Party Foods

We had a few friends over last week and I prepared a few quick little munchies for the event. These two dishes were quick and elegant and incredibly tasty. Both come from old issues of Food and Wine.

Cashews with Crispy Sage and Garlic

Ingredients

2 garlic cloves, sliced
Olive oil
12 sage leaves plus 1 tablespoon chopped sage
2 cups raw cashews

Directions

In a medium skillet, fry sliced garlic cloves in olive oil until lightly golden. Add sage leaves and chopped sage to the skillet and cook until crisp; drain on paper towels. Add raw cashews to the skillet and cook, stirring, until golden; drain on paper towels. Toss with the garlic, sage and salt. Let cool, then serve.

The best part about this was the little crispy whole sage leaves. When I do this again, I will definitely be increasing the amount of sage - doubling or tripling it. The sage shrinks up during the frying process and the intense flavor really mellows, so I think you can get away with as much sage as you'd like.

Herbed Creme Fraiche Dip

Ingredients

1 cup crème fraîche
3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons snipped chives
2 tablespoons finely chopped tarragon
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt

Directions

In a bowl, whisk the crème fraîche with the parsley, chives and tarragon. Whisk in the lemon juice and season well with salt.

The recipe recommends serving it with radishes and blanched asparagus, though I subbed raw baby carrots for the asparagus. The carrots were fine, though the dip was perfect with the radishes. It's a very cool, creamy dip and it is a perfect compliment to the peppery radishes.