bacon Surprises are easy, very tasty and not too filling before a big dinner.

1 lb. bacon
4 cans whole water chestnuts
2 tbls. soy sauce
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. ketchup

Cut bacon in thirds. Wrap a strip of bacon around a water chestnut and poke a flat toothpick through the bacon and water chestnut. Continue wrapping water chestnuts with bacon until finished. Place each water chestnut that has been wrapped on broiler pan. Cook until bacon is crisp. Mix soy sauce, brown sugar and ketchup in saucepan. Heat to boiling. Dip cooked water chestnuts with bacon in sauce to coat. Serves 10.

This one is also great but a bit more filling:

Sausage Stars

1lb cooked hot zesty sausage (crumbled)

1 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar

1 1/2 cup monterey jack cheese

1 cup Hidden Valley Ranch dressing

1 can sliced ripe olives

1/2 cup chopped red pepper

1 pkg fresh wonton skins or eggroll cut in fourths

Spray oil



Preheat oven 350. Blot sausage dry and compine cheeses, dressing, olives and peppers. Lightly grease muffin tin and press wrappers in each cup. Spray with oil. Bake 5 minutes until golden brown. Remove from tin and place on cookie sheet. Fill with mixture and bake 5 minutes until bubbly.

Anti-pasta. Cheese, seeded olives, cooked asparagus tips, salami, ham, slices or cubes, cherry tomatoes, garbanzoes etc. What ever strikes your fancy or you have on hand. Marinate in italian dressing a few hours or overnight. Serve with tooth picks on the side.

Oh, and kudos to you for making your own pasta.

Hi Jan,
Some of the easiest appetizers I've used are, stuffed mushroom caps, fill with breadstuffing(eggs, cheese, parsley, garlic, etc), crab or a sausage misture. Another easy appetizer is the Italian thin sausage, cervalata, pop in the oven, when finished cut small pieces with sissors, blue cheese dip and cocktail tooth picks. Dress the plates with doiles, nice touch. You might want cooked shrimp cocktail or provolone and salami rollups. Oftentimes the old celery, olives, cheese and pepperoni dish does just fine too. Good luck, Marianne

Thanks everyone. I forgot to mention that we don't eat beef or pork. We were veg for a few years but then added poultry in when I was pregnant because I was craving it like crazy. I'm using 100% ground turkey breast for the meatballs but am also making about 2 pounds of beef meatballs just to be nice.

Oh..about the pasta, I can't take all the credit. I asked my MIL for a pasta machine (the old fashioned kind) last Christmas and still haven't used it yet. So I've asked her to come over tomorrow to teach me to make the pasta. So we're going to make enough pasta for 16 guests..We'll see how it goes. I can always run to the store if I need to.

I'm making the ice cream cake tonight. Then in the morning I'm going to make the meatballs and get them ready to bake. Then in the afternoon I'll prepare the pasta and the sauce. Finally, I'll do the salad, bread, and appetizers. So it shouldn't be too terrible!! I've been learning from Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa) that having people over doesn't have to leave you stressed out and tired if you plan ahead!