Appetizers : Festive ideas from the Junior League of Los Angeles new cookbook will enliven holiday parties

From bacon-wrapped prunes to cheese straws to chevre pate. That’s the change in party food recorded by the Junior League of Los Angeles in cookbooks that span almost 60 years. The first of the League books appeared in 1930, four years after the organization was founded. Titled “The Junior League Recipe Book,” it was a substantial hard-bound volume. Ten years later, the League issued a modest, spiral bound recipe collection under the same title.

Then came a 28-year hiatus that ended with the splashy debut this past October of “Gourmet LA.” The new book reflects evolving cookbook styles as well as changing tastes. It’s a big, glossy, beautiful production that boasts professional photography and food styling to make it competitive in the commercial market. The first edition numbered 20,000 copies, 10 times the amount printed in 1940.

The launching, complete with press packet, took place at the Broadway Plaza in downtown Los Angeles in conjunction with a cookware promotion and food tasting called “The Classic American Pantry.”

Out of 3,000 recipes submitted, slightly more than 300 wound up in the book, each tested a minimum of three times. Freshness of ingredients, elegance, originality and ease of preparation were standards for selection.

These are the same standards that apply to selecting foods for holiday entertaining, so we chose “Gourmet LA” as the source for appetizers to serve at a Christmas or New Year open house. The appetizer chapter is replete with such contemporary ingredients and concepts as goat cheese, pita bread, won tons and pesto and offers a range of ethnic styles from Greek to Mexican to Asian.

In 1930, a hostess using that year’s cookbook might have served guests cheese-stuffed celery or bread rounds topped with cheese and baked. In 1988, the choice might be a sophisticated molded “pate” of goat cheese with a pesto-like mixture of basil, garlic and hazelnuts forming a green layer in the center.

In the 1940 book, appetizers included cornmeal-dredged oysters fried in bacon drippings and served with spicy mayonnaise. Today’s lighter style of eating calls for Tarragon Marinated Shrimp--cooked shrimp marinated with fresh herbs, onion and lemon slices.

Broiled tiny sausages wrapped in French pancakes (crepes) were suggested in 1930. In 1988, the sausages are cooked with rum, soy sauce, molasses and Chinese chile sauce and served from a chafing dish.

An unusual recipe for cocktail biscuits in “Gourmet LA” calls for the dough to be blended with mushrooms, shallots, ham and green onions. These are certainly more complicated than 1940s-style souffle crackers--soda crackers soaked in ice water, topped with a dab of butter and baked. However, the biscuits can be prepared in advance and frozen. The herbed cream cheese used as a filling can also be served on its own as a spread.

Other party ideas in the new book include mushroom caps stuffed with sage-flavored sausage and cream cheese, and a hot appetizer of ham slices, stuffing mix and mandarin orange slices, wrapped together and baked.

Interesting from a historical standpoint and still usable in the kitchen, the early League cookbooks are no longer available unless a copy should turn up in a store dealing in old books, as did the 1940 recipe book photographed on this page.

“Gourmet LA” is stocked in some bookstores and specialty shops, or it can be ordered by mail. The price is $24.95 plus $1.62 tax and $2.75 for handling and shipping, which includes gift wrapping for $3 through Dec. 31. Make checks out to the Junior League of Los Angeles and send them to “Gourmet LA,” Junior League of Los Angeles, Farmers Market, Third and Fairfax, Los Angeles, Calif. 90036. The book can also be charged to Visa or MasterCard. For information, call (213) 939-3663.

Proceeds from sales will support a variety of community projects including AIDS Community Educational Outreach, homeless family shelters, adolescent pregnancy prevention and Parenting Our Parents.

Festive ideas from the Junior League of Los Angeles’ new cookbook will enliven holiday parties.

Food Styling by Minnie Bernardino and Donna Deane

CHEVRE PATE WITH GARLIC AND HERBS

3 tablespoons hazelnuts

5 1/2 ounces chevre (goat cheese), softened

1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 tablespoons fresh basil leaves

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup grated Romano cheese

1 tablespoon butter, softened

Fresh basil for garnish

Ground hazelnuts for garnish

Sesame or water crackers

Chop hazelnuts in food processor. Set aside. Add chevre, cream cheese and garlic to processor and blend. Set aside. Puree basil, olive oil and Romano cheese in processor. Add nuts and butter and incorporate with on-off pulses. Line small (about 2-cup), flat-bottomed dish with cheesecloth. Spread half of creamed cheese mixture in dish and smooth to edge. Spread with basil mixture and smooth. Top with remaining cream cheese mixture and smooth. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Invert gently on serving platter and remove cheesecloth. Garnish with basil and ground hazelnuts. Serve with crackers. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Note: If desired, decorate with Christmas tree made of chopped hazelnuts. Place salmon caviar at tips of “branches” to simulate ornaments.

TARRAGON MARINATED SHRIMP

2 pounds medium shrimp, cooked, shelled and deveined

1/4 cup safflower oil

1/4 cup olive oil

2/3 cup tarragon vinegar

6 tablespoons black peppercorns

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves

1 white onion, thinly sliced

2 large lemons, thinly sliced

Remove tails from shrimp. Combine shrimp, oils, vinegar, peppercorns, parsley, tarragon, onion and lemon slices in large bowl. Marinate in refrigerator at least 3 hours, tossing frequently. Serve with wood picks. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

SAGE-STUFFED MUSHROOMS

10 ounces bulk sage pork sausage

1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened and cut into large cubes

40 medium mushrooms

1/3 cup butter, melted

Brown sausage in medium skillet until crumbly. Drain. Add onion, parsley, pepper and garlic. Add cream cheese cubes to sausage mixture. Remove mushrooms stems and discard. Place mushrooms in single layer in large shallow baking dish. Brush with melted butter. Stuff with sausage mixture. Bake at 350 degrees 20 minutes, or until bubbly. Makes 40 appetizers.

HOT RUM SAUSAGES

1/2 pound pork sausage links

6 tablespoons light rum

2 tablespoons Chinese chile sauce

2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons light molasses

1 lemon, thinly sliced

Cut sausages into 1-inch pieces. Brown and drain. Combine 4 tablespoons rum, chile sauce, soy sauce and molasses in saucepan. Add sausage and lemon slices. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Heat remaining rum in separate pan. Pour over sausages and ignite. Spoon mixture into chafing dish. Keep warm over low heat. Makes 6 to 8 appetizer servings.

COCKTAIL BISCUITS

4 3/4 cups unbleached flour

3 tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups unsalted butter

6 heaping tablespoons solid shortening

1 1/2 cups cold milk

3 cups minced mushrooms

6 shallots, minced

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 3/4 cups finely chopped smoked ham

7 green onions, finely chopped

Fresh Herb Cream Cheese

Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Place 1/3 flour mixture in food processor fitted with metal blade and blend for few seconds. Add 1/2 cup chilled butter and 2 tablespoons shortening and process until dough resembles coarse meal. Add 1/2 cup milk and process until blended. Repeat process twice. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill several hours or overnight.

Saute mushrooms and shallots in remaining 1/4 cup butter until tender. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add ham and green onions. Knead dough with mushroom mixture. Flour hands and shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place on lightly oiled baking sheets. Firmly indent center of each ball with thumb. Bake at 375 degrees 12 minutes or until golden. To serve, fill centers with Fresh Herb Cream Cheese. Makes 6 to 7 dozen.

Note: Biscuits may be frozen for up to 3 months and warmed just before serving. Any desired filling may be used instead of Fresh Herb Cream Cheese.

Fresh Herb Cream Cheese

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

3 tablespoons half and half

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped chives

12 drops hot pepper sauce

1/4 teaspoon chervil, optional

Crackers

Sourdough baguettes, sliced

Beat cream cheese. Blend in half and half. Add garlic, dill, pepper, chives, hot pepper sauce and chervil. Line 1-quart bowl with cheesecloth. Spoon in mixture. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Turn out onto serving board or platter. Remove cheesecloth. Use as filling for Cocktail Biscuits or serve as spread with crackers or baguette slices.

MANDARIN HAM WRAPS

1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges

1 cup prepared stuffing mix

1 tablespoon chopped chives

8 to 10 slices smoked ham, cut in half to make squares

1/2 cup orange marmalade

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Parsley

Drain syrup from oranges and reserve. Combine syrup, stuffing mix and chives. Place 1 tablespoon stuffing mixture and 1 orange segment on each ham slice and wrap from corner. Secure with wood picks and place in shallow baking dish. Combine marmalade, vinegar, mustard and remaining orange segments, reserving several for garnish. Pour over ham wraps. Bake at 400 degrees 15 minutes. Cut wraps into 1/3s. Garnish with reserved oranges and parsley. Serve with wood picks. Makes 20 appetizers.