Sausage & Mushroom Canape

I know a lot of you are going to be put in the host or hostess position over the next couple of weeks, so I thought I'd include a little canape or hors d'oeuvre that should go over well with a crowd!

The sweet and savory combination of maple syrup and mustard is a combination I love.  Add in some umami flavor of some mushrooms, and you've got yourself a powerhouse of flavor in a small little bite!

Ingredients:

20-25 cocktail wieners/sausages 
3 tablespoons whole grain dijon mustard
1/2 cup maple syrup
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cayenne pepper
10 button/cremini mushrooms, sliced thinly
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 to 1 cup shredded cheese (I used Emmentaler Swiss because that's what I had)

1 french baguette, cut into 1/4 inch slices
melted butter, for brushing
salt, to taste

You can prepare your little crostinis first.  If you're going to do a bunch at a time, I'd suggest doing them in the oven.  If you've got plenty of time, then you can absolutely do them in a skillet over the stove.  For time's sake, we're going to bake these babies in the oven.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Place a trivet or wire rack on a baking sheet and evenly arrange bread slices on rack.  Brush each bread slice with melted butter and sprinkle with a little bit of salt.

Bake crostinis until they are golden brown and crisp, about 15 minutes.  Set aside to cool.

Raise oven temperature to 375 F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  In a medium bowl, combine the mustard, maple syrup, and paprika.  Toss the sausages in the mixture until evenly coated.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Arrange the sausages on the parchment paper and bake in oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until the sausages are golden brown and the glaze is caramelized.

Heat a medium saute pan under medium high heat and melt 2 tablespoons of butter.  Add mushroom slices and cook until softened and caramelized.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

To put together, place about 1/2 teaspoon of the mushrooms on each crostini.  Top with cocktail sausage and garnish with shredded cheese.

If you make this ahead, you can put the product together and then reheat in a 375 F oven to melt the cheese and make product warm throughout.

This is definitely a different way to present familiar ingredients.  I recently made my family dinner for my mother's birthday and these were gone in a flash!  So tasty!

What do you serve as an appetizer for holiday gatherings?

Hope you guys have a great rest of the week and Happy Holidays!!