Asparagus Points Hors d'oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Asparagus Points Hors d’oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

This hors d’oeuvres was inspired by French cocktail food, but is not the same.  The asparagus in the United States is green and that is what I use in this recipe.

In France and Germany, asparagus is white.  It is a harbinger of spring.  Both countries bottle it to make spring flavors available all year round.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

-2 (16-ounce) bottles drained asparagus

-3 tablespoons mayonnaise

-1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

-4 slices white toast with the crust removed

Steps:

1-Mix mayonnaise and mustard together.

2-Cover toast with the mayonnaise-mustard spread.

3-Place asparagus on top of toast and press down a bit. 

4-Use a sharp knife to cut the toast with asparagus into fourths.

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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Pear-Blue Cheese Hors d'oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Pear-Blue Cheese Hors d’oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

This hors d’oeuvres can be made with just sour cream, if you do not like blue cheese.  I like the sweet and salty combination with a chenin blanc wine though.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

-2 pears cored and sliced

-1 cup crumbled blue cheese such as Maytag blue

-1/4 cup cream

-4 slices white toast

Steps:

1-Mix blue cheese with cream

2-Cover toast slices with blue cheese spread

3-Lay pear slices on toast and press down a little.

4-Cut toast into fourths and serve.

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

Click here for:  Ruth Paget's Amazon Books

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Blue Cheese Hors d'oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Blue Cheese Hors d’oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

I used to make a version of this dish in high school when I was a teenager in Detroit, Michigan.  I drank strong Red Rose tea from Canada with it.  Now I would drink a chilled chenin blanc with it and be very happy.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

-1 cup crumbled blue cheese such as Maytag Blue

-1/4 cup cream

-4 slices toast

Steps:

1-Mix the blue cheese with the cream to form a homogenous spread.

2-Cover the toast slices with the blue cheese spread.

3-Cut the toast slices into fourths and serve.

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

Click here for:  Ruth Paget's Amazon Books

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Monterey Jack-Paprika Hors d'oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Monterey Jack-Paprika Hors d'oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

This simple hors d’oeuvres is messy to make, but delicious to eat.  I use Chinita® paprika from Spain to make this, because the container comes in a larger size.  I live in Monterey County California, so I prefer to use Monterey Jack cheese for this recipe.  However, Colby cheese tastes good with the paprika, too.

These cheese cubes taste great with beer on a hot summer day.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

-1/2 pound Monterey Jack cheese cut into medium-size cubes

-1/4 cup paprika

Steps:

1-Place paprika in a bowl.

2-Role each cube in the paprika to give it a dusting of paprika.

3-Place dusted cubes in a bowl and serve.

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

Click here for:  Ruth Paget's Amazon Books

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Garlic Bread Hors d'oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Garlic Bread Hors d’oeuvres Recipe Created by Ruth Paget

Garlic bread is very easy to make if you use dry garlic, which is a specialty of Gilroy, California – about 45 minutes away from Monterey, California. 

Gilroy is hot.  When you drive by in summer, Gilroy smells like garlic roasting in the oven.  Gilroy also grows cherries and has several farm stands along Highway 101.  The dry garlic retains garlic’s flavor and is not salty.  It is just dried and can be measured easily.  I buy dry garlic at Costco.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

-1/4 cup butter

-3 teaspoons dry garlic

-4 slices toast

-Grated Parmesan (optional)

Steps:

1-Melt butter in a small sauce pan and add the dry garlic.

2-Drizzle garlic-butter mixture over the toast.

3-Cut the toast slices in fourths.

4-Sprinkle the toast slices with Parmesan, if desired.

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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