simple party canapés.

hope you all had a wonderful christmas. here are a few snaps of the christmas canapés which i made as a starter to the main event. sitting here eating a million selection boxes and working out what leftover turkey recipe to try next, it thought i'd post these up as inspiration for party food recipe ideas for new year's eve.

to start...

balsamic red pepper and pine nut tarts

ham and cheddar pinwheels

king prawn and salmon mousse blinis

shopping list.

red pepper tarts

♥ one red pepper, roughly sliced

♥ one garlic bulb finely chopped

♥ 1 tbsp tomato puree

♥ 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

♥ 1 tsp smoked paprika

♥ salt and pepper to taste

♥ half a block of puff pastry, plus flour to dust

♥ a handful of pine nuts, toasted

optional: electric blender

ham and cheese pinwheels

♥ half a block of puff pastry

♥ one free range egg, beaten

♥ six slices of ham

♥ 15g cheddar cheese, grated

♥ salt and pepper

optional: skewers

king prawn blinis

♥ 10 blinis
♥ 10 king prawns
♥ juice of half a lemon
♥ half a cucumber
♥ salmon mousse or pate
♥ salt and pepper

for the red pepper tarts, roll out the pastry sheet on a floured surface and cut into small rectangles. for the topping, blend together the red pepper and garlic, then cook in a saucepan on a very low heat together with the balsamic vinegar, paprika, seasoning and tomato puree. simply paste onto the puff pastry and bake on 180 degrees c for 25 minutes. finish with toasted pine nuts.

for the ham and cheese pinwheels, roll out the pastry to a rectangle and paste with egg wash. layer on your ham and cheese and use skewers to secure. bake for 20 minutes at 180, carefully slice up and bake for a further 5 minutes.

for the blinis, simply toss your king prawns in lemon, salt and pepper. layer up with salmon mousse, cucumber and finish with extra black pepper. simple!

i prepared the other two puff pastry dishes ahead and assembled the king prawn one on the day. no fuss party food - eat as much or as little as you like. preferable followed by a massive christmas dinner...

hope you all had a lovely christmas and have lots of fun plans for the new year!