Fangs, My Dear!
Who says only children get to have all the fun at Halloween? There’s no reason you can’t plan a Halloween party for your adult family and friends. If you do, you may wonder what types of foods to serve. Children will be happy with chips and dips but your adult guests may want something a little more sophisticated. Bat Bites might be the perfect solution.
When you were a child you may have hesitated going out Trick-or-Treating because you knew bats came out at night. You may have been afraid a bat was going to bite you and you would turn into a vampire. Even though this wasn’t possible, you didn’t want to take any chances.
By preparing these Bat Bites, you have the opportunity to turn the tables on those bats that kept you scared. Rather than your being bitten, you get to put the bite on the bat!
Before we get into the recipe, here’s a bit about Bat Bites. They often contain goat cheese, which may not be a normal ingredient you use in cooking for your family. Another ingredient you may not have on hand is poppy seeds. Even though these ingredients aren’t common, these appetizers simply won’t be the same without them.
Ingredients include:
- 1 small (4 ounce) package of cream cheese, at room temperature
- 8 ounces of soft, mild goat cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup pesto
- 2 tablespoons ground pepper, coarsely ground
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 8 pitted olives, sliced
- 32 peppercorns
- 32 triangular chips, blue corn chips are good or you can use any type your family prefers
Begin these wonderful Bat Bites by combining cream cheese, goat cheese, and pesto. Be sure the ingredients are well combined. Place the cheese mixture into the refrigerator and allow it to cool for at least 40 minutes.
After the cheese has cooled long enough, you can use a spoon to separate the cheese mixture into 16 equally sized amounts. Roll these into 16 2-inch balls. Roll each cheese ball in black pepper and poppy seeds to cover the white cheese. This will give it a black appearance.
Press two olive slices into the cheese to indicate the eyes. Then press two peppercorns into the center of the olives. The peppercorns will be the bat’s pupils.
Carefully press two complete chips into the sides of each cheese ball. These will be the wings. Place the Bat Bites on a platter and chill until ready to serve.
