25 Appetizer Recipes & Tips for Your Next Socially Distanced Get-Together

Meatballs are the perfect appetizer recipes. They’re hearty, can be healthy (think about using turkey or chicken instead of beef or pork), and are easily picked up with toothpicks. Anything on a toothpick means low germ-sharing, so meatballs are a win-win. We think a Buffalo-style is a cool new take on a classic. So check out the recipe here and pick up a bottle of the other classic, The Original Anchor Bar wing sauce below. You’ll need it and everyone will love it.

Seriously, who doesn’t like pizza? Whip up homemade dough with this recipe, throw them in the oven (bite-size or full personal pizza size) with some sauce and cheese, and it’s sure to please the group.

For friends who are gluten free, check out the pizza dough mix below. They’ll love that you thought of them too.

Sliders make great appetizer recipes because they’re filling, but small enough you can have plenty of other food too. This copycat White Castle burger recipe is delicious, and will surely go fast. But for those watching their meat intake or strictly eat plant-based, pick up a few Impossible Burgers below. They won’t know the meat is missing and will get to enjoy the party food just the same.

Apples, grapes, strawberries, pineapples, kiwis, and melons all make great fruit additions to delicious, healthy, and crowd pleasing fruit kebabs. If you’re looking for a fruit appetizer recipe that also comes with a fruit dip, check this one out. Just make sure you have plenty of skewers – you’re gonna need them!

Forget reaching all over the veggie platter choosing favorites then dipping them into the center, shared, dip. These adorable little veggie cups are individual servings of healthy favorites, with a cool dip in the bottom for which sticks of veggies are, well stuck into. One of the most popular appetizer recipes, this is an adorable way to serve Crudité, but also totally post-COVID pratical way too.

These edible party cups can hold anything. They’re an entertainer’s secret of ease. Perfect for savory or sweet appetizers like these Spinach Dip Bites, always having them on hand means whipping up great apps on the fly. For social distant socializing, they’re perfect to keep from double-dipping in regular spinach dip too!

Pigs in a blanket are nothing new. But there’s a reason – people just love these little bites! Every person who takes these to a party brings home an empty plate. And it’s so simple to make them as most appetizer recipes just call for essentially cocktail sausages and crescent rolls. Make them extra special by using a Pigs in a Blanket silicon baking pan. Adorbs!

This one doesn’t necessarily need a recipe, but it’s about how it’s served. Placing the popcorn in individual (and may we say adorable) bags means less contamination and contact with other’s foods. Plus, who can turn down a bag of delicious popcorn? Get the bags below, and while you do, pick up a few popcorn flavors like Kettle Corn Flavoring too for that extra special surprise.

Shrimp? Check. Cocktail sauce? Check. Lemon? Check. Ok, but how to serve it for a post-COVID party?

A classic Shrimp Cocktail looks amazing in a plastic martini glass. Pour a spoonful or two of cocktail sauce in the bottom, display the peeled shrimp around the glass, tails up, and push the lemon into the rim. It’s handy and looks sophisticated. Grab the plastic martini glasses below.

These Caprese Salad Skewers from The Food Charlatan are super easy to make, but always a crowd-pleaser. The balsamic reduction takes these otherwise already great tasting salads on a stick and turns it into something delectable. The contrasting colors look great too. Although it’s pretty easy to heat balsamic vinegar for an extended period of time to make a reduction, we recommend buying it like this to make the process that much more simple.

Charcuterie boards are great, but they also means lots of hands picking over the beautiful meats and cheeses. Creating antipasto skewers using this recipe is an easy and safer way to get around that. But for heavy meats and hard cheeses, as well as larger veggies and fruits, use thicker and sturdier skewer sticks like the ones linked below.

Bruschetta is up there with one of the easiest appetizer recipes. Just toast small slices of baguette with some olive oil and top them with a delectable mix of tomato and herbs like those in this recipe. You just can’t easier than that. That is unless you buy premade bruschetta topping like these. Easy peasy!

Want to impress party guests with appetizer recipes that look as good as they taste? How about pinwheels? They’re easy, can be done in many different ways and they look impressive. This Creamy Spinach Pinwheel recipe is sure to go fast. Just make sure you have plenty of appetizer napkins to go around! Check out the link below to stock up.

Appetizers don’t need to mean unhealthy. We love a good veggie appetizer that doesn’t require frying and is easy to grab and go. These Cucumber and Cream Cheese Roll-Ups are easy to make, tasty, filling, and pretty healthy. Just roll up and skewer with a cocktail stick. These cocktail sticks linked below are super adorable, and come in a sparkle version!

Like mini pies, these egg, cheese, and veggie and/or meat-filled appetizers are so delicious, everyone will keep coming back for more. Make them any way you like, but these quiche appetizer recipes might have something you’re looking for. Serve them up in these silicone quiche molds for easy cleanup – or make frittatas for a gluten-free solution.

Appetizer recipes that look super fancy, but are incredibly easy are the best. What’s easier than canned tomato soup (or from scratch if you have an extra 20 min) in a small shooter cup? Pair it with a grilled cheese triangle and it’s the cutest! Kids and adults will feel special eating this.

Mini Potato Party Bites are the appetizer that is perfect for Super Bowl, but also for the rest of the year. Looking for a way to serve them? Place them on a tri-level serving tray linked below, perfect for almost any individual appetizer.

Dessert first? Ok, well maybe not an appetizer per-se, having individual desserts are just as important as the apps. Make sure that whatever you serve, like ice cream, has its own cup and spoon per person. We love these adorable kraft or white paper cups. Decorate the cups as you’d like (stickers, labels) and pre-scoop the ice cream BEFORE the party so they’re ready to go when it’s time to dive in!

Are you a southern food lover? Or maybe want to bring something unique to the party? Shrimp & Grits Appetizers take the typical entree dish and make it a single serving. Want to get even more creative? Serve them in adorable one-bite spoons like the disposable ones below. Super fun!

If everything about that title sounds delicious, check out the recipe here. Not only is it one of the many appetizer recipes on this list that are incredibly easy, but it’s a one-way ticket to Flavor Town. Drizzle with a little of this Balsamic Reduction and you’ll have the perfect bite.

Skip the cutlery all together and go with bite-size food in an edible cup. Wonton paper makes a great baked cup to hold so many different and delicious appetizer recipes. How about avocado and smoked salmon dished up in a cute Wonton cup? Pick up some Rice Paper Wrappers here:

Yes, sure you can buy the frozen and save plenty of time and effort, but making them homemade with this tried and true recipe is extra special. Serve them up on these modern rectangle paper plates (link below), with the perfect amount of room for a cup of marinara sauce to complete the dish.

Not usually seen at parties, large soft pretzels would be really cool and loved by both kids and adults alike. Serve up with cups of hot, melted cheese sauce, or a trio of mustards, and it’ll sure be a crowd pleaser. Just make sure you use pretzel salt.

Yes, salad is totally acceptable at a socially-distant get-together. Especially if it’s refreshing, crunchy, and is easy to eat like this Favorite Quinoa Salad. But leave the large bowls at home and dish them out individually before the party starts. These cute kraft brown takeout containers are perfect.

Nothing brings people together more than fried chicken. Fry up a large batch of this crispy buttermilk fried chicken, and everyone will be coming back for more. Wrap them up in newspaper cones for easy, recyclable eating – plus they look really cool too!