ISO Oktoberfest Appetizer Suggestions

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tenspeed

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We're invited to an Oktoberfest / beer tasting party. Guests are requested to bring a six of their favorite beer and an appetizer / snack. I'm not much of a beer drinker (except after a warm day ride or cutting the lawn), but I can fake that part. I'm really ignorant of German food, and would like to take something appropriate, but not the cliche of sausage and sauerkraut. I would appreciate any suggestions.
 
Little mini tartlets of german onion pie, could throw in some tiny cubes of black forest ham too. Use the tins that are for 24 little tarts/muffins, purchased or made pastry dough, use a round cookie cutter a bit bigger, or make up a cream cheese/butter/flour dough and press in, I'll find the recipe for that if you are interested.

Little 1 or 2 bite squares of pumpernickel or rye with black forest ham, maybe some butterkaese cheese, and german mustard. Square up the whole slices of bread, might want to toast a bit, place the mustard, ham, cheese if using, top with another slice of bread or leave open face, then cut up into whatever portions you decide on. Maybe even a thin slice of pickle on top, especially if you leave open faced. Skewer regardless with picks, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005GPTBT0/ref=asc_df_B005GPTBT05175642/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=395033&creativeASIN=B005GPTBT0&linkCode=df0&hvadid=198084412779&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=9317418784297997086&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=t&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9011889&hvtargid=pla-350444261036 .
 
How about a tray of cheese(s) and/or sliced sausages and German mustards on rustic crackers?
 
If you have a way to keep food warm/hot, you could make kaesespatzle, which is a german mac and cheese using spatzle, caramelized onions, butterkaese or emmenthaler, and sometimes bacon or ham. It could be put in foil liners in either mini or regular muffin sizes, baked and served warm. I can go into more detail if interested. We are going to have this for dinner next week using the speck we cured and smoked.

One of the local German restaurants actually does have GG's idea of soft pretzels, they make small ones, on their appy menu.
 
One traditional German appetizer is Spargel mit Schinken, asparagus spears wrapped in very thinly sliced Westphalian ham, which you can usually find in a German grocery or deli. You can substitute prosciutto if you can't find Westphalian. The only difference is the Westphalian ham is smoked.

For a special treat, spread each ham slice with a thin layer of mascarpone cheese before rolling it up, or serve the Spargel mit Schinken with a cheese based dipping sauce.

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One of my favorite German appetizers is Zwiebelkuchen, which is an onion pie of sorts. Not totally different from the onion tart suggested above. It's a traditional autumn dish that pairs well with beer or wine. The recipe below has you making it in a springform pan, but I would use a square pan lined with parchment, in order to better control the serving sizes.

https://www.daringgourmet.com/zwiebelkuchen-german-onion-pie/

Zwiebelkuchen-3-sm.jpg
 
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Breaded schnitzel sandwiches. That and a half a chicken used to get us through a night of bar hopping. It ain't snazzy, but it sure tastes good.
 
Breaded schnitzel sandwiches. That and a half a chicken used to get us through a night of bar hopping. It ain't snazzy, but it sure tastes good.

Are you sure?:ohmy::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

Chunks of steamed Hummer with cocktail sauce!
 
Wow, I thought all of us had some good options in this thread, but guess not. I know there's at least 1 we'll be trying.
 
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The beer tasting was yesterday evening, and I went with GG's onion pie suggestion.

German Onion Cake Recipe | Cake is great to be served with New Wine |

I'm not a baker, but it looked not too far removed from pizza, so I went with it. It was well received, and a change from the sausage and sauerkraut fare. I didn't have a way to keep it warm but it was still tasty. Better when it first came out of the oven, though.

Thanks, everyone, for the input.
 
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