Quick and Easy Appetizer

On really nice afternoons, Ryan and I like to enjoy a cocktail and appetizers on our back porch. Since the weather can get REALLY hot and humid in NC, we take advantage of the 70 and 80 degree days as much as possible. Both of us have indoor jobs, so the extra Vitamin D really helps!

The other day, Ryan was preparing the cocktails for our little back-porch meetup (vodka martinis), while I tackled a quick snack. One of my go-to quick appetizer is using frozen mini-fillo dough shells. These are great, because they thaw instantly. By the time you take the shells out of the freezer and place on the counter, they are basically thawed and ready to use. I usually combine brie cheese and Seven Pepper Jelly in the shells, then bake until the cheese melts.

However, on this day, we had extra goodies to choose from in the fridge! There were leftover toppings from the Caramelized Fennel and Pancetta salad we made the previous night. I chopped this up and put this in the shells along with some gruyere cheese. It was amazing!!

So, a must for your freezer is to have these little shells on hand. Then you can basically fill them with any kind of melting cheese, topping and bake in a 350F oven for 5 minutes. Voila! A quick and easy appetizer. Here are some other suggested combinations:

• Brie cheese and pepper jelly
• Brie cheese, apricot jam and chopped walnuts
• Sharp white cheddar cheese with salsa and/or chives
• Gruyere cheese with roasted fennel and pancetta (from this salad)
• Mozzarella, cherry tomato and basil
• Goat cheese and Kalamata olives
• Cheddar, sausage and parsley

What other combinations can you come up with??