170 starter recipes

Chilled fruit soup with spiked melon: champagne-sweetened fruit broth ladled over vodka-and-tequila-marinated melon, grapes, and plums. A grown-up summer starter built for heat waves.

Chilled cantaloupe soup with orange juice concentrate, honey, Calvados apple brandy, and cream. A stunning cold summer starter served in stemmed glasses with fresh mint.

This extravagant salsa is the perfect conversation starter at dinner parties. Can be served with tortilla chips and on burgers.

Marak Perot Kar, an Israeli cold fruit soup with cantaloupe, strawberries, grapes, and apples simmered and pureed with lemon and orange juice. A refreshing chilled summer starter.

Puff-top shrimp bisque: individual soup cups crowned with golden puff pastry lids, hiding a creamy shrimp and zucchini bisque. Impressive starter for two.

Broiled grapefruit halves with butter, brown sugar, mixed spice and glace cherry garnish. Classic Australian retro breakfast or starter ready in 10 minutes.

These sweet and tasty treats are a great conversation starter which are perfect for the first dinner party you attend.

French Belgian endive salad (Salade d'Endives) with a Dijon mustard and walnut oil vinaigrette, garnished with walnuts and fresh tomatoes. A crisp, bitter, elegant starter.

Stuffed baked mushrooms filled with sausage meat, whole wheat breadcrumbs, fried onions, and fresh sage. A savory side dish or starter that bakes in just 20 minutes.

Curry-spiced soup blending dried apricots with fresh cucumber and orange zest for a refreshing hot or cold starter with Middle Eastern flair.

Orange appetizers layered with thin red onion, parsley, cilantro, lime juice, and olive oil. A fresh, no-cook Moroccan-inspired citrus salad starter.

Watercress goat cheese salad with pecan halves is a three-ingredient starter that takes 15 minutes. Peppery greens, creamy chevre, and crunchy nuts.

Greens with orange dressing pairs Belgian endive and watercress with a minimalist balsamic-orange vinaigrette and hazelnut oil. A light, elegant starter salad.

Grilled baby artichokes piled onto meaty sauteed portobello caps and finished with a drizzle of vinaigrette. A simple, smoky, vegetarian starter that lets a few good ingredients shine.

Pumpkin and avocado oil soup blends pumpkin, fennel and potato into a silky pureed soup, with buttery avocado oil standing in for butter. A light, velvety vegan starter finished with a drizzle of oil.

Chilled raspberry soup simmered with Burgundy wine and cinnamon sticks, strained smooth, and served cold with a swirl of cream. An elegant summer starter.