24 Fast French Appetizers to Close Out the Olympics
Go for gold at your Olympic watching party with these iconic French appetizers and snacks.
As the 2024 Paris Olympics wrap up, all those medals and epic moments make us want to host an Olympic party and celebrate the closing ceremony in style. These French appetizer recipes are an exercise in effortless snacking, Paris-style, from shareable classics like light and airy gougères to cozy baked Brie. Best of all, they don’t tie you down to the kitchen, so you can enjoy the ceremonies and fun. Read on for more recipes that your guests will love as we bid adieu to Paris and these memorable Olympic games.
Chicken Liver Pâté
Diana Chistruga
Jacques Pépin's recipe for chicken liver pâté is classic and elegant. Best of all, it comes together in just minutes. The chicken livers are briefly simmered in water with aromatics before they're strained and blended with butter in a food processor. Smooth, inexpensive, and simple to make — it's perfect with a cocktail or glass of wine before a meal.
Roasted Tomato Pissaladière
Christopher Testani / Food Styling by Victoria Granof / Prop Styling by Thom Driver
What’s not to love about pissaladière? This popular Provençal pastry is commonly topped with caramelized onions, olives, and anchovies. To top her version, Martha Holmberg roasts canned whole peeled tomatoes until slightly dehydrated, giving them a pleasantly chewy texture and concentrated flavor.
Caviar-Topped Deviled Eggs
For these deviled eggs, chef Evan Babb channels his mother's and grandmother's classic recipes for the filling, which gets a briny kick from a splash of olive juice.
Croque Monsieur
Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling Debbie Wee
The deliciousness of the Croque Monsieur knows no bounds — there's really no wrong time of day to indulge. The national sandwich of France typically features ham, Gruyère, and a rich Mornay sauce. It's enjoyed for lunch or as a bar snack, but it also makes a fine brunch option. You'll need a knife and fork for this decadent hot bistro sandwich.
Zucchini-and-Pepper Gratin with Herbs and Cheese
Daniel Humm uses pleasantly salty Sbrinz cheese to top a gratin made with a ratatouille-like mix of sautéed zucchini strips, bell peppers and tomato. Parmigiano-Reggiano, another hard, aged, cow's milk cheese, is a fine substitute.
Baked Brie with Spiced Pears and Cherries
For this rich appetizer, creamy Brie is topped with a spiced fruit-and-nut mixture and encased in a buttery, crisp robe of golden brown puff pastry. You can use a double-cream Brie for extra-gooey results, and swap in other fruit and nuts as desired — apples, persimmons, plums, or pawpaws would also be delicious here.
Pan Bagnat (Niçoise Salad Sandwich)
Pan bagnat is sold at nearly every outdoor market in Nice, France, as well as at bakeries and restaurants. For this version, tuna is pureed with red wine vinegar, olive oil, anchovies, and garlic to form a unique sandwich spread inspired by tonnato sauce.
Fromage Fort
Jacques Pépin makes his fromage fort from leftover cheese pieces mixed with white wine, garlic, and herbs. You can serve it chilled or at room temperature as a spread with crackers or vegetables, or smear it on slices of bread and bake or broil it. Feel free to experiment by using different cheese combinations and adding herbs, spices, and other aromatics.
Oysters on the Half Shell with Rosé Mignonette
Great oysters are delicious "naked," as Island Creek founder Skip Bennett says, but sometimes chef Jeremy Sewall dresses them up with a mignonette (vinegar sauce) like this one, made with sparkling rosé.
Socca with Zucchini and Olives
Socca, also called farinata in Liguria, is a tender pancake made from chickpea flour popular in the South of France. Unlike the versions in Nice, which are cooked in copper pans, this one is baked in a cast-iron skillet before it is topped with a summery marinated squash salad.
French Onion Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Brie Goldman / Food Styling by Annie Prost / Prop Styling by Addelyn Evans
If your favorite part of French onion soup is the gooey, cheesy crouton on top, this decadent grilled cheese is made for you. Inspired by the classic soup, former F&W food editor Grace Parisi makes this sandwich with sweet caramelized onions and nutty, savory Gruyère cheese.
Gougères with Smoked Salmon, Caviar and Prosciutto
Frederick Hardy II / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Christina Brockman
These gougères are made with grated Gruyère cheese and thyme leaves, but you can swap in another grated hard cheese, or use spices and other herbs. We topped these with slivers of prosciutto and smoked salmon and dollops of caviar and crème fraîche, but any toppings will do. Or, simply eat them plain — they shine on their own.
Mushroom Toasts with Délice de Bourgogne
Kristen Kish uses triple créme cheese, an ultra-rich version of Brie, on these toasts with pan-roasted mushrooms and herbs for this elevated appetizer.
Steak Tartare with Smoked Oyster Aïoli
Steak tartare is a beloved dish at French bistros in every major city, where countless yolk-anointed mounds of beef and finely diced pickles are churned out every day. This no-cook recipe from 2018 F&W Best New Chef Kate Williams is totally doable at home (and worth the effort!).
Four-Layer Caviar Dip
Layers of creamy egg salad, crisp red onion, herbed cream cheese, and salty, briney caviar come together in a beautiful molded dip that serves up an entire caviar platter in one dish.
French Onion Baked Brie
Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Amelia Rampe
If that first spoonful of French onion soup — with toasted bread, melted cheese, and savory caramelized onions — is your favorite, then you’ll love this appetizer, which is a decadent mash-up of French onion soup and baked Brie. Smear the cheesy snack on slices of toasted baguette.
Speedy Ratatouille with Goat Cheese
In traditional ratatouille, vegetables simmer together until they're falling-apart tender. Here, Melissa Clark cooks them quickly in batches, so they retain their flavor and texture.
Herb-Roasted Olives
If you need an easy nosh for a party, Sally Sampson's herb-roasted olives are an elegant, simple hors d'oeuvre that everyone will appreciate for snacking.
Brandade de Morue au Gratin (Whipped Salt Cod Gratin)
The Provençal dish known as brandade de morue is a great example of how to elevate modest ingredients like salt cod and potatoes—in this case, by whipping them with milk, olive oil, and garlic until luxuriously silky. Jacques Pépin's extra step of serving the dish au gratin (browned, with cheese on top) makes it even more delicious.
Alain Ducasse's Gougères
Diana Chistruga
Gougères are made from the classic French pastry pâte à choux. On the sweet front, choux pastry is used to make éclairs and profiteroles, aka cream puffs; for chef Alain Ducasse's savory gougères, the dough is enriched with Gruyère and pepper. Preparing these cheesy little morsels will make you feel like a culinary magician. Upon baking, the silky, dense dough transforms into something else entirely — light, ethereal puffs with crisp exteriors that are heavenly to munch on while sipping wine.
Camembert Baked in the Box
It doesn't get any easier than an appetizer that bakes in the box it comes in. Eric Ripert offers this simple, easy appetizer with crackers and apple slices. Pro tip: Be sure to buy Camembert in a box that’s stapled, not glued, so it holds up in the oven.
Black Olive Tapenade with Figs and Mint
What makes this tapenade special is Jacques Pépin's clever trick of using oil- and brine-cured olives, along with the surprise of sweet, fresh and tangy notes from the dried figs, mint and capers.
Salmon Rillettes
While training at the Los Angeles Culinary Institute, Anna Zepaltas learned that French cooking doesn’t have to be intimidating or fussy. For her rillettes, inspired by a similar dish at Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bistro in the Napa town of Yountville, Zepaltas blends fresh salmon and butter with hot-smoked salmon to give the rich spread extra flavor.
Warm Camembert with Wild Mushroom Fricassee
Daniel Boulud makes this oozy appetizer with Vacherin Mont-d'Or, a creamy cheese sold at top cheese shops. A Camembert is as rich and runny as Vacherin Mont-d'Or, but much easier to find.
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