Aishling Moore: Entertaining at Christmas made simple with these canapé recipes

Christmas canapés by Aishling Moore. Picture: Chani Anderson.

Entertaining guests at any time of the year can be a stressful proposition, even more so at Christmas. This week, I’m sharing three simple canapé recipes that are super useful to have in your repertoire when family and friends come calling.

This quick buckwheat and buttermilk blini recipe is a winner. The buckwheat flour adds a wonderful nuttiness and the lactic hit from the buttermilk makes these the perfect vessel for serving seasonal smoked fish. 

Here, these little pancakes are served with some gorgeous wild smoked salmon from Sally Barnes’s Woodcock Smokery in West Cork, but they would be great too with some smoked trout or flaked smoked mackerel.

I’ve kept it classic with some crème fraiche and chives as accompaniments, but you could top with a little pickled beetroot, spiced relish or sauerkraut.

I couldn’t do a collection of canapés without including a retro devilled egg! You could garnish with a few slivers of anchovy or go all out and top with some caviar — though it’s always good to keep one option vegetarian when entertaining.

A gilda is just the perfect mouthful, such a handy little snack to put together in a flash with all the ingredients being store cupboard essentials in my house.

When assembling a gilda the quality of the ingredients is so important. For anchovies, I’ll always choose plump Cantabrian or change things up and swap for boquerones — an anchovy that’s first submerged in vinegar before being marinated in olive oil. 

Guindilla chillies are a non-negotiable inclusion on a gilda, these slender pickled chillies are just the right amount of spice for a canapé

As for the olives, it’s usually a manzanilla but choose your favourite – add a black olive if you’d like – my version here includes a briny little cornichon.

Buckwheat and buttermilk blinis

recipe by:Aishling Moore

This quick buckwheat and buttermilk blini recipe is a winner. The buckwheat flour adds a wonderful nuttiness and the lactic hit from the buttermilk makes these the perfect vessel for serving seasonal smoked fish.

Servings

20

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 10 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• 75g plain flour

• 50g buckwheat flour

• 1 pinch of salt

• 1 egg

• 150ml buttermilk

• 25g melted butter

• 1tb vegetable oil (for cooking)

Method

1. In a small bowl, combine plain flour, buckwheat flour and salt.

2. Make a well in the centre and add the egg and buttermilk.

3. Using a whisk, mix to form a batter, allowing the flour to fall into the well, preventing lumps from forming. </p><p>Add the melted butter and mix again to combine.

4. In a large frying pan on medium-low heat, fry a dessert spoonful’s of the blini batter in vegetable oil. Cook in batches for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown.

5. Serve warm with smoked salmon and crème fraiche.

Gildas

recipe by:Aishling Moore

A gilda is just the perfect mouthful, such a handy little snack to put together in a flash with all the ingredients being store cupboard essentials in my house.

Servings

12

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• 12 large green olives

• 12 anchovy fillets

• 12 guindilla chillies

• 12 cornichons

•  

Method

1. Spear an olive with a cocktail stick or small skewer.

2. Fold an anchovy in half and attach to the skewer alongside the olive.

3. Pierce the centre of a cornichon with the skewer and push up to meet the anchovy.

4. Slice the Gundilla chilli in half and attach to each end of the skewer.

Devilled eggs

recipe by:Aishling Moore

I couldn’t do a collection of canapés without including a retro devilled egg! You could garnish with a few slivers of anchovy or go all out and top with some caviar — though it’s always good to keep one option vegetarian when entertaining.

Servings

20

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 20 mins

Course

 Side

Ingredients

• 10 medium-sized eggs

• 2tb mayonnaise

• 1 tsp Dijon mustard

• 1 splash of hot sauce

• Zest of 1 lemon

• ½ tsp smoked paprika

Method

1. Bring a medium-sized heavy-based pot of water to the boil.

2. Carefully add the eggs and reduce the heat to a gentle simmer.

3. Cook for 10 minutes.

4. Remove the eggs from the water and place in an ice bath to cool.

5. Once cooled, peel the eggs to remove the shell.

6. Slice the eggs in half lengthways and remove the egg yolk.

7. Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and whisk to form a paste.

8. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, hot sauce and lemon zest and mix to combine.

9. Season with sea salt and place this seasoned egg yolk mixture in a piping bag with a star nozzle.

10. Fill the hollowed-out whites of the egg with the mixture.

11. Sprinkle with a little smoked paprika and garnish with fresh herbs.

Fish tales

The buckwheat and buttermilk blini batter can be made ahead of time and cooked just before serving.

Swap the buttermilk for full-fat milk if you’d prefer. Don’t crowd the pan when cooking the blinis, cook in batches in a stainless steel or non-stick frying pan.

The eggs can be boiled and peeled a day ahead, if you’d like to get organised. The flavoured egg yolk can also be assembled ahead of time; just pipe right before serving to avoid a skin from forming.

Peel the eggs under running water to help remove the shell. 

Gildas can be assembled a day ahead of serving.