Friday, December 22, 2017

"Small Bites" - Cubano Skewers with Honey Mustard Sauce - Holiday Party Food!


Date I made this recipe:  December 3, 2017 – Holiday party food!

Small Bites – Skewers, Sliders, and Other Party Eats by Eliza Cross
Published by Gibbs Smith
ISBN: 13: 978-1-4237-4785-0; copyright 2017
Purchased at Bibelot, St. Paul
Recipe:  Cubano Skewers with Honey Mustard Sauce – p. 67.  (Not published:  Roast Beef, Gorgonzola, and Balsamic-Roasted Grape Skewers – p. 72)

Folks, if you are looking for a ridiculously-easy party appetizer, look no further for I bring you tidings of great joy and great eats – Cubano Skewers with Honey Mustard Sauce!

My husband and I love Cubano sandwiches, and this “deconstructed” recipe was just the trick for our annual holiday open house.  They looked pretty, tasted great, and were easy to make.

The ingredients are simple:  cubed pieces of ham, swiss cheese, pork tenderloin and a baby dill pickle, all stacked on a wooden skewer.  It takes two seconds to make the honey mustard sauce and then you are done.

To make things even easier for us, I baked the ham and roasted the tenderloin a few weeks before our party and then froze them.  I cubed the cheese in advance, got our pickle situation in order, and made up the sauce the night before.

My husband was all about that sauce.  In fact, when I informed him that I tossed the leftover sauce from the party, he gave me that “pound puppy” look and then scrounged around his company cafeteria for an acceptable substitute that he then had with the leftover skewers.

We made also the Roast Beef, Gorgonzola, and Balsamic-Roasted Grape Skewers from the same cookbook, but for copyright sake, I’ll let you find that recipe on your own.  I have two comments though that might be helpful:  The earliest we could roast the grapes was 8 hours before the party, so we decided to make them that morning.  We are not fond of “day of” cooking or preparation because we put out way too much food and this slows us down.  Second, the roast beef started falling apart i.e. shredding on us, prompting my husband to roll the cheese into the roast beef pieces and then put them on the skewer.  We used also other cheese such as parmesan in the bundles, just in case people didn’t like the gorgonzola.

Either way, prepare to bask in the glow of the accolades coming your way!

In case you are not a skewer person (some aren’t!), this cookbook contains recipes for “Basic Bites;” “Finger Foods;” “Skewers and Picks;” and “Sliders and Mini Sandwiches.” 

“Basic Bites” recipes include crisps, rolls, and crostini – in other words, appetizer “bases.”  “Finger Foods” recipes include everything from tiny drumsticks to wantons to mini pizzas, all of which sounded great, but would have required day-of party prep and as stated, we tend to avoid that.

The “Skewers and Picks” sections included the two skewers we made, plus satays, cheese nibbles and even jalapeno poppers.  The “Sliders and Mini Sandwiches” chapter was probably my second favorite with recipes for tiny lobster rolls, French dips, and sliders (yum!)

As I mentioned, the Cubano skewers had to be the easiest things we’ve ever made, and I already had one friend request the recipe for her family holiday gathering.  If these don’t fit into your holiday party plans, they would be great for a Super Bowl party or a summer picnic.  Enjoy!

Cubano Skewers with Honey Mustard Sauce – makes 24 (Ann’s Note:  Makes way more than 24!  We ran out of pickles though, so plan on buying two jars.)
1 pound cooked ham, cut into 1-inch cubes
½ pound Swiss cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes (Ann’s Note:  I used 1 pound of cheese and had a little left over.)
1 pound cooked pork loin, cut into 1-inch cubes
24 baby dill pickles
24 (6-inch) skewers
Honey Mustard recipe
½ cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Layer 1 ham cube, 1 cheese cube, and 1 pork loin cube on a 6-inch skewer, followed by 1 pickle; repeat with remaining ingredients.

To make the Honey Mustard Sauce (Makes about 2/3 cup), in a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, honey, mustard, salt, and pepper.  Serve at once or refrigerate, tightly covered, for up to 3 days.


Arrange skewers on a serving platter and serve with Honey Mustard Sauce.  Skewers may be refrigerated, tightly wrapped, for up to 8 hours before serving.

No comments: