The barefoot contessa has a great recipe which i've made many times. Bruschetta with peppers and gorgonzola! incredible.

Depends on what you are serving for dinner. Antipasti, dates with herb goat cheese and red walnuts, seasoned sheep's milk ricotta antipasto on bruschetta (Andrew Carmellini), stuffed artichoke casserole is fantastic and hardly any work compared to the "real" stuffed artichokes, Gorgonzola figs wrapped in prosciutto are just a few things that we are enjoying this summer along with fresh tomato anything. Assorted fresh picked peppers, lightly grilled...the list goes on.

This is a lovely salad of arugula, fig and prosciutto from an old Gourmet mag:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fresh-Fig-Prosciutto-and-Arugula-Salad-with-Parmesan-Shavings-15180

Search no further tha your Food52 friends, check out this lovely morsel:
http://www.food52.com/recipes/11649_raw_fava_bean_crostini
Also, Gazpacho. Mangia!

Antipasti is always appreciated, and you can spend some time perseverating over meats, cheeses, olives, and all sorts of marinated vegetables. Your guests can pick and choose what they would like to place on their bread.

For something a little different, try a bagna cauda. Merrill posted a recipe a few months back and I also have one. It's a great accompiant to the summers bevy of beautiful veggies that are available right now. http://www.food52.com/recipes/11728_virgenes_bagna_cauda

My favorite is panzanella aka bread salad. Take stale Italian bread, break into chunks, and toss with fresh tomatoes, red onion, fresh oregano, capers and a simple homemade dressing of balsamic vinegar, lemon, salt and pepper. For a nice touch, add your own roasted peppers. The bread soaks up all the juices from the other ingredients. It's so perfect for summer.

Hahahaha, I was thinking a starter for bread....

I like to do a twist on bruschetta. Grill some bread...smear with goat cheese and then top with the following "topping".
Combine olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Then add thinly sliced roasted red peppers, capers, and parsley.

It's really fantastic.

Here's a great recipe for fried artichokes: http://www.food52.com/recipes/4445_heart_of_gold

Also: http://www.food52.com/recipes/5014_grilled_bread_with_thyme_pesto_and_preserved_lemon_cream

depends upon a starter for what? What are you planning for your main course?

Caponata is a lovely antipasto, or crostini with sautéed mushrooms.

Also, this octopus salad: http://www.food52.com/recipes/611_mediterranean_octopus_salad

These fried olives are delicious: http://www.food52.com/recipes/3169_olive_allascolana