Starters for 16 on a wee Scottish island (limited crockery/cutlery)

[wakesandquakes]

We're going away - far far far away (to Coll - where the Katie Morag stories were set - remote Scottish island, long way away, pretty much nothing there except billions (24 I think) of amazing empty beaches. It's great.

Anyway we're enticed some friends to come with us and on one night we're doing a safari supper (not sure what the Scottish equivalent is). The shop there is fine, but anything fancy I'll have to buy in advance and take on the ferry. I'm doing starters - for 16 in our wee Scottish cottage which will be packed and very cosy and has crockery and cutlery for 4. So am looking for easy ideas to inspire me.

So far I was thinking of:

• soup (bring your own mug) and tart it up with some nice bread
• tapas (aka cold meat on a plate, tart it up by making it several different types of cold meat on a plate and perhaps adding a tomato) - ie finger food so our lack of plates won't be obvious
• that's about it.

It's all going to be pretty casual, but on (rare) occassions I like to make a bit of an effort. Any experience of this? Any inspiration? All welcome.

smoked salmon on oatcakes - can't get much more Scottish than that!

Hope the weather's kind.

home made chicken satay sticks done on a bbq, to serve, wrap in a lettuce leaf, pre make the satay sauce, bring over in a kilner jar, just need chicken. Finger food and delicious.

Blinis with creme fraiche and smoked salmon?

Oatcakes and pate?

Blinis with Haggis and Scallops?

depending on equipment available, either whizz up/chop finely/blend smoked mackerel and soft cheese of some sort (quark/philly) with pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice and serve on oatcakes. Absolutely yummy and you might be able to get all the ingredients on Coll - do they have a smokery on the island??

Can you pick mussells anywhere?

Probably biggest by the sewage outlet.

I sooo envy you. Love Katie Morag and Coll. What about a range of dips and some nice breads to dip into them. No need for cutlery then. What will you do for the main course though? You can buy cutlery very cheaply from IKEA. That's what I use every day and have got loads of it. Perfectly acceptable.

Send the children down to the beach to look for scallop shells to use as dishes.
Smoked salmon and crowdie (a lovely creamy soft cheese).
Pudding - toasted oatmeal, whipped cream, Drambuie or honey and some rasps.

Mmmmm am already thinking yummy (and surprising easy) thoughts of what starters might be. I can't believe I hadn't thought of the smoked salmon option. It's very easy, very Scottish and very delicious. Of course if I feel the need to show off a little, will take the hand blender to craft creative culinary masterpieces. Chicken satay sounds straightforward too.

The cottage we have has a little (well the only kind) of road outside and then it's the bay in the village. No sure about the sewage arrangements but I can't imagine they are hugely sophisticated given the island population is so low. One of the friends we are going with, his Mum used to get the children to collect loads of mussels and then cook them in a huge ancient saucepan over a fire on the beach. Sounds Boden-tastic, but think she may have had an old fashioned cavalier approach to hygiene/quality control which meant after certain "incidents", the children were far les enthusiastic about such adventures. On the basis of that I'm not keen on the mussel option. Have wondered about taking DCs crabbing. There's a pier (or 3) and how hard can it be? Am proposing we catch them and let them go rather than turn them into starters.

After all we then have to progress to other houses to have mains and puds.

PS. We look out of our cottage window and across the bay is what has to be the Lady Artist's house. Despite detailed reading and checking of pictures, the row of cottages where we will be staying is not in the Katie Morag books (although sometimes we have pretended otherwise..)