Tasty Finger Foods. Great for parties!

It's a fact that so many people these days are a lot fussier with their eating habits than ever before and being host to a dinner party is nowhere near as easy as it once was.

Rich foods, once loved by so many, are now frowned upon by those more health conscious who prefer cholesterol low foods. Most of the party foods are rich, creamy, easily prepared but would certainly not fall under the category of cholesterol low foods.

This year we were in charge of the annual block party. This event rotates from one home to the next in our small community. We live across the street from a lake so the block party involves 12 homes along a one mile stretch of the lake. Each year the host and hostess provides the food and beverages. We decided that this year we would serve all finger foods. By serving finger foods we would be able to prepare all the food in advance and could enjoy the day of the block party visiting with our neighbors.

I have several recipe books that include recipes for finger foods. The recipes included savory finger foods as well as a variety of sweets. Because the block party starts at 3:00pm and goes to 7pm, we knew that we wanted to serve foods that would be substantial enough to be considered a meal. The block party also includes the children on the block so we wanted to include foods that they would also enjoy. Another great thing about finger foods is that you easily control what you prepare and for the health conscious like vegans (I know of one!) and vegetarians (a trend among the teenage daughters mainly), we’ve decided to use different colored plates to identify the various snacks.

Several days before the event my husband and I went to the grocery store and purchased the ingredients for the recipes that we were going to make. We bought breads to make sandwiches and also a variety of cold cuts and cheeses. We also bought ingredients for several dips, spreads and salsas that would be prepared to help round out the selection of our finger foods.

We prepared the sandwiches and cut them in triangles and arranged them on platters that could be set around the gathering area. We arranged large plates of fresh vegetables with a variety of dips and set them out along with spreads for crackers. Our sweet finger foods included a variety of bars and cookies that I had prepared in advance and kept frozen until the day of the party. The finger foods for the kids included hot dogs and ice cream treats on a stick.

We decorated our gazebo area with streamers and balloons. We set up lawn chairs in different groupings by the lake. We had some in the sun and others in the shade to accommodate our guests. Everyone enjoyed being able to move from one location to another and nibble on the food throughout the afternoon. It seemed that there was more time to visit because we did not have to gather everyone for a meal. The finger foods were a big hit. Several people commented that they were going to serve a similar menu when it was their turn to host the event.

At the end of the party there was very little clean up and the small amount of food that was left was easily stored. We think that we started a new tradition that will continue with future block party gatherings.

I hope you’ve got an idea or two from this short piece on finger foods. It takes a little preparation to get the variety and quantity sorted out, but once done, it really does allow the hosts to mingle and enjoy the social gathering along with everyone else.