OMG - where do you guys live - because I want to drop in to see you!

Jarred green olives, mixed nuts or cashews, cheese and crackers. We almost always have hummus on hand so can do pita chips and hummus too. I used to have TJs appetizers in the freezer but ran out a while ago and haven't replaced them. But they are nice for a quick snack.

I like to cook, so on weekends when I have time I'll make and freeze appetizers. I make curry puffs with store-bought puff pastry and a curried mashed potato filling, or fillo cigars with feta cheese filling. You can bake these directly from frozen, adding a few minutes to baking time. The only important thing to do is open-freeze them on a tray, and bag only when fully frozen, or else they'll stick together.
If I want to rustle up a sweet treat I often make financiers in mini-muffin tins. The batter comes together in 5 minutes in the food processor, and I use whatever frozen berries I have on hand in them.

We always have some cheese in the fridge and crackers in the pantry. We usually have some nuts around for both snacking and cooking. And we usually have some fruit in the fridge. So, I can put a small cutting board with cheese and crackers, slice some apples or oranges or some grapes (whatever we have, which changes) and put a small bowl of nuts out in a few minutes.

A little can of Progresso caponata. Buy a couple and put it on the shelf. Open it when unexpected guests come and serve with stoned wheat thins as a spread/dip.

Crackers, cheese, fig jam, and wine.
I was going to say that you have to eat and replace the cheese regularly, since it does go bad. But the manchego idea or the idea of packaged cheeses are good ones. You could also go with cheese wrapped in wax--gouda, edam, sharp cheddar--that stuff would keep for awhile unopened and refrigerated.

Anonymous wrote:Some of these suggestions are so heavy/sweet. When I drop in on folks, I often wish there were more gluten free options.

Subtle and funny. Well played.

Boursin cheese is super yummy and stays good unopened for a very long time in the fridge.

We call that "crack cheese" at our house, I could never keep that around all the time for company. Too tasty.

Anonymous wrote:Some of these suggestions are so heavy/sweet. When I drop in on folks, I often wish there were more gluten free options.

,

And I often wish there was caviar...HA HA

Some of these suggestions are so heavy/sweet. When I drop in on folks, I often wish there were more gluten free options.

I always have a loaf of banana/pumpkin/cranberry/carrot bread in the freezer. I take out, slice and serve with whatever fresh fruit I have plus coffee and tea. I also keep a stash of fancy nuts (macadamia, seasoned almonds, pistachios) to serve with olives to serve with beer, wine and soft drinks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of the jarred picked vegetables are quite tasty - I've had asparagus, green beans, and carrots that I thought were good. I assume these keep for a long time unopened.

Yuck. At least that will ensure that the visitors don't drop in again!

Hehe, okay. Scratch this idea! I do like them, though. It's like the garnish from a bloody mary (the only part of a bloody mary I can tolerate)!

We often have hummus and crackers in the house. I put some of the hummus in a small ceramic crock to make it look nice.

I like the spreadable goat cheese (Chavrie?) in the plastic container. It will be keep unopened in the refrigerator for several weeks.

Frozen Shu Mai from Trader Joe's (pork, vegetable, chicken)

Frozen artichoke and spinach dip from TJ's.

Good tortilla chips (I like blue corn) and a nice salsa from TJ's or whole foods. Some of these have corn, black beans etc for extra pizazz.

If you happen to have strawberries people are always impressed by chocolate-covered strawberries and they take less than 5 minutes to prepare.

A vacuum packed smoked salmon will last for a long time in the fridge. Served with ak-mak crackers (will last a long time on your pantry shelf) and cream cheese.

In addition to the nuts and olives others mentioned.

Also, we've made a big batch of air popped pop corn with fun seasonings (sweet or savory depending) when surprised by friends needing a snack.