Let’s dish. Opening this thread so we can all share our favorite (and ideally easiest?!) holiday appetizer recipes with the crew.
These threads are always such a wealth of knowledge, and now when 50 people message me every day for the next month and ask me what app they should bring to their neighborhood holiday party, I can simply direct them to this thread. Thanks for doing the hard work for me.
I’ll go first.
For easy, it’s gotta be Christmas Party Dip, which can be made the day before and thrown into the fridge until party time. Thanks to my cousin Lexie for this recipe!
For ridiculous tastiness, it’s 4-Ingredient Everything Bagel Fried Brie. You can make it entirely in advance, refrigerate it, then throw it on a baking dish and warm on 400°F for 8 to 10 minutes at party time. There’s also a goat cheese version.
Your turn! Share links or exact recipes whenever possible!
Hot Vidalia Onion Dip--2 cups of chopped vidalia (or any onion labeled sweet), 2 cups of shredded Swiss (Harris Teeter is the only store I ever find it in bags) and 2 cups Mayo. Mix all together. Sprinkle paprika for color. Baker 350 for half an hour. Serve with whatever your pleasure--triscuits, sliced baguette, tortilla chips, etc.
Im impressed by those that make appetizers from recipes. I just hit the freezers at Trader Joe’s and it’s all perfect and easy and everyone loves it all.
My two go-tos are also my mom's (I associate them with "fancy" Christmas parties from growing up!)
Artichoke hearts wrapped in bacon with a toothpick and roasted in the oven. Important to get the marinated artichoke hearts not the plain ones. I usually bake at 350 and just watch them for when the bacon looks done.
The other one is a date stuffed with cream cheese and a pecan, then drizzled with a little honey. very labor intensive but so good
Hot artichoke dip with crackers or bread. Combine 1 can artichoke hearts drained and chopped, 3/4 c mayo, 1 cup grated parm chee, 1/2 t garlic salt, dash of lemon juice, bake in a small greased dish at 350 for 25 min
My dad always made a crab dip for Christmas that is so simple and totally addicting.
Mix a room temp cream cheese block with finely chopped surimi (imitation crab), shape into a ball and refrigerate. When it’s time to serve, pour a jar of cocktail sauce over top and serve with ritz crackers.
Not super glamorous, but I swear it is always devoured within minutes when I make it for parties.
Perfect timing! I was just writing about appetizers from the 70s and how trying to score some of the old ingredients has become an endless grocery store scavenger hunt. Crabmeat dreams, one of my mom’s and my faves, involves, among other things, that funky Old English cheese spread in a little jelly jar. Stay tuned. When I find it and test it, I’ll share the recipe.
Peppadew- fill peppadew peppers (from the olive bar at your grocery store) with goat cheese (I just let it soften and pipe into the peppers with a ziplock bag that I cut the corner off). Shove a marcona almond in there and top all of it with chopped parsley. It's SO easy, very different, easy to eat, and Christmas colors!
It SOUNDS scary and labor-intensive, but Chicken Liver Pate is actually really easy to make and comes across as fancy AF. It's basically liver butter! We serve with cornichons and toasted bread or crackers. https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chicken-liver-pate-march-2007
I make stuffed mushrooms every year. Sometimes they’re vegetarian, sometimes not!
Chop the mushroom stems. Saute itailian sausgae then set aside. Sauté stems with finely diced onion and garlic, add in sausage, breadcrumbs, Italian herbs, Parmesan (could do a little cream cheese too). Stir to combine. Then spoon into each mushroom. Bake at 375 until mushrooms are cooked.
Honestly the easiest and so tasty. My family went crazy when I made this. It’s a block of cream cheese and the corn salsa from TJ’s. Heat it, stir it together. Amazing. Gotta serve it with Tostitos scoops.
David Lebovitz’s spiced pretzel and nut mix, Ina’s cacio e pepe gougeres (I make the dough ahead and pipe onto a cookie sheet, freeze, and then bake however many I need at a time) (so good warm with a glass of champagne!!), warm crab dip, Dorie Greenspan’s salmon rillettes, and I always make Chex mix at Christmas.
I make a sausage dip that people love! I can’t take credit for the recipe, but it is so easy and so delicious.
1 package spicy breakfast sausage (or mild)
1 block cream cheese
1 can Rotel
In a large skillet, cook the sausage until crumbled and cooked through. Add the Rotel and stir to combine. Add the cream cheese in small cubes and stir until everything is hot and bubbly. Serve with Fritos or tortilla chips or veggies or all of the above. It’s easily transferred to a crock pot to keep warm. We often eat this for breakfast on big holiday meal days.
Another easy but delicious option is dump and heat queso.
1 jar of store bought queso
1 can of chili (with or without beans)
Combine and heat through. It sounds like it will not be good but everyone devours it.
I love Brie Bites. Use a mini muffin tin and cut puff pastry into squares to fit in the tin. Once the puff pastry is in add a little piece of brie and small little scoop of pepper jelly (the red is pretty for Xmas). Cook/heat so puff pastry is cooked. So yummy!
These are fucking amazing and are always the first thing gone- lmk if you make them!!!
Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts
Ingredients
1 pound bacon, cut into fourths
2 (8 ounce) cans water chestnuts, halved
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup Miracle Whip (mayo works!)
1/3 cup Heinz chili sauce
Directions:
Cut each strip of bacon in half. Wrap one strip around one water chestnut. Secure with a wooden toothpick. Place in shallow baking dish.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.
While the wraps are baking, in a small mixing bowl combine brown sugar, mayonnaise, and chili sauce to make barbecue sauce. After the wraps have finished baking, transfer them (removing them from the grease) to a second shallow baking dish. Pour the sauce over the wraps.
Bake for 10 to 15 additional minutes, or until bacon is crispy. Serve hot out of dish with toothpicks.
Loaded tater tots- 2-3 tots baked in mini muffin pans. Smoosh to form a cup, fill with grated cheddar, and bake again till cheese is melted. Top with sour cream, chopped bacon, and chives.
One of the easiest dips I do is ricotta with chopped up herbs (whatever you like have on hand, i love dill, parsley, green onion) olive oil, lemon juice, zest if you’re feeling fancy topped with a drizzle of olive oil and flaky salt and pepper.
-Dump a jar of BBQ sauce in w/the meatballs (I like Stubb's)
-Add a little water to the BBQ sauce jar and swirl around to get the rest of the sauce out & dump in the crock pot
-Set on low for a few hours until done (stir occasionally)
---This is stupid simple, but always a big hit. I'm sure a lot of you know about this, but wanted to post it just in case it's new for someone. You can also do this with cocktail sausages.---
A wheel of Brie topped with maple syrup, chopped nuts (can use walnuts, pecans) and dried cranberries. Put in the oven at 400 for about 15-20 minutes and serve with sliced baguette - it’ll get all warm and gooey when you slice into it. It looks so elevated but it’s super easy and so delicious.
In a crockpot, dump the meat of a shredded rotis chicken, a block of cream cheese, an 8oz bag of shredded cheddar, a bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch, as much of a bottle of Frank's Hot Sauce as your taste buds tolerate and let it get warm and melty. Serve with celery, carrots, baguette, cracker, chips, whatever your heart desires!
At a college Friendsgiving (in 2007! We were pioneers), someone brought this and she would make it for me every year: cranberry sauce mixed with horseradish (amount is to taste) and then poured warm over a block of cream cheese. Serve with crackers to dip into it. Messy but delicious.
Many have mentioned the crescent-roll-dough-brie combo (we usually wrap the whole wheel and then slice/serve with granny smith apples, but I like the idea of mini ones).
Another ("healthier?" HA) brie we also like: rub curry powder over the whole wheel, spread mango chutney over top, sprinkle with chopped cashews, bake at 350 for 15 min. Yum.
Merry Tomatoes: Marinate cherry tomatoes in vodka for an hour or so, serve on a platter with some vodka on the bottom, guests use a toothpick to dip their tomatoes in celery salt or seasoned salt.
A Butter Board! Just saw one for the first time this week at Thanksgiving in the UK. Spread out the butter and top with whatever you want. Just google - so easy!
The old standby - Bacon-Wrapped Dates! Stuff some goat cheese (or any soft cheese of your choosing) into a date, wrap with half a slice of bacon, and bake at 400* until the bacon is your desired done-ness.
OR, just stick some peanut butter in the date and some chocolate chips on top. Surprisingly delicious and nutritious (?) hah!
Stuffed Mushrooms. Brick of room temp cream cheese, one packet of italian seasoning (in the isle by the salad dressing). 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Wipe down mushrooms ( I like bella) and pop out stems. Mix other ingredients and put into a zip lock baggie. Cut off the tip of the baggie and "pipe" filling into each mushroom. Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is slightly golden. So easy but can look so fancy on a nice serving dish and everyone always loves them!
- cube up a wheel of Brie and throw it in a small baking dish
-sprinkle a few diced green onions and a handful of halved grape tomatoes on top
- add a few random dollups of fresh or jarred pesto
Bake at 350° until melty but not TOO melty. Serve with fancy crostini brushed with olive oil and rubbed with a little fresh garlic, or phone it in and eat it with crackers. It’s so delicious.
Put single bite crispy cups (or scoops chips for gluten-free) on cookie sheets.
Put one piece brie (1/4" square) in each cup.
Top each with 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of jam or jelly. Original recipe call for apricot, but I've also used blueberry, strawberry, and even leftover cranberry sauce!
My favorite -- a block of room temp cream cheese spread kinda thinly on a plate and then coated with hot pepper jelly. Serve with crackers. Yum!
Hot Vidalia Onion Dip--2 cups of chopped vidalia (or any onion labeled sweet), 2 cups of shredded Swiss (Harris Teeter is the only store I ever find it in bags) and 2 cups Mayo. Mix all together. Sprinkle paprika for color. Baker 350 for half an hour. Serve with whatever your pleasure--triscuits, sliced baguette, tortilla chips, etc.
Im impressed by those that make appetizers from recipes. I just hit the freezers at Trader Joe’s and it’s all perfect and easy and everyone loves it all.
My go-to is always deviled eggs. Inexpensive and easy!
If I have a little more time I like to make mushroom tartlets. Basically a mushroom tart filling added to phyllo tartlet cups and baked.
My two go-tos are also my mom's (I associate them with "fancy" Christmas parties from growing up!)
Artichoke hearts wrapped in bacon with a toothpick and roasted in the oven. Important to get the marinated artichoke hearts not the plain ones. I usually bake at 350 and just watch them for when the bacon looks done.
The other one is a date stuffed with cream cheese and a pecan, then drizzled with a little honey. very labor intensive but so good
The crispy honey sesame goat cheese from the WTC archives- mmm so good
Hot artichoke dip with crackers or bread. Combine 1 can artichoke hearts drained and chopped, 3/4 c mayo, 1 cup grated parm chee, 1/2 t garlic salt, dash of lemon juice, bake in a small greased dish at 350 for 25 min
My dad always made a crab dip for Christmas that is so simple and totally addicting.
Mix a room temp cream cheese block with finely chopped surimi (imitation crab), shape into a ball and refrigerate. When it’s time to serve, pour a jar of cocktail sauce over top and serve with ritz crackers.
Not super glamorous, but I swear it is always devoured within minutes when I make it for parties.
Perfect timing! I was just writing about appetizers from the 70s and how trying to score some of the old ingredients has become an endless grocery store scavenger hunt. Crabmeat dreams, one of my mom’s and my faves, involves, among other things, that funky Old English cheese spread in a little jelly jar. Stay tuned. When I find it and test it, I’ll share the recipe.
Peppadew- fill peppadew peppers (from the olive bar at your grocery store) with goat cheese (I just let it soften and pipe into the peppers with a ziplock bag that I cut the corner off). Shove a marcona almond in there and top all of it with chopped parsley. It's SO easy, very different, easy to eat, and Christmas colors!
It SOUNDS scary and labor-intensive, but Chicken Liver Pate is actually really easy to make and comes across as fancy AF. It's basically liver butter! We serve with cornichons and toasted bread or crackers. https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chicken-liver-pate-march-2007
Trader Joe’s Lentil Dip is filling and easy and not too heavy!
Just stir up -
1 package of cooked lentils
1 tub of tjs bruschetta
1 tub of crumbled feta herbed
Serve with pita chips or crackers
I make stuffed mushrooms every year. Sometimes they’re vegetarian, sometimes not!
Chop the mushroom stems. Saute itailian sausgae then set aside. Sauté stems with finely diced onion and garlic, add in sausage, breadcrumbs, Italian herbs, Parmesan (could do a little cream cheese too). Stir to combine. Then spoon into each mushroom. Bake at 375 until mushrooms are cooked.
Sprinkle Parmesan when done
I’d eat these daily if I could
Go to recipe year after year. The preserves and rosemary make for a festive pairing!
Fig (or any flavor!) Preserves and Rosemary Cheese
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 (3 oz.) log goat cheese, softened
1 T. chopped fresh rosemary
2 t. honey
1 t. coarsely ground pepper
Fig Preserves
Grease mini loafpan or 1-1/2 cup mold, line with plastic wrap allowing edges to extend slightly over the sides. Set aside.
Process first 5 ingredients in food processor until smooth.
Spoon cheese mixture into mold. Cover and chill at least 2 hours.
Unmold cheese, spoon preserves over cheese, garnish with rosemary. Serve with crackers or toast rounds.
My favorite to take to parties and pot lucks! This really gets people in the taste buds! Don't skip the ginger!
Fresh Cranberry Salsa
1 (12-ounce bag) fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup minced green onions
2 small (approximately 2 tablespoons) jalapeno peppers, cored, seeded and minced
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 scup fresh cilantro leaves, minced
2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger (to taste)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 (8- ounce) packages cream cheese
Cranberries and/or cilantro sprigs for garnish
Pick over cranberries, (discarding all that are soft or bruised). Place them in a food processor; pulse until finely chopped but not mushy.
Place chopped Cranberries in a bowl;
mix together within, and onions, jalapeno peppers, sugar, cilantro leaves, ginger, and lemon juice.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours so flavors develop (salsa will be too sharp and tart to begin with).
On a serving plate, place cream cheese; cover with the dip. Garnish, if desired, and served with crackers. (wheat things are the best for this)
Honestly the easiest and so tasty. My family went crazy when I made this. It’s a block of cream cheese and the corn salsa from TJ’s. Heat it, stir it together. Amazing. Gotta serve it with Tostitos scoops.
https://naptimekitchen.com/cream-cheese-and-corn-dip/
Shouldn't think about this while hungry.
My go-to appetizers:
BLT Dip -- Super easy, always a crowd pleaser, serve with Fritos.
https://natalie-mason.com/2013/06/blt-dip.html
Barefoot Contessa's Savory Palmiers -- looks fancy, super easy.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/savory-palmiers-recipe-1949130
I love this raspberry/jalapeño cranberry relish poured over a block of cream cheese, goat cheese, warm Brie, whatevs is your choice of soft-ish cheese and served with crackers: https://www.mirlandraskitchen.com/cranberry-raspberry-jalapeno-relish-zesty-thanksgiving/. Would also make a great jar-garita moment, now that I think of it.
David Lebovitz’s spiced pretzel and nut mix, Ina’s cacio e pepe gougeres (I make the dough ahead and pipe onto a cookie sheet, freeze, and then bake however many I need at a time) (so good warm with a glass of champagne!!), warm crab dip, Dorie Greenspan’s salmon rillettes, and I always make Chex mix at Christmas.
Crescent roll, Brie and cranberry sauce (or any preserves) in a mini muffin tin - 375 for 15 min.
Log of goat cheese, cover with lemon curd and pistachios - this gets GOBBLED up at parties!!
I make a sausage dip that people love! I can’t take credit for the recipe, but it is so easy and so delicious.
1 package spicy breakfast sausage (or mild)
1 block cream cheese
1 can Rotel
In a large skillet, cook the sausage until crumbled and cooked through. Add the Rotel and stir to combine. Add the cream cheese in small cubes and stir until everything is hot and bubbly. Serve with Fritos or tortilla chips or veggies or all of the above. It’s easily transferred to a crock pot to keep warm. We often eat this for breakfast on big holiday meal days.
Another easy but delicious option is dump and heat queso.
1 jar of store bought queso
1 can of chili (with or without beans)
Combine and heat through. It sounds like it will not be good but everyone devours it.
I love Brie Bites. Use a mini muffin tin and cut puff pastry into squares to fit in the tin. Once the puff pastry is in add a little piece of brie and small little scoop of pepper jelly (the red is pretty for Xmas). Cook/heat so puff pastry is cooked. So yummy!
These are fucking amazing and are always the first thing gone- lmk if you make them!!!
Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts
Ingredients
1 pound bacon, cut into fourths
2 (8 ounce) cans water chestnuts, halved
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup Miracle Whip (mayo works!)
1/3 cup Heinz chili sauce
Directions:
Cut each strip of bacon in half. Wrap one strip around one water chestnut. Secure with a wooden toothpick. Place in shallow baking dish.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.
While the wraps are baking, in a small mixing bowl combine brown sugar, mayonnaise, and chili sauce to make barbecue sauce. After the wraps have finished baking, transfer them (removing them from the grease) to a second shallow baking dish. Pour the sauce over the wraps.
Bake for 10 to 15 additional minutes, or until bacon is crispy. Serve hot out of dish with toothpicks.
Some of our favorite holiday apps: bacon wrapped chestnuts
green onion & pineapple cheeseball fresh cranberry salsa
sweet-and-sour meatballs
All of them are easy to make and a HUGE crowd pleaser!
These are always a hit - a little sweet, a little spicy, and serving the nuts warm makes them feel a little special for entertaining!
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/the-union-square-cafes-bar-nuts-recipe-2203662
Loaded tater tots- 2-3 tots baked in mini muffin pans. Smoosh to form a cup, fill with grated cheddar, and bake again till cheese is melted. Top with sour cream, chopped bacon, and chives.
Bruschetta board with basil vinaigrette, romesco sauce and a saffron tomato confit
One of the easiest dips I do is ricotta with chopped up herbs (whatever you like have on hand, i love dill, parsley, green onion) olive oil, lemon juice, zest if you’re feeling fancy topped with a drizzle of olive oil and flaky salt and pepper.
Sauerkraut balls! My #1 requested item from my mom during the holiday season. This recipe is close, but we bake in the oven for 15 minutes at 350 after frying. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/139183/scrumptious-sauerkraut-balls/
Meatballs in the crock pot
-Put a bag of frozen meatballs in a crock pot
-Dump a jar of BBQ sauce in w/the meatballs (I like Stubb's)
-Add a little water to the BBQ sauce jar and swirl around to get the rest of the sauce out & dump in the crock pot
-Set on low for a few hours until done (stir occasionally)
---This is stupid simple, but always a big hit. I'm sure a lot of you know about this, but wanted to post it just in case it's new for someone. You can also do this with cocktail sausages.---
A wheel of Brie topped with maple syrup, chopped nuts (can use walnuts, pecans) and dried cranberries. Put in the oven at 400 for about 15-20 minutes and serve with sliced baguette - it’ll get all warm and gooey when you slice into it. It looks so elevated but it’s super easy and so delicious.
Buffalo chicken dip that will please everyone-
In a crockpot, dump the meat of a shredded rotis chicken, a block of cream cheese, an 8oz bag of shredded cheddar, a bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch, as much of a bottle of Frank's Hot Sauce as your taste buds tolerate and let it get warm and melty. Serve with celery, carrots, baguette, cracker, chips, whatever your heart desires!
I love Ina Garten's parmesan crisps, you can make them ahead and they freeze really well - I would just move the log back to the fridge the day before your party https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/parmesan-thyme-crackers
At a college Friendsgiving (in 2007! We were pioneers), someone brought this and she would make it for me every year: cranberry sauce mixed with horseradish (amount is to taste) and then poured warm over a block of cream cheese. Serve with crackers to dip into it. Messy but delicious.
Midwestern Sausage Balls because everyone else is bringing a charcuterie board. https://www.gonnawantseconds.com/bisquick-sausage-balls/#wprm-recipe-container-19494
After reading comments & replying to some--OH MY YUM I AM READING THESE DELECTABLE IDEAS TOO LATE AT NIGHT! #salivating #lickthebowl
Many have mentioned the crescent-roll-dough-brie combo (we usually wrap the whole wheel and then slice/serve with granny smith apples, but I like the idea of mini ones).
Another ("healthier?" HA) brie we also like: rub curry powder over the whole wheel, spread mango chutney over top, sprinkle with chopped cashews, bake at 350 for 15 min. Yum.
This looks so delicious! - - My favorite appetizer is smoked salmon crostini. Excellent flavors, deep and yet so refreshing.
This was always my mom's go to. Hot crab dip with almonds. https://www.food.com/recipe/hot-crab-dip-6638 So easy and very tasty.
Merry Tomatoes: Marinate cherry tomatoes in vodka for an hour or so, serve on a platter with some vodka on the bottom, guests use a toothpick to dip their tomatoes in celery salt or seasoned salt.
On Thanksgiving I made a goat cheese dip with dates and candied bacon on top. so so so so good. a little rosemary, some red pepper flakes - delish!
A Butter Board! Just saw one for the first time this week at Thanksgiving in the UK. Spread out the butter and top with whatever you want. Just google - so easy!
The old standby - Bacon-Wrapped Dates! Stuff some goat cheese (or any soft cheese of your choosing) into a date, wrap with half a slice of bacon, and bake at 400* until the bacon is your desired done-ness.
OR, just stick some peanut butter in the date and some chocolate chips on top. Surprisingly delicious and nutritious (?) hah!
Stuffed Mushrooms. Brick of room temp cream cheese, one packet of italian seasoning (in the isle by the salad dressing). 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Wipe down mushrooms ( I like bella) and pop out stems. Mix other ingredients and put into a zip lock baggie. Cut off the tip of the baggie and "pipe" filling into each mushroom. Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is slightly golden. So easy but can look so fancy on a nice serving dish and everyone always loves them!
MARINATED OLIVES AND FETA // this is a hit every time. serve with your favorite crusty bread! https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/marinated-olives-and-feta
Spiced Pecans - Very good for gifting as well. https://www.food.com/recipe/spiced-pecans-43678
Block of cream cheese with preserves or pepper jelly on top, served with crackers!
Our family favorite is Pesto Brie:
- cube up a wheel of Brie and throw it in a small baking dish
-sprinkle a few diced green onions and a handful of halved grape tomatoes on top
- add a few random dollups of fresh or jarred pesto
Bake at 350° until melty but not TOO melty. Serve with fancy crostini brushed with olive oil and rubbed with a little fresh garlic, or phone it in and eat it with crackers. It’s so delicious.
Super easy appetizer:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Put single bite crispy cups (or scoops chips for gluten-free) on cookie sheets.
Put one piece brie (1/4" square) in each cup.
Top each with 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of jam or jelly. Original recipe call for apricot, but I've also used blueberry, strawberry, and even leftover cranberry sauce!
Bake a couple minutes just to melt the brie!
Stuffed brie:
-Slice a brie round in half (so you have a top & bottom half).
-Add sliced almonds and honey to the bottom half
-Top w/the top half
-Wrap in puff pastry or Pillsbury crescent roll sheet
-Bake according to puff pastry or Pillsbury temp instructions until golden
----You can also add dried cranberries inside, or other dried fruit or flavored honey---