Appetizer Upgrades: Two Easy Springtime Bites

Two Appetizers To Impress In Less Than 10 Minutes

Welcome, spring! We’re glad you’re here.

After what’s seemed like an endless winter, I am thrilled to be putting away hearty and heavy menus for lighter fare. Bring on the springtime entertaining! Today, I’m sharing easy upgrades to two of my favorite standbys: caprese bites and a good vegetable platter, or crudite.

Springtime Crudite

I take advantage of seasonal produce whenever I can, and this crudite platter is a perfect way to showcase the season’s best offerings. Asparagus and peas are about as synonymous with spring as chocolate bunnies and dyed eggs.

Create a pop of color with your crudite – and stick with fresh items. I always try to have a good vegetable offering for my guests whenever we throw events. A veggie tray is a welcome refreshment, and it’s easy to snack on. And, bonus: crudite can sit out for an hour or two as without needing to be kept warm or cold – just keep a large glass container of extra veggies in the fridge to replenish throughout the event. It’s the perfect “set it and forget it” entertaining solution.

For this crudite platter, we added rainbow baby carrots to crisp sugar snap peas, bright red cherry tomatoes, and asparagus. Asparagus is often overlooked as a crudite component. It is fabulous after slightly cooked, or blanched.

To blanch your asparagus:

Use a peeler to peel down the stems, leaving the tops intact.

Next, take a saute pan with a 4-5 tablespoons of heavily salted water and lightly cook the asparagus. Cook them for 3-4 minutes, turning them frequently.

The most important finishing step: shock them. Once your cook time is up and they’re still that deep green color, take them out and immediately place them into an ice bath. I use a large glass nesting bowl filled with ice cubes and water. This helps them retain that gorgeous green color. Voila!

For the decor: I picked up these pearl toothpicks at Amazon here. They’re a great value, too. Our oyster dip platter is a fabulous Beatriz Ball piece that we get so much use out of – the shape is terrific. The triple oyster dip from the same set is on my list now.

Fancied-up Caprese

Endive is one of my favorite veggies. It’s sturdy enough to serve as a scoop for this simple update on caprese taken from Chef Geoffrey Zakarian on Food Network’s The Kitchen.

What you’ll need

2-3 endive, cleaned

Fresh basil

Small mozzarella balls

Cherry tomatoes

Pecorino romano/parmesan cheese, shredded

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

How to assemble

Slice your cherry tomatoes in half and add them to medium bowl. Chop your mini mozzarella balls into quarters and add them to the bowl. Remember, you want these to be bite-sized for your guests, so think small. Julienne your fresh basil and add it in.

Drizzle olive oil until everything is lightly coated. Then, add a few shakes of parmesan/pecorino romano and salt and pepper to taste. Scoop them into you endive scoops and serve.

Happy spring entertaining!