Party Dishes: Fast Hors d'Oeuvres

Grace Parisi makes brilliant use of throw-away potato peels: She deep-fries them until they’re crispy, then sprinkles them with Parmesan. An utterly addictive snack, they’re great with cocktails, beer or wine.

Ready in just 10 minutes, warm olives accentuate their marinade's lemony flavor.

Crispy, briny and juicy, these ingenious mussels are a simple and unexpected fall dish; they’re just as delicious roasted or grilled. Threading the shelled mussels onto skewers makes them easier to handle.

Vietnamese summer rolls are often filled with chicken or shrimp, but Grace Parisi makes hers with roast beef from the deli.

The mousse can be refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Rocca’s consulting pastry chef, Ruth-Anne Adams, and her husband, Tom Fosnot, the restaurant’s chef, sampled many breads while traveling through Liguria, Italy. A simple, sunflower seed–flecked cracker from the town of Chiavari was their favorite, and back at Rocca, they re-created it as a snack.

Drizzling a high quality olive oil over this dip will add depth and complexity, but stick with a less-expensive supermarket brand when sautéing the garlic and herbs. Any canned white beans can be used in place of the cannellini.

Broiling ricotta intensifies its creaminess: It’s ideal with both sweet and savory toppings. Here, Maria Helm Sinskey serves it on garlic toasts garnished with olives and a tangy sun-dried-tomato relish.

After baking flaky squares of puff pastry, Melissa Rubel tops them with sweet fig preserves and pungent blue cheese.