3 Quick & Easy Cheese Appetizers

Here are 3 quick & easy cheese appetizers that will become staples in your home entertaining repertoire. Serve them for cocktail parties or happy hour.

I’m sharing three of my favorite quick & easy cheese appetizers that are the perfect items to serve at a cocktail party, a happy hour, or for a charcuterie & cheese party. This is an updated version that I originally published back in November 2011. You can see how I first displayed them in unique ways as part of a wine & cheese bar, here.

These are not really “recipes,” but more like easily assembled lite bites. They take minimal time, effort, and ingredients, which makes them perfect for cocktail parties and happy hour! You can make all three versions for a single party, or pick and choose as you like. They are all small in size but big on flavor!

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3 Quick & Easy Cheese Appetizers for Home Entertaining:

First up are these Italian style canapes that use goat cheese as the perfect base. These are savory, and I like to make two versions using either roasted red pepper, or diced tomatoes.

Italian Style Canapes

• 1 Italian or French baguette, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
• Goat Cheese at room temperature
• Prepared Pesto
• Diced Roma tomatoes and/or jarred roasted red peppers

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees while slicing the baguette. Lay the slices on a baking sheet and cook for about 5 minutes, until slightly toasted.

While bread is toasting, remove roasted red pepper from jar, pat dry with a paper towel, and slice into thin strips.

Remove bread and spread with Goat cheese, then pesto, and top with diced tomatoes or roasted red peppers. Serve and enjoy!

On a sweeter note, these cheese appetizers use brie and can be customized to the occasion. For Fall I like to use Pear preserves; for Christmas use Cranberry, Spring and Summer use strawberry or apricot preserves. It’s all delicious. For the ones seen here, I used fig preserves, apricot preserves, and raspberry jalapeno jam. I like the look of the different colors on the plate together, and a variety of flavors is always a plus.

Brie Bites

• 1 package filo cups
• Small wheel or triangle of brie
• a variety of Preserves or jams {apricot, pepper jelly, fig, pear, cranberry, etc}

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees, and remove the rind from the brie. Cut small pieces from the brie and place inside each cup. Top with a dollop of preserves and bake for 5 minutes or until brie is melted. Remove and let cool slightly, and serve.

This last bite sized nibble is one that goes back to my childhood, and I’ve never seen anyone else prepare it. My dad used to make this when they entertained friends {back in the 70’s!}, and I always loved it. The combination is unexpected but so delicious. Cheddar cheese is front and center as it’s skewered with pineapple pieces. The balance of sweet and savory is unbeatable, and so refreshing!

Hawaiian Style Bites

• Cheddar Cheese cut into cubes
• Canned Pineapple Chunks, drained and patted dry.

Assemble the two ingredients with cheese on the bottom and pineapple on top and insert a toothpick to secure. Serve at room temperature.

BONUS: Another quick & easy cheese appetizer can be found right here with my wrapped apple appetizer bites. They are another refreshing bite with a little something extra.

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Bon Appetit!

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