Food: Pull out the perfect party pieces

When I am entertaining at home, or organising a cocktail party for a client, I often choose a selection of canapés that can be prepared and assembled in a matter of minutes. My advice is always to keep them simple and tasty. I love to have an assortment of colours, tastes, and textures. Bite-size portions are perfect. Anything more substantial is excessive, and can be awkward to eat, with a glass in one hand.

You also want to make sure that the canapés are sturdy and won’t disintegrate all over the floor. That can be embarrassing. Try not to complicate things for yourself. I have a very straightforward approach to entertaining: prepare everything in advance. This does not mean that you have to have the finished article ready, it simply means thinking about your recipes, ingredients, presentation, props, and storage.

Peas and mint are a match made in heaven and this pea and mint soup is perfect to serve at a cocktail party, or as an amuse-bouche during dinner, if you want to be posh. If you have some pretty china tea cups or espresso cups, use them for serving the soup.

The risotto mix can be cooked and the balls rolled in advance and shallow fried in sunflower oil just before serving. The crab and apple mix really needs to be made just before you serve it, or within an hour or two at most. It only take minutes to prepare, so don’t worry about leaving this until the day of the party. I sometimes suggest employing a professional waiter or waitress to help with the serving if you’ve got a big number to cater for – or enlist the help of a teenager or two. This will leave you free to enjoy the party with your guests.

Make sure to get plenty of cocktail napkins, and find some interesting props for serving your canapés.

Above all, enjoy your party.