9 Delicious Finger Food Ideas

Do you have some SPECIAL traditions that you've created with your family during the Holidays?

 One of the things we started doing when the kids were young, was preparing special finger foods on Christmas Eve and everyone looks forward to it. We would start the meal when someone spotted the FIRST STAR in the sky. (yeah, a little hard on a cloudy night, but other than that, the kids always looked forward to it when they were young.)

Preparing everything is fun for us all, plus we can relax and enjoy the evening before Christmas with everyone else!

I thought you might enjoy some ideas for your finger food table this Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Years

Some of the foods that end up on our table are new each year and some are yearly favorites like these: (I've linked ingredients, in case you'd like to find them in our store.)

1. Smoked pork belly slices wrapped around cream cheese (sometimes we add green chilies too and we just cook the bellies on the pellet smoker)
2. Artichoke dip
3. Pastured sausage rounds (just mix in seasoning pack, roll into balls, fry and serve with toothpicks. (they can also be broiled)
4. Raw, grass fed cheese and crackers (We get this through Azure Standard's local monthly delivery)
5. Buffalo Wings, or spicy chicken chunks served on a toothpick - Fry your wings in coconut oil, then (while hot) toss in a sauce mixture of 1/2 Cup Tobasco sauce, 1/2 cup melted grass fed butter, & 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
6. Organic vegetable tray with dip
7. Pork bites with BBQ sauce (made with ground pork)
8. Finger Steaks (recipe here)
9. Lamb meatballs (Recipe and printable below)

When I mix everything in a bowl, I use my hands, but I also use disposable kitchen gloves to make it cleaner and easier...

Below is an easy way to make your meatballs even.  Just press into a 1" thick rectangle, then cut into 1" squares.  Mine are NEVER perfectly sized, but this makes it so much simpler to get them close!

​Lamb Meatballs With Cream Sauce 

Printable recipe here

For cleaner eating we use all organically grown ingredients: many are not certified, but we  know the grower and how they’ do their thing’...  
For your meatballs: 
2   med eggs, slightly beaten 
¼  cup milk 
3   tablespoons ketchup 
2   teaspoons Soy Sauce (San J is a great brand) 
1    cup quick cooking oats 
¼   cup fresh parsley (or 2 tablespoons dry) 
¼   cup finely chopped onion 
1 ½   teaspoon sea salt 
¼   teaspoon black pepper 
2 lbs pasture-fed ground lamb 
Cream Sauce: 
2   tablespoons butter or coconut oil 
2   tablespoons flour (gluten free blends work great too) 
¼  teaspoon thyme  Sea salt & pepper 
14 ounces chicken broth (this is important) 
⅔   cup whipping cream 
​2 tablespoons dried parsley
Cream Sauce: 
2   tablespoons butter or coconut oil 
2   tablespoons flour (gluten free blends work great too) 
¼  teaspoon thyme 
Sea salt & pepper 
14 ounces chicken broth (this is important) 
⅔   cup whipping cream 
​2 tablespoons dried parsley 

1. For your meatballs: combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Shape into a 1” thick  rectangle.  Cut into 1” squares.  (these don’t have to be perfect)  Shape into  balls and place on a rack in a shallow pan. ( a cookie sheet is fine) 
2. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 10 min.  Turn meatballs and bake 10 to 12  min longer.  
3. For your sauce, melt butter or oil in a saucepan.  Stir in flour thyme salt and  pepper over medium heat until blended. 
4. Whisk in broth and cream.  Heat and stir until thick and bubbly.  
5. Place meatballs on serving dish and drizzle cream sauce over them.  Place  toothpicks in each meatball and serve 
6. To serve as a meal, I like to place meatballs on a bed of rice or pasta and pour  cream sauce over top. 

So what about you?  Do you have any meaningful traditions that you have started?  I'd love to hear about them!

"When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. "
Matthew 2:9

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
~Raini
The Allen Family ~Seth, Raini, Liam Charise and Rhian

Smoked bacon wrapped around cream cheese-
​(Season pork bellies with sea salt and pepper, then smoke it on a grill or pellet smoker. This takes about 30 minutes, or less. Let it cool and cut in pieces, then roll it around a chunk of cream cheese) Serve with toothpicks.

Smoked pastured pork bellies with cream cheese

Take Care,

~Raini
7U Ranch - Soon to be the Back 4D  (Same people, new name)