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#appetizers

Appetizers Inspired by Travel!

June 27, 2022 By kimwheeler 12 Comments

Say summer and I think of travel! Even though we haven’t gone far this summer, I’ve so enjoyed seeing people’s travel posts again after the past two years of quarantine. They are bringing back wonderful memories of sweet places in the world I hope to get back to someday- like England, Italy and France, and the Netherlands- and others that are still on my bucket list!

Last Friday I met my ‘Weekend Meanderings’ pal Juliet for a working lunch up in adorable Danville and she made us reservations at the most authentic and charming restaurant for lunch, Locanda Ravello. They describe themselves as ‘a slice of the Amalfi Coast in the heart of Danville’. Are you already enchanted? I had the caprese salad and it came with heirloom tomatoes and a heavenly burrata topped with pesto. I don’t think I have enjoyed a meal so much ever and could not stop talking about it to my husband.

Then Saturday we went to the new Eataly Silicon Valley, a three story Italian food extravaganza which was mind blowing. Coincidentally at the same time, I’ve also been enjoying the fun, ‘How to be Italian,’ book that I wrote about on last weekend’s blog.

So when Annie asked me to join this group, you could say that Italy was top of mind. My first thought was how to recreate that fabulous lunch in an appetizer size?

Caprese Bites

For my mini version, simply slice a medium or smaller size baguette diagonally, rub each with the cut side of a garlic clove, layer in a baking tray, drizzle with a fair amount of olive oil, malden sea salt, and toss with your hands to coat the slices. Lay out flat and toast in the a 400 degree oven until slightly golden on edges, but still a bit chewy, about 8 minutes. The key is to take them out while they are a bit crunchy yet with a chewiness, not crisp hard.

When cooled, top each slice with a slice of tomato, (garden or farmer’s market variations are the best tasting), a slice of fresh mozzarella, and a small dollop of pesto. I used Trader Joe’s Kale, Cashew, Basil Vegan Pesto, which was a first and it’s pretty good. You could also make your own, or in a pinch just add a fresh basil leaf. I tucked basil leaves around the dish. To recreate the look from wonderful Locando Ravello, you could add green olives and arugula.

It would be beautiful on one of those hand-painted Italian platters. Since I don’t have that, I opted for this long oval Torino Platter I love from Hudson-Grace.

I just happened to take these out when Max finished work and Griffin’s friends came by. The feedback was positive, so that made me happy! Obviously the better your tomatoes are, so will these bites be. I have been loving the darker red/green Kumato tomatoes from Trader Joes and those seemed to make the best versions of the bites. Highly recommend them!

Some things you may need..

Now please go see what delicious appetizers my friends are sharing on these blogs…


Most Lovely Things

My Sweet Savannah

Sheri Silver

Thanks for being here!

Kim

If you still have travel on the brain, you may enjoy this post with my travel essentials..This is one of my most read posts, A Guide to Traveling Abroad with Kids and my most popular post, What to Pack for Carmel and Monterey, that I update frequently.

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Filed Under: appetizers, Uncategorized Tagged With: #appetizers, #californialiving, #caprese, #hudsongrace, #italianfood, #italy, #travel, #travelinspired

Holiday Appetizers

December 5, 2019 By kimwheeler 18 Comments

Need festive food for a gathering or upcoming party? Ready to try something new? Well you came to the right spot! Today I am joining a talented group of bloggers in a holiday appetizer roundup. Everyone is sharing something they love for this time of year. I am sharing my simple way to make pretty cheese board.

I find these boards are so popular that you can rely on them to fill most of your appetizer requirements for a gathering. It’s even better if you have a nice board to display it on.

I recently purchased this one from Crate & Barrel above, but I have my eye on these darling ones from Serena & Lily.. I like the leather straps to tote them and the whale spreaders!

I also like this one from Pottery Barn…

Having a good platter is half the battle.

Cheese boards are fun because you can make them seasonal. There is an easy equation to keep it simple- three cheeses, three fruits, and three kinds of crackers. I arrange those in a free-form fashion and fill in with whatever other nuts or salty treats I have on hand. Another touch that will make your cheese board popular is breaking up one or two dark chocolate bars and adding them in by the fruit. I copied this from an appetizer board at a tennis lunch and it’s been a hit every time I since.

The board on top photo was from my Blogger’s Lunch I hosted and it was in fall, so I used apples, pears, persimmons, walnuts and figs. I try and add three cheeses- one soft like a brie, a gouda or a manchego which are firmer, and a goat cheese which I like to drizzle honey and sprinkle almonds or pecans on. Mini apples are in the store now and look cute as a garnish on a fall board if you find them.

In summer I choose things like berries, peaches and apricots, the same cheeses and a little edible flower or two. Sprigs of fresh mint can look and smell pretty with the berries and the same cheeses and crackers.

In winter I like a pomegranate split on the board and the seeds sprinkled on top of a drizzle of honey on the goat cheese. Fruit is harder to come by so dried figs – the Turkish kind, can look pretty sliced in half, and of course citrus should be on a winter board. Clementines are very cute cut in little wedges or peeled and broken up next to dark chocolate. Candied nuts are a holiday touch you can add on a December board.

My go-to crackers are the unbeatable Rainforest Crisps, Trader Joes Pita Crackers, and any long Italian cracker. I also like to add Mary’s Classic Crackers as they are gluten free.

My formula is pretty simple and if you do these frequently it is easy to stock the basics in the pantry and pull one together on the fly. I worry often about them being neat, but sometimes just mounding them up and letting it all organically kind of fall together can look just as pretty, so don’t overthink it and have fun!

Now for more good ideas please stop by lovely partners in this and see what they have in store for you for holiday appetizers….

This is a link to each person’s blog and after their Instagrams so you can follow them there as well..

Melaine My Sweet Savannah @mysweetsavannah

Sheri Sheri Silver @sherisilver

StefanieBeautiful Living with Stefanie Wall @beautiful_living_wtih_stefanie

Mary Ann Classic Casual Home @classiccasualhome 

Cindy Rough Luxe Lifestyle @cindyhattersley 

Annie Most Lovely Things @most_lovely_things

I would love for you to share below in comments if you have a favorite appetizer for holiday get-togethers.

Cheers!

Kim

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: #appetizerboards, #appetizers, #bloggerroundup, #bloghop, #holidayentertaining, #holidayhomestyle, #serenaandlily

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Blogger, writer and explorer sharing about my native California, and parts farther afield. Join me here where I chat about things to love in the worlds of design, fashion, home, travel and culture.

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