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A canapé is basically French for an appetizer or a bite-sized dish. It is a kind of hors d’oeuvre that can be served either hot or cold but is usually savory. The word itself comes from the French word for a sofa or a settee. The topping was thought to be sitting atop the bread or toast like a person sitting on a sofa hence the word canapé. The canapé too comprises a base (as in bread or a pancake) on which the topping (mix of veggies, cheese, caviar, or meat) rests, and then finally a garnish (like minced onions, herbs, or caviar) completes the dish.
The dish originated in 18th century France during the time of King Alfonso X, where legend states that the king ordered all tavern owners to serve small bites of food with their wine. Having canapés before your meals helps increase appetite since it lines your stomach and signals the brain about upcoming food. Using different flavours helps. A big favourite at cocktail parties, the canapés help keep the tipplers from keeling over since this bite-sized food is constantly served along with drinks.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 -15 minutes
Servings: 12
Ingredients for topping in the canapés
- 12 Ready canapés
- 1 cleaned, boiled, and cubed potato
- 1 tsp of olive oil
- ¼ cup chopped olives
- ½ cup red and green bell peppers chopped
- 2 tsp pizza seasoning
- 1 spring onion finely chopped
- pinch of salt
Ingredients for mint sauce
- 3 tbsp coriander leaves
- 3 tbsp - mint leaves
- pizza seasoning
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- ½ tsp sugar
- 3 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 green chili
- 1 tsp garlic paste
- pinch of salt
Method for mint sauce
- Put all the ingredients into a mixer-grinder and grind to a fine paste.
- Take the mix, put it in a piping bag, and put it in the fridge to cool and use later
Method for topping
- Heat the olive oil in a preheated pan.
- All the veggies have to be stir-fried so start by putting in the bell peppers, saute them a little, and add the cubed potato, olives, pizza seasoning, spring onions, sugar, and a bit of salt.
- Mix the topping mixture well, and turn off the flame.
- Fill this mixture into the canapés
- Pour the minty sauce over each canapé
- Your snack is ready to be served along with cocktails or as appetizers ahead of the main course
Conclusion
Having canapé before meals helps increase your appetite. Though a single, traditional canapé can contain a sizeable amount of fat since it contains bread, meat, and other saturated fats, a healthier version can also be created using stir-fried vegetables on bases which use crackers or breads made of whole wheat or millets, dips which use coconut cream or mayonnaise made from low fat cottage cheese, or an alternative like cashew cream or even Greek yogurt. It can be garnished with mint leaves and other herbs.
