Lite Bites for Dinner
Everyone knows lite bites are delicious appetizers you pop in your mouth and can never eat just one. Do they have to be served as an appetizer only?
No! Why not serve Lite Bites as a fun multi-course dinner of delicious appetizers? All you have to do is serve a lot of them!
Lite Bites
Personally, I think serving lite bites for dinner is a brilliant idea. Especially if you are serving dinner with an activity. Such as a big game on TV. You know, like that big tournament called March Madness.
Or a card game. Or just a really fun group of friends who would love this!
I picked my favorite six appetizers and I am sharing them all here.
And here is the best part.
Most of the work to make these appetizers can be done in advance. So all you have to do is heat or lightly cook for your guests. So you don’t have to miss out on the action too.
Lite Bites Menu
Here are the six appetizers I picked.
Crab Cakes
Tomato Bisque with Grilled Cheese Sticks
Boursin Cheese w/ Fig Jam, Grilled French Baguette Rounds, and Sweet and Spicy Nuts
BLT Tomatoes
Seared Ahi
Grilled Shrimp Street Tacos
Of course, you can serve only two or three or you can serve them all. It’s up to you.
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How to Prepare These Lite Bites in Advance
Each of these recipes is so easy to prepare in advance. I thought it might help if I outlines each one. You can find the recipes for all of these below.
Crab Cakes – Make the crab cakes and fry them. Place in the refrigerator and just warm them in the oven before serving. Make the Lemon Dill Sauce and store it in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Tomato Bisque with Grilled Cheese Sticks – Make the Tomato Bisque the day before and store it in the refrigerator. For the Grilled Cheese Sticks, see the recipe but place them in the refrigerator before warming in the oven.
Boursin Cheese w/ Fig Jam, Grilled French Baguette Rounds, and Sweet and Spicy Nuts – All items can be made in advance.
BLT Tomatoes – Make the tomatoes and store them in the refrigerator for up to six hours.
Seared Ahi – Prepare everything in advance and store it in the refrigerator. Assemble just before serving.
Grilled Shrimp Tacos – Make the corn relish and sauces in advance. Grill the shrimp and tortillas and serve while warm.
Lite Bites Appetizers
This Fire Roasted Tomato Bisque Soup and Grilled Cheese Sticks is one of the best soup recipes I have ever tasted. It is delicious.
These crab cakes with lemon dill sauce are to die for. They aren't "fishy" and are by far the most popular appetizer anytime I make them.
Once all of your sauces are made, these are a snap to put together and so incredibly yummy!
This recipe is one of those recipes that looks amazing, tastes amazing but was easy to make. This Seared Ahi with Maple ginger Soy Sauce is a crowd-pleaser for sure.
Boursin Cheese w/ Fig Jam, Grilled French Baguette Rounds, and Spiced Nuts
This appetizer is very easy to fix and tastes delicious. All three items work so well together and we served them in vintage jars on a vintage piece of wood moulding.
Ingredients
- 3 Packages Boursin Cheese
- 8.5 oz Fig Jam Spread
- French baguette, sliced into ¼” slices
- 1 (approx.) Cup Olive Oil
- 4 tablespoon Butter
- 16 oz unsalted mixed nuts
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon water
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Boursin cheese comes in a round foil container. Remove foil cut the cheese round in half. With your hands, reshape the cheese into a round.
- Place cheese onto serving platters. Spoon fig jam over top in generous spoonfuls.
- To toast the baguettes, In a medium saucepan, pour ¼ cup of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter into saucepan. Warm over low to medium heat.
- Once the olive oil and butter is bubbly, place as many baguette rounds in pan and cook until golden, about two minutes. Remove and cool.
- Repeat for additional baguettes, adding additional oil and butter as needed. Can be made 1 day in advance. Prior to serving warm in oven until slightly warmed, if too hot, they will melt the cheese.
- Serve baguettes with Boursin and Fig Jam on serving platter.
- Put brown sugar, butter, water, salt and cayenne into a medium sized saucepan and melt until syrupy. Add mixed nuts and stir until coated.
- Turn out onto parchment paper on the baking sheet and spread into a single layer.
- Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes until nuts are browned. Remove from oven and let cool.
- They will be sticky, kind of like brittle. Once completely cooled (if you try to do it before completely cooled, you just have a sticky mess). Break apart and store in an airtight container until ready to serve.
Boursin Cheese with Fig Jam
Grilled French Baguette Rounds
Spiced Nuts
Watch My Amazon Live
Today I am hosting an Amazon Live Show and I am sharing how to make one of these Lite Bites recipes! I am also sharing two more easy recipes that you will only see on the Amazon Live Show.
Click here to watch (anytime after 9:00 am PST). It is recorded.
Ready to make some lite bites? Here is what I use to make mine!
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Yum! What a great idea.
Thanks Renae!
Dinner by the bite is one of my favorite things! You can serve elevated foods (think lobster, filet, etc.) as the potions are smaller. The other thing I like about small bites is that there is something for everyone, regardless of their dietary restrictions and likes/dislikes.
That is so true! It really is a great way to host a dinner
I wanted to let you know that I made your crab cakes with lemon dill sauce as an appetizer for my husband and me at our stay-at-home Valentine’s dinner. Also made your Raspberry Lemon Olive Oil Cake for dessert. They were both wonderful and a BIG hit with my husband. Thanks so much for sharing your recipes! xo
Oh how wonderful! I am so glad you enjoyed, thank you my friend!
What are the BLT Tomatoes? I don’t see how to make them in your post. I absolutely love BLT’s!!
I love your idea of having lite bites for dinner, especially during these hot summer months. Your 100 year old home is so charming and I can only imagine the stories it must hold. Your blog is a true treasure trove of inspiration and nostalgia. Thank you for sharing!
Wow thanks so much! I love reading this, thanks for being here ☺️
I absolutely love the idea of having lite bites for dinner! It’s such a refreshing change from heavy meals, and your recipes look so delicious and easy to prepare. Can’t wait to try some of these ideas out! Thank you for sharing!
It’s s a really fun way to prepare and enjoy dinner! They are really tasty if I do say so myself, hehe ☺️ thank you for being here!