Throw your own holiday party: 21 canape recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

Guests will be impressed when you tell them this is homemade ricotta.  (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

Everyone will enjoy these little morsels.  (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

This will help add some multi-cultural flair to the party.  (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

Impress your guests with the fancy name of this dish -- a pizza with thicker dough.  (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

This is a favorite on the menu at Pizzeria Mozza, so you can be pretty sure your guests will enjoy it too.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Your guests are going to have to remove the gloves for this one. Recipe: Thai peanut chicken wings

These sound hoity toity, and they’re easy to pass. Perfect for a party.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Kids will have a field day using these for sword play.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

It’s a given: These should be on the menu.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

This is a winning combo.  (Kevin P. Casey / Los Angeles Times)

Grated cheese is mixed into a choux paste for these airy beignets.  (Stephen Osman / Los Angeles Times)

You slow cook pork for hours to get a rich, buttery texture.  (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

C’mon. Everyone loves pizza. This is super-thin-crust pizza.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

This is easy to whip up for guests.  (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Flaky layers add to the richness of this little bite.  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

No substitutions: You really need to use Dungeness crab for this recipe.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Grilled, slightly charred grape leaves lend spice and crunch to the smooth, melting feta inside.  (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

Tomato concasse is the secret to this dish, which comes to us from celebrated chef Joël Robuchon.  (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

Spicy mac ‘n’ cheese as an appetizer? Oh, yes.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)