My sister-in-law showed up with these last Christmas and now everyone expects her to bring them to every single gathering.

You can change the character of these bites just by swapping the cheese and jam. For something more savory, use herbed goat cheese or Boursin and a spoonful of caramelized onion jam or red pepper jelly. For a dessert-leaning version, use cream cheese with apricot or cherry preserves and dust lightly with powdered sugar after baking. If you like nuts, press a pecan half or a few chopped walnuts into the top of the jam before baking for extra texture. To make them more bite-sized for cocktail parties, cut the puff pastry into 30–32 smaller squares and reduce the cheese and jam amounts slightly on each piece. Food safety tips: keep the puff pastry cold until you’re ready to bake; if it warms up too much, return it to the refrigerator so the butter doesn’t melt before it hits the oven. Because these bites contain dairy, don’t leave them at room temperature for more than 2 hours during a party—after that, refrigerate any leftovers and rewarm briefly in a 350°F (175°C) oven until crisp again. Always use a glass baking dish that’s rated as oven-safe, and avoid placing hot glass directly on a cold or wet surface to prevent thermal shock and cracking.