5 Festive Christmas Appetizers

Get your “eat on” this holiday season with delicious and festive Christmas appetizers. Make a variety of different options to cater to the taste preferences of your guests and offer both meat and vegetarian options to please the whole group.

Christmas appetizer ideas sure to win over guests include:

• Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil: Serve tasty and festive treats for Christmas party appetizers such as tomato, mozzarella, and basil. Visit your local grocery store for the ingredients, which include four tomatoes (each cut into six slices), 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese (cut into 12 slices), 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper, one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and 1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves. Place four tomato slices and two pieces of mozzarella on a total of six salad plates. Sprinkle a touch of salt and pepper over the top and drizzle the oil. Leave the salt and pepper on the table for guests. Top everything evenly with basil.

• Fresh Fruit: Make Christmas party appetizers sweet to the taste! For easy Christmas appetizers, purchase watermelon and honeydew melon from your local grocery store. Use a melon ball scooper, and create watermelon and honeydew melon balls. Place the fruit on wooden skewers, and alternate with a piece of watermelon and a piece of honeydew melon. Scoop the fruit the day of the party and keep it cold until you are ready to serve it to guests.

• Cranberry Feta Pinwheels: Make delicious cranberry feta pinwheels in only 10 minutes. Gather your ingredients, which include one package of dried sweetened cranberries, one container of cream cheese spread, one cup of crumbled feta cheese, 1/4 cup of chopped green onion, and four large flour tortillas. Combine the cranberries, cream cheese, feta cheese and green onion all together, and mix it well. Separate and spread the mixture on all of the tortillas. Roll up each tortilla tightly and wrap each one in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the wraps for at least one hour before serving them to guests. Once cool, cut the wraps into 12 pieces for a fantastic and easy Christmas appetizer.

• Zucchini Cheese Squares: Add a hot Christmas appetizer recipe to the mix with delicious zucchini cheese squares. Gather eight tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup of vegetable oil, 1/2 cup of sesame seeds, one chopped onion, one clove garlic (minced), 2 1/2 cups of grated zucchini, six beaten eggs, 1/3 cup of dried bread crumbs, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of dried basil, 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano, 1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper, and three cups of shredded cheddar cheese. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and grease a 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle three tablespoons of Parmesan cheese in the pan. Pour 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a medium frying pan, and set the stove to medium-high heat. Add sesame seeds and stir constantly until the seeds turn a light brown color. Combine vegetable oil, onion, garlic, zucchini, eggs, bread crumbs, salt, basil, oregano, pepper, and cheddar cheese in a large mixing bowl, and stir the ingredients well. Press the mixture into the 9x13 baking pan, and sprinkle parmesan cheese and sesame seeds over the zucchini mixture. Bake the zucchini squares for 30 minutes. Wait at least 15 minutes until you cut and serve the appetizer to guests.

• Sweet and Sour Meatballs: Purchase the ingredients, which include a 12-ounce package of ground sausage, one pound of ground beef, one egg, one tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, 1/3 cup of dried bread crumbs, chili sauce, and grape jelly. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and start to make the mouth-watering sweet and sour meatballs. Combine the sausage, beef, egg, Worcestershire sauce, and bread crumbs together. Mix well, and use your hands to shape the meat mixture into little balls. Bake the meatballs for around 25 minutes. Now make the sauce! Combine equal amounts of the chili sauce and the grape jelly together, and heat the mixture in a large saucepan. Add the baked meatballs to the sauce and mix everything together!

Remember to check for dietary restrictions in advance of finalizing your Christmas appetizer recipes. Eat, drink and be merry! And remember to send one of our festive, free Christmas party invites to kickoff your holiday celebrations!