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Cool canapés(18 August 2005 00:00)While party-goers in recent years have been presented with some highly artistic culinary creations - generating a visual "wow factor" but not always providing an enjoyable eating experience - today's party guests are more likely to be offered a succession of simpler and tastier canapés than before. Shot glasses, spoons and skewers of food are still evident, but now they can no longer just impress at first glance- they've got to taste good, too. As well as having good ingredients and strong, intense flavours, canapés should be easy to eat - they should amuse guests, not distract them as they attempt, with one hand, to consume an awkwardly balanced culinary masterpiece. Canapés have come a long way since the French first used the term in the 18th century to describe thin pieces of fried or toasted bread that were used to support savoury toppings. Article continues below
While the bread base is still used today - herb-flavoured breads often chosen in preference to a plain loaf - it has now been joined by many other more creative alternatives. Gourgres (choux pastry flavoured with cheese), fennel-seed shortbreads, waffle cones, chive blinis, plantain crisps and root vegetable rostis have all made excellent canap bases at recent events. Instead of a carbohydrate-heavy base, an integral part of the canap can be used to support the other ingredients, as in the case of a cucumber cup to hold an Oriental-style salad from Create Food and Party Design. In some cases there's no need for a base, as ingredients are cleverly bundled or parcelled together. Wild rocket may be used to wrap around a sliver of ripe Brie, together with a black grape and a dollop of red onion jam (The Gourmet Canapé Company), while bresaola may encase a little shaved fennel flavoured with truffle oil (Admirable Crichton). When it comes to specific trends, Asian flavours - particularly Indian, Chinese and Thai - are all big hits, as is retro-comfort food, often served with a contemporary twist. While Tamarind Catering & Events specialises in Indian canapés and will tailor-make canaps for a client based around a favourite ingredient such as chillies, all the major catering companies dabble in flavours from the Far East. Sesame-seared tuna with ponzu dressing is one of Dish's top 10 canapés, for instance, and Blistering Barbeques serves an Asian duck breast marinated in sweet soy sauce, star anise, ginger, coriander and palm sugar, on a skewer direct from the coals. When it comes to retro, Rhubarb tends to serve luxury ingredients in a comfort-food style. One such canap called "foie gras and soldiers" involves a truffled brioche crostini dipped in a foie gras mousseline. Meanwhile, Inn or Out's take on melon and Parma ham offers watermelon cubes with 30-year-old balsamic vinegar, mascarpone foam and crispy Parma ham. The Moving Venue Caterers serves a miniature Yorkshire pudding with roast pork, apple smash and crackling, while for Northcote Offsite, miniature fish and chips remains a constant hit. For a canap party - as opposed to canaps served before a dinner - sweet canaps are a good way of bringing a function to a close. Strawberries dipped in white and dark chocolate are always popular when served by the Gourmet Canapé Company, while pink Champagne and summer berry jelly from Dish makes a refreshing end to an evening of drinking and grazing.
Recipes The Gourmet Canapé Company’s Chinese duck with Oriental vegetable salad >>Inn or Out’s Lobster Club Sandwich with Vanilla Bean Aioli >> Tamarind Catering & Events’ Saag Aloo Tikki >> Dish’s Beetroot-cured Gravadlax, blue fir potato, creme fraiche, beluga, frisee and dill >>
Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper |
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