30 Hanukkah Appetizers To Turn Your Festival Of Lights Into A Party

Stuffed mushrooms are THE appetizer we make for every party, and while our classic recipe is great, sometimes we like to switch it up a bit. Enter boursin cheese. It adds a little something to these that’ll have your guests coming back for more.

Get the Boursin-Stuffed Mushrooms recipe.

Hummus is a Middle Eastern dish made of chickpeas and tahini. Garlic or roasted red peppers and other spices are common additions. Sure, it's easy to buy it, but homemade is better, trust us.

Get the Creamy Garlic Hummus recipe.

Attention cheese boards everywhere: Fried goat cheese bites are coming to steal your thunder. Coated in crispy herby bread crumbs and drizzled with honey, these creamy, melt-in-your-mouth morsels will capture the hearts of all your Hanukkah guests.

Get the Fried Goat Cheese Bites recipe.

Enjoy these crispy (thanks air fryer!) bean cakes as an app on their own, or sandwich them between slider buns with all your favorite burger fixin’s for really irresistible mini veggie burgers.

Get the Air Fryer Tahini Black Bean Fritters recipe.

If you thought fondue belonged in the 1970s, think again! We’ve hauled this retro party classic into the 21st century by turning it into cheesy bite-sized party snacks, perfect for any festive occasion.

Get the Fondue Bites recipe.

This Italian dip is a buttery sauce made from lots of garlic and anchovies (stick with us) that somehow work together to create a dip that’s a little pungent, a little sweet, and will keep you coming back for more. Trust us, this one belongs on your Hanukkah table.

Get the Bagna Cauda recipe.

Baked brie is a classic app that pleases all around: It's versatile, delicious, easy to make, and requires a pretty short cook time. We filled ours with raspberry jam, but whatever your favorite is will work (you could even go with some apple butter 😍). Drizzle it with some honey, and you have a warm, cheesy app that feels extra fancy in no time at all.

Get the Baked Brie In Puff Pastry recipe.

Umami-rich oyster mushrooms are lightly battered and fried for this squid-free take on a seafood favorite. You can use other mushroom varieties, but the delicate “petals” of the oyster mushrooms get especially crispy.

Get the Mushroom “Calamari” with Spicy Marinara recipe.

Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, these falafel are baked, not fried, for less mess. Chickpea flour is your new best friend in this gluten-free app.

Get the Herby Baked Falafel Bites with Spicy Mint Tahini Dip recipe.

If you ask us, you're not truly celebrating the Festival of Lights without as many crispy batches of latkes as possible. Make these miniature if you're looking for a bite-size app, but trust us—no one will turn down the full-size ones before the meal.

Get the Classic Latkes recipe.

After roasting, the exterior petals can be pulled off, and you can use your teeth to scrape out the delicious, tender insides. We think our simple recipe for Old Bay mayo really complements the artichoke’s lemon-herbal flavor profile, but feel free to swap in everything from tahini sauce to ketchup if you prefer.

Get the Roasted Artichokes recipe.

This vegan version is so good it's hard to decipher from regular queso dip. Made with cashews in place of cheese, it's awesome for serving alongside or right before a meat-heavy Hanukkah meal.

Get the Chipotle Vegan Queso recipe.

These particular pecans are our #1: SUPER-spiced, crunchy, sweet, and salty. They're great eaten by the handful, as an accompaniment to a cheese board, or even sprinkled over baked brie.

Get the Spiced Candied Pecans recipe.

Our love for crescent roll recipes is no secret. Why make dough from scratch when everyone loves the canned stuff?! These are a fan favorite every holiday. They always disappear within minutes, probably because the combo of salty, creamy brie, sweet-tart cranberry sauce, and crunchy pecans is PERFECT.

Get the Cranberry Brie Bites recipe.

Quicker to make and easier to eat than Buffalo chicken wings, this kosher-friendly, plant-based version swaps chicken for snackable triangles of tempeh to mimic the crowd-pleasing appetizer.

Get the Tempeh Buffalo “Wings” recipe.

Skordalia is a creamy, garlicky Greek dip we love to serve at parties. Made from potatoes and walnuts, this dip is smooth and creamy and always a surprise hit. Serve it with toasted pita or veggies for a new Hanukkah favorite!

Get the Skordalia recipe.

Arancini are basically the more sophisticated and cooler cousins of mozzarella sticks. The Italian dish is prepared by forming cooled risotto into balls, filling them with some sort of filling (typically cheesy!), then breading and deep frying them into golden, crispy perfection. 😍

Get the Arancini recipe.

Take everything bagel seasoning from breakfast to appetizer with this simple dip. We like this served with bagel chips (ofc), but it's also great with pretzels, potato chips, or veggies.

Get the Everything Bagel Dip recipe.

This recipe includes options classic potato & onion knishes, spanakopita-style knishes, and samosa-style knishes. The simple potato filling is ripe for riffing—feel free to invent your own!

Get the Potato Knish recipe.

Much like our Parmesan cauliflower bites, these little guys have just enough crunch and flavor to keep us going. Craving salt and umami but avoiding dairy? These sticky-spicy bites will save the day.

Get the Honey-Garlic Cauliflower recipe.