Tis The Season…Party Foods
By Peter G • Dec 16th, 2007 • Category: Recipes
Prawn Ceviche in Mini Tortilla Cups
It’s that crazy time of the year again. Shoppers scramble to find presents for loved ones in crowded shopping centres. Children draw up lists of presents hoping that Santa will deliver them on Christmas morning. And more importantly, passionate foodies plan mouth watering menus to feed their guests. This year I have opted for a quiet Christmas day but am attending a big party on the night itself. A few days before the 25th of December I will be hosting a Xmas cocktail party. With that in mind I thought I would run through some of the canapes and other goodies I will be serving up. Each day I’ll be posting a different recipe. You may even choose to serve some of these very easy party foods with drinks, to settle your guests.
In this part of the world we have hot Christmases. It’s very hard for folks on the other side of the world to fathom that there will be no snow or cold weather to enjoy a “traditional Christmas”. But here in Australia, we’re used to it. So we tend to enjoy “festive” foods much suited to the warmer climate. Hot turkey and gravy? No thanks! I’m thinking cool, calm canapes to enjoy with my champagne. I came across this recipe a few years ago on the internet. It can be prepared a day before and just served on the day. I love it and its extremely easy. Prawn or shrimp “ceviche” in mini tortilla cups. Its not a traditional ceviche in the South and Central American sense. But it’s pretty close and tastes mighty good and looks cute too. The recipes cater for about 10 or 12 guests.
For the Ceviche
250-350 grams of finely chopped raw prawns, cleaned and deveined
1/4 of a finely chopped red onion
1or 2 finely diced red chillies
a bunch of coriander leaves finely chopped
a squeeze of half or a whole lime
a good splash of extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Mix everything together and let it marinate for a few hours or even better leave it overnight. Watch the lime juice do its magic as it cooks the prawns and they absorb the wonderful fresh flavours.
For the Mini Tortilla Cups
6-8 large tortillas. The corn variety preferably
olive oil spray
6 inch cookie cutter
mini muffin pan
Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. In a hot pan warm the tortillas on each side making sure not to overdo them or burn them. Whilst they are still hot place on a flat surface and begin to cut them using the cookie cutter. Once you have a circle cut place it in the mini muffin pan that has been pre sprayed with the olive oil. Push the mini tortillas into the pan ensuring they are covering the sides and fit snugly and neatly. When the mini muffin pan is full, place it in the oven and let them cook for a further 5-6 minutes. Remove them when done and let them cool on a wire rack. This process may seem a little fiddly but it’s really quite easy. You just have to be a little fast.
Before you plate them up make sure that the ceviche has come to room temperature. Fill the mini tortilla cups with the prawn mixture and serve. You may wish to garnish them with a small coriander leaf. Sip champagne and enjoy!
Tasty canape treats…
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Peter G is a passionate foodie of Greek descent living in Australia. You'll usually find him cooking up a storm in the kitchen and photographing all his exploits.
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