18 Ways to Serve Canapés, From Blini to Tiny Toasts
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Canapés are constructed to be the perfect single bite, a sophisticated medley of flavors, textures, and colors artfully arranged and typically passed during cocktail hour at fancy shindigs. These mini hors d’oeuvres are named for the French word for sofa; they’re composed of a sauce or spread adorned with toppings like caviar or prosciutto ribbons perched on some kind of couch-like base, such as a cracker, tiny toast, or roasted potato. Here, you’ll find a selection of our favorite one-bite wonders, from smoked salmon-topped gougères to crispy rice cakes with spicy tuna, to help you build the ideal appetizer menu for your next party.
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Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Pickles and Gin-Spiked Sour Cream
Capture the essence of latkes without any shredding or frying by simply boiling, smashing, and baking baby yellow potatoes on a sheet pan. They’re a terrific canvas for dollops of gin-spiked sour cream; sprinkles of salmon roe, chives, dill, and parsley; and quick-pickled veggies.
Deviled-Egg Crisps
Justin Chapple reimagines the deviled-egg toast from 2010 F&W Best New Chef Missy Robbins, of Lilia and Misi in Brooklyn. This version features creamy deviled egg puree layered with smoky, raisin-like Urfa biber and spicy jalapeño slices.
Dirty Martini Dip Mini Stuffed Potatoes
Food & Wine / Photo by Morgan Hunt Glaze / Food Styling by Sally McKay / Prop Styling by Abby Armstrong
Tender roasted baby Yukon Gold potatoes are stuffed with a creamy, salty filling made from two cheeses and briny olive juice. Chopped gin-marinated Castelvetrano olives add a bright finishing touch to complete these bite-sized party poppers.
Gougères with Smoked Salmon, Caviar, and Prosciutto
Frederick Hardy II / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Christina Brockman
Gougères — cheesy puffs made from pâte à choux — are easy to make and deliver big on flavor and texture. We top ours with slivers of prosciutto and smoked salmon plus dollops of caviar and crème fraîche, but they can be customized to your liking.
Goat Cheese and Quail Egg Canapés
When prepping for a soirée, we love it when ease and elegance collide — like in this recipe from winemakers Mireia Taribó and Tara Gomez. Here, airy whipped goat cheese and tender quail eggs top crisp cornmeal crackers, all garnished with thin strips of fresh white sage and lemon peel.
Cheese Croustades
Josh Miller calls upon frozen mini phyllo pastry shells to make these croustades that are almost too pretty to eat. In each bite of the crispy pastry, guests will be rewarded with pops of cranberry brightness amid a fluffy goat cheese mousse.
Chhundo and Goat Cheese Crostini
Kashmiri chile powder lends heat and fragrance to chhundo, a tangy and sticky-sweet pickled condiment made from green mangoes. It tops these goat cheese crostini from blogger and cookbook author Hetal Vasavada.
Caviar Waffle Bites
For this inventive and playful take on blini, strips of waffles house pockets of caviar, crème fraîche, and chives, making perfect grab-and-go appetizers.
Bacon-Wrapped Dates
Photographer: Kelsey Hansen, Food Stylist: Annie Probst, Prop Stylist: Breanna Ghazali
These are the perfect sweet-and-savory, juicy-and-crispy bites for your appetizer spread. Dates and bacon are dressed up with toasted walnuts and herbs plus savory cream cheese and blue cheese.
Crispy Rice Cakes with Spicy Tuna
Kiminobu Saito’s sushi-inspired canapés start with baking rectangles of cooked sushi rice until crisp and lightly golden. He then tops each rice cake with a spicy Kewpie mayonnaise-based mix of tuna and roe plus sliced serrano peppers — miso-basted eggplant would also work well here.
Shakshuka Deviled Eggs
Give crowd-pleasing deviled eggs the shakshuka treatment by spooning smoky, garlicky harissa-spiked tomato jam onto each egg half. The velvety yolk filling includes tangy yogurt along with the usual mayo to balance the flavors.
Hogs in a Blanket
Fred Hardy / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle
Served with store-bought chutney mixed with whole-grain mustard and prepared with frozen puff pastry, this high-brow take on the classic snack swaps out the usual hot dogs for andouille sausage.
Cheddar Cheese Coins
Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Thom Driver
With their crisp texture, buttery mouthfeel, and sharp, cheese-filled bite, these savory cheddar coins invite all kinds of toppings. Try variations with green chile and cornmeal, benne and black pepper, or bacon.
Cauliflower Fritters
Chef José Andrés folds finely chopped cauliflower into spiced, whipped egg whites, then fries the batter by the tablespoonful to make tiny fritters to top with yogurt sauce and caviar.
Goat Cheese-Stuffed Mushrooms with Breadcrumbs
For these texturally satisfying bites, creamy chèvre is stuffed into cremini mushrooms and topped with crispy herbed breadcrumbs. You can make these a day ahead and refrigerate them without the breadcrumbs, then sprinkle the topping on before serving.
Zucchini and Pepper Gratin with Herbs and Cheese
Chef Daniel Humm makes a ratatouille-like mix of sautéed zucchini strips, bell peppers, and tomato to spoon on top of zucchini slices, then sprinkles everything with cheese and bakes them.
Lamb Pizzettes
Mini pitas are brushed with olive oil and toasted in the oven to form the base of these spiced lamb appetizers. A small dollop of seasoned yogurt and a drop of chile oil rounds out each bite.
Roasted Fingerling Potato and Pressed Caviar Canapés
Crown roasted fingerling potatoes with sour cream and slender diamonds of pressed caviar for this simple, impressive hors d’oeuvre from Jacques Pépin. Garnish with chives and serve immediately.
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