The Friendly Foodie Makes a Spicy Holiday Party Treat

It’s time for those holiday cocktail parties, so at this time of year, everyone's on the hunt for a great little finger food to make for party guests. Old Chicago’s has a great a new appetizer on their menu, Buffalo Chicken Rolls. With a few minor tweaks these little apps make a great party food.

At a cocktail party, it’s better to have a treat that people can take and walk away with, rather than hovering over a bowl full of dip, blocking the other guests from getting a bite. So, for my version I’ve created a bleu cheese slaw to top off these Buffalo Bites, giving you a fully-packed flavor punch in every bite without the dipping.

I’ve included a recipe for dough below, but you can certainly make life easier on yourself by buying TWO pre-made pizza dough packages. While the homemade dough is much more light and scrumptious, if you take the shortcut, your prep time will be cut in half – definitely worth it for some people. You can find packets of ready-made dough in the gourmet cheese island at King Soopers, where you will also find the boneless chicken thighs on sale for $1.99/lb. until November 16, 2010.

If you buy the pre-made dough, be sure to top it with red pepper flakes before rolling it out to incorporate the extra flavor. To get most out of this ingredient use very fresh, hand-packed red pepper flakes, which can be found in the spice aisle at Natural Grocers.

Buffalo Bites

2½ cups all flour, divided

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 pkg. fast-acting yeast

1 cup water

2 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 cups flour

3 tsps. pepper

2 tsps. salt

6 boneless chicken thighs, cubed

2 cups vegetable oil

1 cup wing sauce or Louisiana-style hot sauce

2 carrots, grated

2 celery stalks, thinly sliced

1 cup bleu cheese crumbles

2/3 cup mayonnaise

2/3 cup sour cream

½ cup buttermilk

2 tbsp. white wine vinegar

1 tbsp. coarsely ground black pepper

½ cup parsley, finely chopped

In a large bowl combine together 1½  cups flour, sugar, salt, red pepper flakes and yeast. Heat water in microwave for 2 minutes and add to flour mixture. Add 2 tbsp. vegetable oil. Mix with electric mixer at low speed until moistened, then beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. By hand, add additional flour ½ cup of flour, 2 tbsp. at a time, until dough pulls cleanly away from the side of the bowl.

Knead dough on floured surface, slowly working in remaining ½ cup of flour, until dough is smooth and stretchable. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rise until double in size, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine 2 cups flour, salt and 3 tsps. pepper. Add cubed chicken thighs and toss until all pieces are coated. Fry chicken pieces in 2 cups vegetable oil, drain and place in large bowl. Toss with wing sauce.

Divide dough into two balls and roll each ball into a large rectangle, approximately 10”x15”. Spread chicken mixture evenly across both sheets of dough and roll dough width-wise into a pinwheel-style log. Slice each log into 1” thick slices. Place slices on ungreased baking sheet and bake at 350°for 30-35 minutes.

While the buffalo bite pastries are baking, combine all remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and stir until mixture is well incorporated.

Top each buffalo bite with a heaping tablespoon of bleu cheese slaw and serve.

Yields 20 servings.