Easy High End Cocktail Party Recipes

By Jennifer Shanteau

So, you don’t want to throw just any cocktail party this time.  This time it has to be special.  No mini meatball sliders, no taco dip, no cheeseball.  This is not a casual gathering with friends to watch the Tony’s. This is an event.  Maybe you have some big news….you just got published, your first song is being produced, or you just bought a house, whatever the occasion, this party has to stand out.  What symbolizes specialnesss more than bubbly and caviar?  Uh….nothing…..nada…..they are it.  This is as good as it gets.

Whenever you encounter bubbly and caviar, you are instantly certain life at this moment could not be better.  Well, maybe if you encountered them on your new custom yacht which was headed to your private, tropical island, but that may just be my personal fantasy.  There is just nothing more decadent than bubbly and caviar.  What?  That’s out of your reach?  Think again.  You can experience the finer things in life, even if you aren’t Thurston Howell III.  You just have to know how.  High end cocktail party recipes that are special, but still doable, really do exist.

First, be open minded when it comes to your bubbles.  You don’t have to serve Dom Perignon.  There are so many delicious affordable champagnes and proseccos out there waiting to be enjoyed.  My favorite right now happens to be Prosecco DOC Treviso from Astoria Wines, Italy’s leading producer of Prosecco DOCG.  Don’t get me wrong, I love champagne, but in all honesty, I love prosecco just as much.  My main beef with any form of bubbly is that it is either too dry, or too sweet.  This was the perfect balance of both, making it way too easy to drink!  As in, if you happen to have a bottle around the house and you just intended to have one Mimosa with your lunch, well maybe two, well three is ok, right….and then all of the sudden the bottle is empty, not that you would ever do anything like that, just don’t say you weren’t warned.  It even comes in the most gorgeous cut glass bottle, said to be inspired by Venice’s famous Murano Glass.  Don’t think I won’t be using this bottle to display flowers later.

I’m a huge fan of caviar.  Thankfully, you’re encouraged to eat caviar with a teeny tiny Mother of Pearl spoon, (found on Amazon, like half the things I own), or it would be too difficult not to devour the entire tin in two bites!  Recently, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of trying Sturia Caviar from France. They offer several different types, but the two I was lucky enough to get my hands on were the Vintage and the Primeur.  Wow!  This was an experience!  Although I immensely enjoyed the fresh taste of the Vintage, my favorite of the two was the Primeur, because it was so creamy and buttery.  I’m glad I only had to share them with one other person, and after trying them on a few appetizers, was able to scoop the remainder of this absolute deliciousness straight into my drooling mouth.

However, if you aren’t Richy Rich, you can still offer caviar to your guests without filing for bankruptcy. The trick is the stretch it.  Caviar is often used sparingly in high end hors d’oeurves.  I find it pairs perfectly with Deviled Eggs, or with creme fraiche on a blini.  Both of these appetizers are so easy and so inexpensive to make. Adding the caviar, changes everything, catapulting them to the next level.

Cocktail Party Recipes – Deviled Eggs-

Ingredients: eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, salt, caviar, salt

• First, hard boil as many eggs as you need.
• After the eggs have cooled, cut them in half lengthwise, and carefully scoop out the cooked yolk, keeping the whites in tact.
• In a bowl, combine the egg yolks, mayonnaise and mustard to taste and season with salt.  Yes, to taste… I know that annoys beginners, but please taste your food.  The ratio completely depends on what eggs, what mayonnaise and what mustard you are using.  Add the mayo and mustard in a little at a time.  You can add, but you can’t remove.
• After you are happy with your egg yolk mixture, carefully place it back into the egg whites.
• Top with a dollop of caviar, and garnish with a sprig of chive.

Cocktail Party Recipes – Blinis-

Ingredients: 1/3 cup all purpose cake flour, 1/4 cup buckwheat flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, pinch of salt, 1 egg, 2/3 cup buttermilk, 5 teaspoons cooled melted butter.  (By the way, I found this recipe on Bibby’s Kitchen, thanks, Bibby!)

•  Mix together  cake flour, buckwheat flour, baking powder, and salt.
• Add egg, buttermilk and butter to the flour mixture.
• Heat a non-stick frying pan, add a touch of cooking oil and bring to medium heat.
• After the pan is hot, (yes, this is important), spoon in the batter, creating little blinis.
• When the blini begins to bubble, it is time to flip it.
• Cook for about another minute and remove from the pan.  At this point, I always taste, just in case I want to tweak my batter in any way, because after you’ve cooked everything, its too late.  This recipe can of course be amended to anything you want….different flours, etc….just keep in mind, that you want the caviar to be the star of the show, so no overpowering flavors. You can make tiny round blinis, or huge ones and cut them into triangles like I did here.
• After your blinis have cooled, top with Creme Fraiche, (you can substitute sour cream), and caviar.

See?  You can easily throw a smashing event with these cocktail party recipes, without pulling out your hair or breaking the bank.  You just need a few tricks, some basic pantry ingredients, and a couple of high quality products, such as Astoria Prosecco D.O.C. and Sturia Caviar.  Happy celebrating!

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