Cooking Irish can also be found at Pinterest and PETITCHEF.
Erin with a very nice English mother and son
We met some wonderful people on the Nile cruise. Most were Australian or English. My children and I were the only Americans because we booked the tour from a London travel agency. There was a father and son on the Israeli leg of the tour though. We compared notes on the cost of the tour booking in the States vs. booking the same tour with the same company in London. I paid half what they did. I've learned now to book online from a London travel agency and just get a cheap flight to London. This worked for many years, but I have not traveled overseas in a few years so this may not be the case now with the devalued dollar vs. the Euro. When I travel again, I will at least check it out. With the internet today, it makes it all so much easier to access all kinds of great travel deals.
When we were in Aswan, some on our tour got up incredibly early and flew to view Abu Simbel. They all said it was an incredible experience and were glad they went. Not only are the two temples at Abu Simbel among the most magnificent monuments in the world, but their removal and reconstruction was an historic event in itself. When the temples, about 174 miles from Aswan, were threatened by submer- sion in Lake Nasser due to the construction of the High Dam at Aswan, the Egyptian govern-ment secured the support of UNESCO and launched a world wide appeal. During the salvage operation which began in 1964 and continued until 1968, the two temples were dismantled and raised over 65 feet up the sandstone cliff where they had been built more than 3,000 years before. Here they were reassembled, in the exact same relationship to each other and the sun and covered with an artificial mountain. Inside the temple it is still possible to see where the blocks were cut. You can also go inside the manmade dome and see an exhibition of photographs showing the different stages of the massive removal project.
Some of the wonderful people with whom we cruised on the Nile in July of 1985--I wonder where they all are now.
An Egyptian boy on our felucca on the Nile River
Here are some more great hors d'oeuvres found in my hors d'oeuvres bible: Hors D'Oeuvres, published in 1999 by A D K Publishing, Inc.® and written by Eric Treuille and Victoria Blashford-Snell. These are especially easy since there is no pastry or complicated bottom to make. Crostini are simply baked bread slices so they are great for young cooks just beginning to make hors d'oeuvres or for anyone who is pinched for time.
Some of these recipes call for a paprika garnish. I have not seen a paprika garnish in many new dishes. Remember this book was published in the 1990s. It reminds me of my mother. She always wanted her meals to look nice as well as taste good. Our family did not have a great deal of money [my father, grandfather, etc. were never the first born son and had to make their own way in this world!!] So we would have things like a glass of tomato juice in an antique stemmed crystal for an appetizer. This was popular even in restaurants in the 50s and 60s. My mother never placed mashed potatoes, potato salad, macaroni salad, rice, noodles, turnip, squash--anything light-colored--on a table without sprinkling paprika on it. I do that to this day. And at Christmas I always use paprika and parsley flakes for a festive red and green accent. These recipes brought back so many family dinner memories because of the paprika garnish.
4 of the 5 of these crostini are meatless. So if you have vegetarian friends, these will do nicely. The last one contains shrimp. Again, I have altered some of these recipes to my tastes, but the integrity of the flavor has not been compromised. The shrimp recipe has been drastically changed though. The cookbook’s recipe is a spicy, tomato shrimp topping served cold. This is a scampi served warm. If you would like the spicy recipe, email me, and I will be glad to provide it.
TOMATO, BASIL, AND MOZZARELLA CROSTINI [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
5 ripe plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
½ of a medium red onion, very finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2 tbsp. of quality olive oil
1 tbsp. of balsamic vinegar or lemon juice if you do not care for vinegar
Salt and crushed black pepper to taste
20 thin slices of fresh mozzarella
20 crostini [Recipe included]
20 fresh basil leaves for garnish
Preparation:
Mix the tomato, onion, garlic, and vinegar [or lemon juice] together. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Place a slice of fresh mozzarella onto each crostini. Spoon the tomato mixture onto the mozzarella. Garnish with basil leaf placed vertically in the center of the tomato mixture.
Avocado and Goat Cheese Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
1 large, ripe avocado
2/3 cup of fresh creamy goat cheese
Grated peel [zest] and juice of one lemon
1 tbsp. of quality olive oil
Salt and tabasco to taste
20 crostini [Recipe included]
Fresh chive, chopped for garnish
Preparation:
Place the avocado, cheese, peel, juice, and oil into a food processor or blender. Pulse to a smooth purée. Add the salt and the tabasco to taste. Spoon the topping generously on each crostini for a more rustic presentation, or you can pipe on for a fancier presentation. Garnish with the chopped chive.
White Bean and Sage Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
3 tbsp. of quality olive oil
1 small white onion, very finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, very finely chopped
4 sage leaves, chopped
1 15 ½ oz. can of cannelloni beans, drained
2 tbsp. of water
Salt and crushed black pepper to taste
20 crostini [Recipe included]
1 ripe tomato, seeded and diced
Quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling [Again I like Colavita®, an Italian olive oil, but there are some fine California olive oils now, and I prefer to buy American whenever possible. Please comment or email me with info about your favorite CA olive oil. I would be very interested in your suggestions.]
Preparation:
Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, and sage and cook over low heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beans and water. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 10 minutes. Mash the beans with a wooden spoon to make a rough purée. Spread the bean purée on the crostini, and top each with a little diced tomato. Drizzle with olive oil. Best served warm, but also good at room temperature.
Eggplant “Caviar” Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
2 medium eggplants
1 garlic clove, crushed
Juice of ½ of a lemon
2 tbsp. of quality olive oil
1 tbsp. of whole-milk yogurt
Salt to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste
20 crostini [Recipe included]
1 tsp. of paprika for garnish
20 mint sprigs for garnish
Preparation:
With a fork pierce each eggplant. Spray a broiling pan, and broil the eggplant until the skin is black and blistered, and the flesh feels soft. When cool enough to handle, peel off the charred skin. Use your hands to squeeze out as much moisture as possible from the flesh. Place the eggplant, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and yogurt into a food processor or blender; pulse to a smooth purée. Add the salt and the cayenne pepper to taste. Cool completely. Spoon the topping generously on each crostini for a more rustic presentation, or you can pipe on for a fancier presentation. Garnish with a pinch of paprika and the mint sprigs.
Shrimp Scampi Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
1 lb. of medium cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined [40 shrimp, 2 for each crostini]
2 tbsp. of butter
1 clove of garlic, crushed
3 tbsp. of Romano cheese, grated
Juice of ½ a lemon
3 tbsp. of white wine
Salt and crushed black pepper
20 crostini [Recipe included]
Fresh flat-leafed parsley, chopped for garnish
Quality olive oil for drizzling
Preparation: In a sauté pan, melt the butter. Add the garlic, cheese, lemon juice, white wine, and salt and crushed pepper to taste. Heat thoroughly until all the ingredients have combined, and the liquid has evaporated. Place 2 shrimp on each crostini and cover with the scampi sauce. Garnish with the chopped parsley, and drizzle with the olive oil.
Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
1 day-old thin baguette, 2-3 inches in diameter
4 tbsp. of garlic olive oil
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350° F. Cut the baguette into 20 ½-inch thick slices. Brush with garlic olive oil. If you do not have garlic olive oil, then crush 1 clove of garlic into the oil before brushing. Bake until crisp and lightly golden, about 10 minutes.
Tips: Make the crostini up to 2 weeks in advance. Cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature.
I hope you enjoy these crostini. They are just so easy to make and are so flavorful. They will be a hit at any party.
Erin with a very nice English mother and son
When we were in Aswan, some on our tour got up incredibly early and flew to view Abu Simbel. They all said it was an incredible experience and were glad they went. Not only are the two temples at Abu Simbel among the most magnificent monuments in the world, but their removal and reconstruction was an historic event in itself. When the temples, about 174 miles from Aswan, were threatened by submer- sion in Lake Nasser due to the construction of the High Dam at Aswan, the Egyptian govern-ment secured the support of UNESCO and launched a world wide appeal. During the salvage operation which began in 1964 and continued until 1968, the two temples were dismantled and raised over 65 feet up the sandstone cliff where they had been built more than 3,000 years before. Here they were reassembled, in the exact same relationship to each other and the sun and covered with an artificial mountain. Inside the temple it is still possible to see where the blocks were cut. You can also go inside the manmade dome and see an exhibition of photographs showing the different stages of the massive removal project.
Abu Simbel was first reported by J. L. Burck-hardt in 1813, when he came over the mountain and only saw the façade of the great temple as he was preparing to leave that area via the Nile. The two temples, that of Ramses II primarily dedicated to Re-Harakhte, and that of his wife, Nefertari dedicated to Hathor, became a must see for Victorians visiting Egypt, even though it required a trip up the Nile, and often the statues were covered deeply in sand, as they were when Burckhardt found them.
Abu Simbel at night
Some of the wonderful people with whom we cruised on the Nile in July of 1985--I wonder where they all are now.
An Egyptian boy on our felucca on the Nile River
Here are some more great hors d'oeuvres found in my hors d'oeuvres bible: Hors D'Oeuvres, published in 1999 by A D K Publishing, Inc.® and written by Eric Treuille and Victoria Blashford-Snell. These are especially easy since there is no pastry or complicated bottom to make. Crostini are simply baked bread slices so they are great for young cooks just beginning to make hors d'oeuvres or for anyone who is pinched for time.
Some of these recipes call for a paprika garnish. I have not seen a paprika garnish in many new dishes. Remember this book was published in the 1990s. It reminds me of my mother. She always wanted her meals to look nice as well as taste good. Our family did not have a great deal of money [my father, grandfather, etc. were never the first born son and had to make their own way in this world!!] So we would have things like a glass of tomato juice in an antique stemmed crystal for an appetizer. This was popular even in restaurants in the 50s and 60s. My mother never placed mashed potatoes, potato salad, macaroni salad, rice, noodles, turnip, squash--anything light-colored--on a table without sprinkling paprika on it. I do that to this day. And at Christmas I always use paprika and parsley flakes for a festive red and green accent. These recipes brought back so many family dinner memories because of the paprika garnish.
4 of the 5 of these crostini are meatless. So if you have vegetarian friends, these will do nicely. The last one contains shrimp. Again, I have altered some of these recipes to my tastes, but the integrity of the flavor has not been compromised. The shrimp recipe has been drastically changed though. The cookbook’s recipe is a spicy, tomato shrimp topping served cold. This is a scampi served warm. If you would like the spicy recipe, email me, and I will be glad to provide it.
TOMATO, BASIL, AND MOZZARELLA CROSTINI [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
5 ripe plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
½ of a medium red onion, very finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2 tbsp. of quality olive oil
1 tbsp. of balsamic vinegar or lemon juice if you do not care for vinegar
Salt and crushed black pepper to taste
20 thin slices of fresh mozzarella
20 crostini [Recipe included]
20 fresh basil leaves for garnish
Preparation:
Mix the tomato, onion, garlic, and vinegar [or lemon juice] together. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Place a slice of fresh mozzarella onto each crostini. Spoon the tomato mixture onto the mozzarella. Garnish with basil leaf placed vertically in the center of the tomato mixture.
Avocado and Goat Cheese Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
1 large, ripe avocado
2/3 cup of fresh creamy goat cheese
Grated peel [zest] and juice of one lemon
1 tbsp. of quality olive oil
Salt and tabasco to taste
20 crostini [Recipe included]
Fresh chive, chopped for garnish
Preparation:
Place the avocado, cheese, peel, juice, and oil into a food processor or blender. Pulse to a smooth purée. Add the salt and the tabasco to taste. Spoon the topping generously on each crostini for a more rustic presentation, or you can pipe on for a fancier presentation. Garnish with the chopped chive.
White Bean and Sage Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
3 tbsp. of quality olive oil
1 small white onion, very finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, very finely chopped
4 sage leaves, chopped
1 15 ½ oz. can of cannelloni beans, drained
2 tbsp. of water
Salt and crushed black pepper to taste
20 crostini [Recipe included]
1 ripe tomato, seeded and diced
Quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling [Again I like Colavita®, an Italian olive oil, but there are some fine California olive oils now, and I prefer to buy American whenever possible. Please comment or email me with info about your favorite CA olive oil. I would be very interested in your suggestions.]
Preparation:
Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, and sage and cook over low heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beans and water. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 10 minutes. Mash the beans with a wooden spoon to make a rough purée. Spread the bean purée on the crostini, and top each with a little diced tomato. Drizzle with olive oil. Best served warm, but also good at room temperature.
Eggplant “Caviar” Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
2 medium eggplants
1 garlic clove, crushed
Juice of ½ of a lemon
2 tbsp. of quality olive oil
1 tbsp. of whole-milk yogurt
Salt to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste
20 crostini [Recipe included]
1 tsp. of paprika for garnish
20 mint sprigs for garnish
Preparation:
With a fork pierce each eggplant. Spray a broiling pan, and broil the eggplant until the skin is black and blistered, and the flesh feels soft. When cool enough to handle, peel off the charred skin. Use your hands to squeeze out as much moisture as possible from the flesh. Place the eggplant, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and yogurt into a food processor or blender; pulse to a smooth purée. Add the salt and the cayenne pepper to taste. Cool completely. Spoon the topping generously on each crostini for a more rustic presentation, or you can pipe on for a fancier presentation. Garnish with a pinch of paprika and the mint sprigs.
Shrimp Scampi Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
1 lb. of medium cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined [40 shrimp, 2 for each crostini]
2 tbsp. of butter
1 clove of garlic, crushed
3 tbsp. of Romano cheese, grated
Juice of ½ a lemon
3 tbsp. of white wine
Salt and crushed black pepper
20 crostini [Recipe included]
Fresh flat-leafed parsley, chopped for garnish
Quality olive oil for drizzling
Preparation: In a sauté pan, melt the butter. Add the garlic, cheese, lemon juice, white wine, and salt and crushed pepper to taste. Heat thoroughly until all the ingredients have combined, and the liquid has evaporated. Place 2 shrimp on each crostini and cover with the scampi sauce. Garnish with the chopped parsley, and drizzle with the olive oil.
Crostini [Makes 20]
Ingredients:
1 day-old thin baguette, 2-3 inches in diameter
4 tbsp. of garlic olive oil
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350° F. Cut the baguette into 20 ½-inch thick slices. Brush with garlic olive oil. If you do not have garlic olive oil, then crush 1 clove of garlic into the oil before brushing. Bake until crisp and lightly golden, about 10 minutes.
Tips: Make the crostini up to 2 weeks in advance. Cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature.
I hope you enjoy these crostini. They are just so easy to make and are so flavorful. They will be a hit at any party.
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