A
canapé (a type of hors d’œuvre, ) is
a small, prepared and usually decorative food, held in the fingers and often eaten in one bite. Because they are often served during cocktail hours, it is
often desired that a canapé be either salty or spicy, in order to encourage
guests to drink more. A canapé may also be referred to as finger food, although not
all finger foods are canapés. Crackers
or small slices of bread or toast or puff pastry, cut into various shapes, serve as the base for savory butters or pastes,
often topped with a “canopy” of such savory foods as meat, cheese, fish, caviar, foie gras, purées
or relish. Traditionally, canapés
are built on stale white bread (though other foods may be used as a base), cut in thin slices and then shaped with a cutter
or knife. Shapes might include circles, rings, squares, strips or triangles. These pieces of bread are then prepared by deep frying, sautéeing,
or toasting. The foods are sometimes highly
processed and decoratively applied , piped to the base with a pastry bag. Decorative garnishes are then applied. The canapés are usually served
on a canapé salver and eaten from small canapé plates. The technical composition of a canapé consists
of a base the - bread or pancake),
- a spread, - a main item, - and a garnish. The
spread is traditionally either a compound butter or a flavored cream cheese. Common garnishes can range from finely chopped vegetables, scallions,
and herbs to caviar or truffle oil. wikipedia | 
