Savory cookies for cocktail party
( Biscottini salati guarniti )

Recipe for savory topped cookies

Preparation and cooking

• - Prepare a dose of rich shortcrust pastry for salt preparations. You can find the link to the recipe below.
  Doses are enough for about 30 savory cookies.
• - Allow your dough to rest for about half an hour in a cool place.
• - Preheat oven to 180 °C (350 °F).
• - Meanwhile butter a baking tin or dish.
• - Roll your shortcrust pastry out to a thickness of 1/2in on a lightly floured surface.
  Using different pastry cutter or a sharp knife, cut out decorative shapes, such as hearts, squares, triangles, leaves ...
• - Arrange your savory cookies on the baking tin and bake, about 15 minutes.
  Let them cool.
• - Meanwhile mix soft cheese with 30g (1 ounce) walnuts, finely chopped, and chives.
  You can also add paprika powder to this mixture, if you like.
• - Spread this cheese mixture on all savory cookies, once cooled.
• - Cut into little pieces all slices of salami, peppers, mushrooms and little artichokes.
• - Halve remaining walnuts.
• - Top your savory cookies with these ingredients.

Just before serving

• - Arrange your savory cookies on a serving dish.
• - They are ready to serve.

Note

Tips

• - You can also prepare your shortcrust pastry and savory cookies the day before.
• - On the contrary avoid garnishing your savory cookies much earlier. Your cheese cream might alter.
  But you can do one thing to save time. Cut your ingredients for topping and prepare cream cheese in advance. Keep all in the refrigerator.
  It will take much less time to spread the cream and decorate your savory cookies just before serving.
• - The different experiences I did suggest to spread the cream on each savory cookie and place it on the serving dish. So you can distribute all toppings on your savory cookies faster.
  Besides you can distribute the colors of your ingredients better.
• - Some variants. Instead of spreading cheese cream you can butter your savory cookies and then garnish them with slices of mini salami and mayonnaise, or red and black lumpfish roe or vegetables in oil.
  Or you can spread your savory cookies with blue cheese and top with halved walnuts.
• - Keep in mind that in planning a meal for many people you have to think also to those who may have problems of intolerance or allergy to milk and its derivatives. This is the reason why I always recommend to prepare a few dishes without cheese or butter. In this case you could spread your savory cookies with other sauces made with olive or vegetables and then garnish with products that do not have traces of dairy products.
• - I recommend your savory cookies can not be too big. They must be placed in the mouth in one bite!

Menu planning

• - These savory cookies are perfect for your seated happy hour (Italian aperitivo), to accompany a cocktail before placing your guests at the table or in a meal, buffet-style.
• - These savory cookies are delicious even for your afternoon tea party.

Useful links for this recipe

• - Shortcrust pastry for salt preparations
• - You could also be interested in other Italian tidbits to combine with these savory cookies. Have a look to our finger food, croutons (crostini), Italian antipasto ideas.
• - Planning a cocktail party or aperitivo at home? consult our page dedicated to international cocktails or fruit cocktails of my own creation.

Loretta

Healthy eating

• - You can obtain a lighter recipe if you prepare the rich shortcrust pastry with 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil instead of unsalted butter. In this case calories are 335 and fat become 20g per serving.
• - But my advice is to choose different recipes when you have problems with diabetes or dyslipidemia (high cholesterol and triglycerides).

Loretta