Party Tips

Francine's Party Tips: Tapas Nibbles

Advice for the cooking challenged

-Francine Segan

Feeding friends is easy if you can cook, but what do you serve if you can't? The answer -tapas. A tapas party is one of the ... no, it is the easiest way to entertain. Think of it as a meal that skips the main course!

The word tapas comes from the Spanish tapar, which means to cover. In Spain barkeepers traditionally served drinks covered, topped, with a small plate of complimentary nibbles.

Raid a local gourmet shop and buy anything that looks good like:

- Chorizo

A spicy smoked pork sausage. Serve it sliced with thick-cut potato chips or crusty bread.

-Mojama

Air-dried fresh tuna loin. Serve it sliced paper thin with wedges of lemon and crusty bread.

-Spanish Olives

Large green queen or manzanilla olives come plain or stuffed with a variety of fillings including anchovies, garlic, piquillo peppers, salmon, almonds and onions.

-Marcona almonds

Large flavorful almonds from Valencia served fried in olive oil and topped with sea salt.

-Caper berries

When the small caper bud matures the resulting fruit is the caper berry. The olive-sized caper berries come with an attractive long stem and are much, much milder than tiny capers. A wonderful nibble with drinks.

-Piquillo Pepper

Wood-roasted red peppers from Navarra, ready-made in glass jars, are available in most gourmet food shops.

-Marinated or grilled vegetables

Artichokes, asparagus, mushrooms, onions and oil-cured sun dried tomatoes all make wonderful tapas.

-Spanish Cheeses served with a wedge of membrillo - a quince paste - or slices of fig-nut log, available in fine cheese shops. Or you can serve the cheese melted in a skillet topped with some sautéed garlic for a quick modern fondue.

Spain boasts over 100 types of cheeses so you're sure to find one you just can't live without. For me it's Tetilla, a cheese that looks like a breast and hence the name. It's a rich, smooth, slightly salty cow's milk cheese.