10 Glamour-ish Appetizers for Holiday Hosting

Whipped Brie served with toasted bread — The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

There's nothing wrong with wanting to feel fancy, especially around the holidays. But usually, fancy food means that someone spent a lot of time fussing over expensive ingredients. I'm so happy to deliver the news that it doesn't have to be this way! You can go glam without ruining your budget or living in your kitchen for the holidays.

These recipes all fit neatly under the "easy" umbrella, and many of them — devils on horseback, whipped feta, and garlic butter steak bites, for starters — use only a handful of ingredients, all of which you can find at your normal supermarket. So even if your glassware is mismatched, even if your plates are chipped, these apps will give your festivities the flavor of sophistication.

01 of 10

Devils on Horseback

The Spruce/Cara Cormack

This retro recipe gets points right out of the gate for its simplicity: with only three ingredients, it won't burden your grocery list. And yet the combination of melty asiago cheese (substitute fontina, gouda, or havarti if you like), salty bacon, and tender sweet dates tastes like something you'd get at a fancy restaurant.

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02 of 10

Creamy Whipped Feta

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

Made with five ingredients and five minutes of prep, whipped feta gets its glam from its silky smooth texture. Use the back of a spoon to make swoops and swirls in it, then drizzle your best olive oil or some honey over the top to create pools of flavor. This recipe is made to be riffed on: top your whipped feta with chili crisp, toasted nuts or seeds, cracked black pepper, and more.

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03 of 10

Perfect Shrimp Cocktail

The Spruce Eats / Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster

Put grocery store shrimp cocktail out of your mind: it's a soggy, tasteless trap! This is the only shrimp cocktail recipe you'll ever need. It uses a fuss-free poaching method to achieve perfectly-cooked (never rubbery!) shrimp that are just begging to be dipped in a horseradish-spiked cocktail sauce.

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04 of 10

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms

The Spruce / Cara Cormack

Crab has a way of elevating any dish it's added to, and these mushrooms are no exception. Mounded high with a filling that's basically just a crab cake mixture, then browned to perfection, these are one-bite wonders that won't last long on the appetizer platter, but they'll live in your memory forever.

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05 of 10

Whipped Brie

The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

Sometimes TikTok recipes really come through, and this is one of those times. To those who are concerned about "desecrating" a wheel of brie, keep in mind that most supermarket brie is mass-produced and not especially flavorful. This is the time to pick up one of those wheels. Save the fancy, farmstead brie for serving as-is.

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06 of 10

Blini (Mini Russian Buckwheat Pancakes)

The Spruce/Cara Cormack

These tiny Russian pancakes are often served with sour cream and caviar, but you don't have to ruin your budget to have a good time. Top them with sour cream and smoked salmon or gravlax, substitute less spendy salmon roe for the caviar, or just serve them alongside creamy cheeses. Mini pancakes are delightful no matter what you pair them with.

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07 of 10

Clams Casino

The Spruce Eats / Photographer: Fred Hardy II, Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle

Popular in New England around the turn of the 20th Century, clams casino is made with littleneck clams stuffed with bacon and garlic butter. Each bite is an ode to the perfect marriage of seafood, garlic, and butter. For the ultimate in glam, serve them alongside ice-cold dirty martinis.

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08 of 10

Garlic Butter Steak Bites

Kristina Vanni

A four-ingredient wonder, these steak bites are simply seasoned, allowing the beautiful flavor of the meat to shine through. Serve them right out of the skillet they were cooked in (preferably cast-iron, which retains heat and will help keep them warm). Provide plenty of toothpicks for spearing, and move out of the way as quickly as you can after setting them down because party guests tend to rush the table when this app comes out.

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09 of 10

Scallop Aguachile

The Spruce Eats / Maxwell Cozzi

This coastal Mexican dish of thinly sliced scallops, onions, and cucumber in a spicy cilantro marinade is some of the best and easiest party food you can make. Find mini tostadas at your local Mexican grocery store (cute!), or just serve the aguachile with tortilla chips.

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10 of 10

Baked Brie With Fig Jam

The Spruce Eats/Cara Cormack

"Brie plus fig jam plus store-bought puff pastry equals happiness," says virtually everyone. But once your guests start tucking in to this gooey, cheesy masterpiece, you'll be surprised at how quiet the room will get. I like to think of it as a reverent silence, a sign of respect for the cheesemaker, the cheesemonger, and the home cook who had the good sense to make this recipe.

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