Easy, Elegant Hors D'oeuvre pt. I of II

Just a really quick take, we had folks over for dinner the other night, and did a few things that were well received, and some of them were a new twist...

Here then are two simple appetizers/Hors D'Oeuvre, one based on the beef we made an eon ago.

I had bought an eye round to make sandwich roast beef, and found out we were having company over, and decided to do a quick take on the classic Roast Beef with Horseradish...

You'll have a sizable amount of roast beef before, I made it the day of, when it really is at its best...

One cucumber
Sour Cream (lowfat/nonfat is FINE)
Tellicherry Pepper*, cracked or coarse ground
Sea/Kosher salt
Mayonnaise (lowfat/nonfat is fine here too)
Horseradish, your choice of type

Peel and slice your cucumber (thick enough that they will hold up almost in lieu of a cracker in a canape), sprinkle a little bit of kosher salt over it, to add flavor, and almost "quick pickle" the cuke. Put it in tupperware or on a plate, covered, in the fridge. The cold cucumber is much better than warm...

Combine sour cream and mayonnaise, I started with about four parts sour cream to one part mayonnaise, but it's not an exact science. Grind black pepper into the mix, add horseradish to taste. Bear in mind that this will be a little dab of flavor on the eventual bite of food, and a bit of punch to the horseradish is just lovely.**

Take the sliced beef, cut up the pieces to fit the cuke slices, top them, add a dab of horseradish sauce (more or less based on your preference, but not so much that it slops onto the serving plate, it's nasty looking,) grind fresh black pepper over the whole plot, and you are DONE.


*any other variety of black pepper is fine, but Tellicherry really has an exceptional flavor, and where you are relying on a present and up front hit of black pepper, it's worth the few extra pennies a pound. As always, for god's sake, DON'T EVER USE PRE-GROUND PEPPER. Buy a pepper mill, okay? Trust me, if you wouldn't mind.

**This horseradish sauce makes a wonderful topper for those eventual cold beef sandwiches, and it's especially fabulous with some whole grain mustard, and a handful of arugula on a baguette...