"Without stressing, without pulling out hair, without having to forget about actually enjoying the party yourself, you -yes, you- can become a snack master," states the irrepressible A. J. Rathbun in the introduction to Party Snacks!
Rathbun is high-spirited and loves a good party almost as much as he loves people. Since people and parties go together, his philosophy is to treat your guests to the very best. According to Rathbun, the very best should not mean hours in the kitchen that exhaust the host, but imaginative and creative dishes that please both the eye and the taste buds while freeing the cook to enjoy their party. Starting with a brief guide to party-giving, Rathbun explains the main steps to a good party: Planning Ahead, Ingredients, Tools and Equipment and Serving it Up. He gives five super-quick party ideas that take only the effort of finding the right serving dish and then moves on to five chapters that will offer variety to any party. Those include Made in a Flash where you will find such recipes as Caprese Pizza Puffs Sweet and Spicy Cream Cheese Smackers, Edamame with Ginger Salt.
Moving on to Tasty Toppings, Rathbun offers recipes such as Mushroom-Asiago-Walnut Crostini, Mozzarella' d Baby Potatoes, Dip It Up Spinach-Artichoke Dip and Beautiful Tomato and Basil Bruschetta.
The next chapter is devoted to "Crusaders of snackdom, superior snack samurais who aren't afraid to wield the pointiest of skewers in a quest for snack mastery..." Here Rathbun covers those skewered snacks that we all love so much. You will find such recipes as Mustardy Mushroom Stickers, Luau Lovelies, Cowboy Skewers, Spicy Sworded Tofu and Sweet Speared Shrimp.
Side by side with skewers go those stuffed recipes without which a buffet table cannot survive. This chapter is titled Sticking it to Them and there are recipes such as Verdura Baguette Bites, Zucchini-Stuffed Zucchini, Monterey Cremini Quesadillas and Baby Dutch Boys.
Rathbun, like all poets, likes alliteration and the final chapter is entitled Better Baked Bites. Here are recipes such as Piquant and Pretty Sweet Chicken Wings, Josephinas, Gorgeous Gougères and Heroic Tiny Ham and Cheesers.
The recipes are purposely kept simple and are clearly written and easy to follow, even when under the gun to get the party moving. There are photos throughout by Jerry Errico.
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