The Trader Joe's Bride: Saving Money by Self-Catering with Trader Joe's

Last year I wrote about ways to save money making cold appetizers! We didn't have a lot of money left to spend on appetizers, so we opted for cold snacks. Anybody that knows me knows how much I love a deal. If you want the best bang for your buck, go to Trader Joe's. Let me show you how to have the type of appetizers David Bowie would approve... 

How to do it:
Cube the Grassfed New Zealand Cheddar and the Quince Paste. Serve on a toothpick and dress it up by putting it in a mini-tasting dish.

How it came out:

                                   

How to do it:

Stuff each pepper with a spoonful of cream cheese. Serve

individually on atiny serving plate. You could also use 

Chevre (Creamy Goat Cheese) or the "Better than Cream Cheese" Vegan Cream Cheese Spread .

How it came out:

We served this with strawberries and pre-sliced organic
Apples, also bought at Trader Joe's. The appetizer's above cost less than $10.
                             

How to do it:

Take 1 mozzarella ball and put in on a toothpick with 1-2
organic sugar plum tomatoes. Add 1/2 leaves of basil on
each toothpick.  I used homegrown basil from
my garden, but you can also buy basil at Trader Joe's.
Place the caprese on a stick in a mini-tasting dish (available at Party City). Take a small spoonful of oil from the
container and put a little oil over each appetizer. Finish
the salad with a small drizzle of Balsamic Glaze. 

How to do it:

Mix one can of Smoked Trout with 1/2 container of cream
cheese. You'll need 2 cans of fish if you want to do a whole
tub or brick of cream cheese. Spread the mixture on a
Brioche Toast, or cracker. Top with Capers. 

How these two appetizers came out:

Our guests were WOWED at the professionalism of these
wonderful snacks. All of these snacks yielded about 20-24
per batch. 

I had a friend and the mother of a groomsman make these

and it took the two of them about an hour to do all of these appetizers. You can wow your guest for around $40 (including the tasting plates and forks).