This recipe and photos were provided by Sally Roeckell of Table and Dish and were originally published at 365Barrington.com.
If you’re planning a festive party or just have people stopping by unexpectedly it’s easy to pull together a great spread if you stock up on a few items over the holidays. From Thanksgiving to New Year I usually always have a selection of go-to refrigerated and pantry on-hand so that, at any given moment, I can pull out a cutting board and lay out a selection of nibbles that would please just about anyone. If you keep just a few of these items in your kitchen you’ll never be without an appetizer when friends stop over.
Check out my basic list of staples to have on hand and then click here for a few simple ways to use these items to create mouthwatering party appetizers.
From Your Pantry
Nuts
- Almonds
- Sugared pecans and pistachios
- Marcona almonds dusted with Herbs de Provence
Crackers
- One gluten-free option
- Rice crackers
- Rainforest Fig Crackers
- Ready to bake loaves of French bread
Dried Fruit
- Apricots
- Cherries
- Dates
- Cranberries
Other
- Olive oil
- Honey
- Jams like sour cherry or fig
- Quince jam or quince paste
From Your Refrigerator
Cheese
- Goat cream cheese
- Spreadable Boursin cheese
- Fresh mozzarella
- Ready-made smoked Gouda cheese dip
- Brie
- Selection of hard cheeses such as Manchego
Fruits
- Red or green grapes
- Somasutra oranges
- Pomegranates
- Pears
- Blackberries
- Raspberries
- Lemons and limes
Meats
- Prosciutto
- Salami rolls
- Crab cakes
- Salmon
Vegetables
- Baby Parisian cucumbers
- Cherry tomatoes
- Sliced peppers
- Radishes
- Mushrooms, etc.
- Colorful radicchio or endive
Other
- Dips
- Jams
- Beet Hummus
- Fresh Rosemary Tree
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