162 appetizer recipes

Vegetarian Chinese boiled dumplings (shwei jow) with handmade wrappers and a tofu, mushroom, and lily bud filling. Served with a soy-vinegar dipping sauce. Makes 24.

Rich, velvety chicken liver pate with a warm curry kick, blended smooth with hard-boiled eggs and sealed under a golden layer of melted butter. A stunning make-ahead appetizer that's ready in minutes and improves overnight.

Baked Brie with a homemade cranberry-pear compote, honey, currants, and pumpkin pie spice. A warm, bubbly holiday appetizer served with melba rounds or sliced fruit.

Chicken pinwheels made from pounded chicken breasts rolled around ham slices with basil and garlic, baked and chilled, then sliced into elegant rounds. A make-ahead appetizer that looks impressive with minimal effort.

Five-spice tofu simmered in soy sauce, star anise, and molasses for a deeply savory, aromatic Chinese-style appetizer. Make-ahead and keeps in the fridge for a week.

Classic Oysters Rockefeller baked on the half shell under a buttery spinach topping spiked with Pernod and anchovy, layered with crisp bacon and a browned breadcrumb crust. The New Orleans appetizer, done right at home.

A classic Persian eggplant salad layered with golden fried slices and cool, garlicky yogurt. Topped with chopped walnuts and served chilled, this borani is a showstopping appetizer or mezze spread.

A Roman-style spicy bruschetta with fresh parsley, basil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in olive oil and red wine vinegar. No tomatoes here, just a punchy herb topping on grilled country bread. Vegetarian.

Salami roll-ups with cream cheese, avocado, tomato, and lettuce in flour tortillas. No-cook appetizer sliced into pinwheels, perfect for parties. Make ahead and chill.

The sauce here is no kin whatsoever to the ketchupy stuff that too often swamps cold seafood; it's a good bet with cold shrimp or crabmeat, too.

Traditional Greek dolmas stuffed with rice, pine nuts, fresh herbs, cinnamon, and allspice, simmered in olive oil and lemon juice. This recipe makes about 50 stuffed grape leaves served at room temperature.

Roasted eggplant and yogurt spread, garlic-studded and perfumed with thyme and oregano, blended creamy with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. A tangy, herby Mediterranean dip for pita, crackers, or toasted bread.

Mushroom almond pate with toasted almonds ground to a paste, blended with sauteed mushrooms, butter, thyme, and garlic. A vegetarian pate that's rich, earthy, and spreadable.

Homemade Chex party mix with Wheat Chex, Rice Chex, Cheerios, pretzels, and nuts baked low and slow in garlic butter and Worcestershire sauce. The classic snack mix recipe that vanishes at every gathering.

Turkish-style sauteed eggplant with a garlicky tomato sauce finished with vinegar. Salted and drained for silky, golden slices. Served warm or at room temperature.

Crispy baked Creole chicken wings rubbed with garlic, paprika, cayenne, and thyme, served with a sweet-tangy peach mustard dipping sauce. Game day gold.