Starter

Whatever else you set out, great smoked salmon will always draw a crowd. And like any good leading actor, it works well with all of the supporting players, from horseradish cream to egg salad.

Add a little color to the Festival of Lights with zucchini pancakes that shine green. Lighter than potato latkes, they're the Mediterranean cousins who've traveled north to visit family in eastern Europe.

Test kitchen director Ruth Cousineau, who developed these recipes, says, "For a big dinner, you must include soup. Just don’t make it heavy." Here, she's created a chicken broth infused with the aroma of ginger and cardamom. Petite savory flans, studded with tender chives, lend a light creaminess to each mouthful.

To balance the red-wine vinegar and capers in this blend of smoky eggplant and red peppers, anchovies perfume the relish with a deep, savory note. Though this is a natural accompaniment to the zucchini latkes, it also makes a lively option for the potato ones.

This homey soup—a piquant start to a satisfying Mexican-style dinner of tacos or enchiladas, or a main dish when paired with a grilled cheese sandwich and a salad—gets its fire from a chopped jalapeño.

In this marriage of give and take, shallot-dill butter makes jumbo shrimp taste as sweet as langoustines. In return, the shrimp impart their juices to the butter as they bake, creating a silky sauce. With toasted brioche in hand, you’ll want to sop up every last drop.

Chicken soup is an automatic crowd-pleaser, but this Mexican-inspired tortilla soup does the classic one better. Homemade broth is key here, providing a base for brown rice, black beans, and chunks of sweet potato. Cooling pieces of avocado play off of a warm, earthy undercurrent of chipotle chiles.

Every family has its own (ahem, best) version of these savory potato pancakes. We’re offering you a classic formula, though not everyone drains the potato mixture before frying—we find this prevents the latkes from absorbing too much oil and allows them to crisp into golden disks. Maybe this will become the new family favorite.

Dau Hu Rang Muoi Luke Nguyen: I enjoy the simplicity and texture of this dish—it's like a vegetarian's version of salt and pepper squid.

Spice up winter nights with this variation on a popular bar snack. In our version, the cream cheese is frozen and grated and the jalapeños are diced and folded into the batter to create a chunky, spicy fritter.

If fresh peas are out of season, look for high-quality frozen brands such as Cascadian Farm.

In order to be kosher when served with meat, the risotto in these cakes is dairy-free. It gets its creaminess exclusively from the starchy rice, so it's important to cook it slowly, stirring continuously, to release as much starch as possible. If you don't need to avoid dairy, you could replace half the vegetable oil with melted unsalted butter and stir in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese with the mushrooms and thyme for extra flavor.

This simple salad, with its lemony dressing and bitter greens, is a nice match for the fried latkes.

The tiniest latkes on the menu, these are flavored with creamy cauliflower and spicy Aleppo pepper (a Syrian seasoning). Serve them with the aioli or just sprinkle them with za'atar.

A vegetarian spin on rillettes, the rich, creamy pàté traditionally made with duck or pork.

Chalupa is the Spanish word for "boat" and refers to the shape of the fried tortilla dough that serves as the base for these appetizers. In this version, the dough is baked in mini muffin cups and filled with chorizo, avocado, and salsa.