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What are finger foods?
Finger foods are those tiny snacks that are served at weekend barbecues, or on trays at functions. They are small enough to satisfy your hunger pangs and, if enough of them are consumed, can prevent you from eating a full meal altogether!
You can fork out hundreds on catering companies who charge a set amount of money per guest to serve finger food, but choosing to make your own finger food will ensure you put on a good spread for your family and friends without breaking the bank.
Follow this guide to making great appetizers that help kick off a party and keep friends mingling.
If you’re planning on buying nibbles pre-made, remember that it’s cheaper to DIY. All you need is potato, egg and flour to make your own blinis instead of buying packaged ones. You can cook them ahead of time and freeze to avoid last minute panics.
Don’t turn your nose up at people pleasers like the spinach cob loaf. Make a posher version of it by adding roasted Mediterranean vegetables, bacon or fresh herbs.
There are certain ingredients that you should always have stashed away to create a cheap nibble at a moment’s notice. Some of our budget must-haves include frozen puff pastry, grated cheddar and sesame seeds – hey presto, cheesy bites!
Sometimes what’s important when it comes to entertaining is looking like you’ve put effort into the preparation, rather than spent big bucks on the ingredients. Shortbread doesn’t cost much to make, but your party guests will think you’re a legend if you’ve gone to the effort to cut them into stars.
5. Go rustic
Take a leaf out of Jamie Oliver’s book and arrange your budget nibbles onto a recycled chopping board or old baking sheet. Leave carrot and radish stalks on for extra pizzazz. Who knew celery sticks could look so gourmet?!
If you feed your guests regular sized sandwiches, pies and pastries at your party, they’ll fill up quickly but will keep grazing anyway because they want to try everything. Make smaller versions of your party food and their bloated bellies will thank you as much as your wallet will.
Knowing how to use scraps of food helps you avoid waste and reduces your pre-party grocery bill. Last night’s risotto makes the best arancini, veggies can be added to sausage rolls, roast turkey makes a vol-au-vent filling, while cheeses can be melted together to make gooey fondue dip.
Forget sugary mixers for your cocktails – all you need is soda water! Add sweetness and make them look super stylish by freezing small morsels of fruit into your ice cubes.
9. Bulk it out
Making skewers for your summer get-together? Don’t just use meat or your grocery bill will grow. Instead, alternate meat with cheaper produce like onion, button mushroom and zucchini. If you are making lamb or beef skewers, consider using mince instead of fillet to bring your bill down further.
Potatoes continue to be affordable, filling and totally yummy. Roasted baby spuds on cocktail sticks are great for dunking in aioli, while big potatoes can be cut into wedges and baked until crispy.
A loaf of bread, a knob of butter and one cucumber (sliced wafer thin and seasoned) is all you need to give your afternoon party a regal edge. Cut the sandwiches into fingers and get rid of the crusts to really blow people away.
Turn a bargain chocolate mud cake from the supermarket into pretty cake pops with minimum effort and minimum dollars spent. They’ll be a hit with both little and big party-goers!
It’s worth taking the time to develop an understanding of what things cost at the supermarket. Once you realise that a tin of beans costs less than a dollar, you’ll choose to add spices and garlic to it to make a Middle Eastern bean dip, instead of making guacamole from scratch.
Want to make something cheap and simple look effortless? Add a fancy cocktail stick or fresh herbs!
Top recipes for finger foods Egg and cress fingers Fish fingers with corn dip Finger sandwiches Blue cheese, walnut and herb fingers Barbecued fontina and herb polenta fingers
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