Have you ever thrown a tapas party? I thought of sharing this recipe for these Roasted Bell Pepper Goat Cheese Bites with all of you.
As you probably know, tapas is the Spanish term for appetizers or small snacks. I don’t know about you, but I love the concept of having small bite-sized portions of food, especially when entertaining. As a guideline, if you are hosting a 1-2 hour cocktail tapas party, you should plan to serve 6-8 bites per person; whereas a tapas dinner party will require 12-15 bites per person.
Although the appetizers can be served warm or cold, I have a preference for cold. These small bites are truly the ultimate finger foods. Just like my Smoked Salmon Pinwheels and Lina’s Baked Eggplant Caponata these little gems can be prepared ahead of time, giving the host and hostess much more time to focus on family and friends.
Recipe origins
I got the inspiration for this recipe for Roasted Bell Pepper Goat Cheese Bites from my 2008 Martha Stewart Living Magazine. The original recipe calls for scallions, but I like to use chives instead since I always have so much of this wonderful herb in my garden. Martha’s recipe also calls for Piquillo peppers. I like to replace these with roasted bell peppers, mostly because of convenience. (At the end of summer, we like to take advantage of nature’s bounty by roasting red bell peppers. As a result, I always have some hanging around in my freezer. If you are not sure how to roast bell peppers, you can refer to this recipe for Marinated Roasted Bell Peppers.) If you wish, you can use Piquillo peppers.
There are several reasons why I love this recipe for Roasted Bell Pepper Goat Cheese Bites. For starters, it’s simple. The creamy goat cheese spread takes almost no time to put together, and nothing can be easier than roasting a bell pepper. The bites can be made a couple of hours before your guests arrive, so they are super convenient. And the number one reason I love these bites is, well, they are good.
This recipe for these Roasted Bell Pepper Goat Cheese Bites provides such a burst of flavors, it is almost impossible to stop at just one. The only thing left to do is to uncork that bottle of wine and enjoy a relaxing evening with friends while savoring some tasty tapas. Have fun planning that tapas party!
THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.
Ciao for now,
Maria
★★★★★ If you have made these Goat Cheese Bites recipe, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!
Roasted Red Pepper Goat Cheese Bites
Ingredients
- 100 grams goat cheese 3 1/2 oz
- 1 tablespoon chives minced
- 1 tablespoon mint minced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- pinch red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 medium red peppers roasted,peeled and deseeded
- Chives and mint leaves for garnish.
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the goat cheese, chives, mint, lemon juice, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.
- Separate each roasted red bell pepper in 4 segments.
- Place about 1 teaspoon of the cheese mixture on each segment.
- Roll each pepper strip.
- Refrigerate the rolled up pepper quarters for up to a few hours before ready to serve.
- Cut each rolled up pepper quarter in half and plate.
- Garnish with chives and mint leaves.
Notes
Nutrition
Nancy says
I am so excited I found this recipe. 2 of my favorite foods, plus the herbs. On the nutritional part it says 1 serving and the statistics. Is one piece 1 serving?
Maria says
Thanks so much for your interest Nancy. Yes, 1 serving is for one piece.
E says
These look delicious! Could you use jarred roasted red peppers? And do you think they would hold on a toothpick?
Maria says
Hi E! Yes, I think the jarred variety would work just fine. The difficulty I had with a toothpick is that it would keep sliding off… I think the next time I make these I might add a basil leaf or something on the inside so the toothpick sticks. Great questions! Thanks so much for stopping by, appreciate it!
Ur pal val says
I love anything made with roasted red peppers. I love the combination with goat cheese. Thanks for sharing.
Maria says
Me too!!! These goat cheese bites are no exception… they are really tasty and always one of the first appetizers to disappear. Thanks so much for stopping by 🙂
Rene says
Thanks I had some goat cheese and didn’t know what to do with it. Now I know peppers were delicious thanks
Maria says
Fantastic Rene. Thanks for taking the time to share, appreciate it!
Barrie says
I love these- the addition of mint is a surprise too!
Maria says
Thanks Barrie. I’m always looking for recipes to use my mint. Thanks for dropping by 🙂
Tara says
Love roasted peppers! These little bites look delicious!
Maria says
Thanks Tara! Appreciate you dropping by 🙂
Caroline says
These look great, I’m sure they are perfect for nibbling on with a few drinks!
Maria says
Thanks Caroline! And thanks for hosting this great #SundaySupper event 🙂
Laura Dembowski says
These are so cute! Love the bright color too!
Maria says
I agree, the color adds a little “pop”! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂