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53 Christmas Dinner Ideas for an Elegant Holiday Meal
If you're searching for an elegant Christmas dinner menu, you've come to the right place. We rounded up some of our merriest, crowd-pleasing dinner ideas—from holiday cocktails and easy appetizers to main dishes and festive desserts—that your guests won't forget.
We've included the holiday party classics, like glazed ham, roast beef, and prosciutto-wrapped pears, as well as a few fresh takes on comfort foods, including caramelized onion and apple tarts, cider-roasted root veggies, and lots more. Don't forget merry desserts and drinks to keep the cheer going all night long. Pick out your favorite Christmas dinner recipes to create the holiday meal of your dreams.
This Sweet-and-Spicy Mulled Wine Will Warm You Up in Any Weather
A classic mulled wine is a staple of holiday parties in cold climates, but the result can often be sticky sweet. Thanks to a hearty dose of black peppercorns and spicy fresh ginger, this mulled wine recipe delivers a balanced and unique cocktail.
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Caramelized Onion and Apple Tart
These puff pastry bites combine tart apples with caramelized onions for a unique fall flavor that's sure to please. Bake a few tarts for a dinner-party appetizer or a book club snack—or make one for a light meal served alongside a kale or mixed green salad.
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Honey-Ginger Ham
Try a twist on a Coca-Cola glazed ham with ginger ale instead—plus honey, crystallized ginger, fresh rosemary, and orange zest. The gorgeous results are crispy-skinned, sweet, and bright with a subtle spicy kick. The ham serves 12, so it's ideal for entertaining or special-occasion meals.
VIEW RECIPE Roasted Rhubarb Salad With Goat Cheese and Pistachios
Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Pecans
Looking for the perfect side dish? Look no further than this Brussels sprouts with pecans and brown sugar recipe.
VIEW RECIPE Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes
What feast is complete without a hearty side of mashed potatoes? This easy potato dish is flavored with sour cream and scallions to elevate it without getting overly fancy or complicated.
VIEW RECIPE Pumpkin Bread Trifle With Pepita Streusel
We said it: This is the official dessert of fall. You’ll start by baking a simple loaf of pumpkin bread. Then, bake off a crumbly and sweet streusel made with flour, sugar, butter, pumpkin pie spice, and pepitas for some delightful crunch. The glue that holds this easy trifle together is sweetened cream cheese and fluffy whipped cream, which make cloud-like layers between pieces of spongey pumpkin bread and sprinklings of streusel. If you don’t have a trifle dish, use a large bowl or glass jars for individual servings.
VIEW RECIPE Slow-Cooker Gingerbread Hot Chocolate
What’s better than a cup of steaming spiced hot cocoa? One that’s ready and waiting for you after a long afternoon of sledding or skiing. We slow-cooked a batch of subtly sweet cocoa sweetened with both powdered sugar (because it melts evenly) and molasses (for a rich base note). Traditional gingerbread spices like cinnamon, ginger, and cloves make it smell like you’ve been baking all day when you’ve actually been out playing in the snow. If you have cheesecloth, bundle the spices inside of a square and secure it with kitchen twine. That way you won’t have to strain. Here’s an idea: use any leftover hot cocoa as a milk substitute in your morning coffee.
VIEW RECIPE Beer Cheese Fondue
Gooey melted cheese with a bitter kick is the comfort food of your dreams.
VIEW RECIPE Bacon-Wrapped Pork Loin With Cherries
Our Bacon-Wrapped Pork Loin is fancy enough for a weekend dinner party but (surprisingly) easy enough for a weeknight supper. You’ll spend 15 minutes prepping the pork loin before roasting it in the oven for nearly an hour. Aside from occasionally glazing the bacon-wrapped meat with sweet baste of currant jelly and red wine vinegar, you’re work is almost entirely done. The recipe yields perfectly cooked, moist pork, wrapped in crispy bacon with a sweet-and-salty layer of dried cherries, parsley, and mustard in between. Serve it with a side of mashed potatoes for some serious comfort food; or put it next to a green salad for a lighter meal.
VIEW RECIPE Beet-Radicchio Salad
There's so much to be excited about in this salad. A maple dressing spiked with miso for a hit of rich, savory umami dresses tender, peppery leaves of arugula and firm, bitter leaves of radicchio. The color contrast is striking with the soft green of arugula, hints of pink and purple in the radicchio, psychedelic blood orange, and the deep garnet red of beets. Pre-cooked beets are a wonderful kitchen shortcut, especially for salads like this one. Looking for even more shortcuts? Shop for already-shaved parmesan cheese.
VIEW RECIPE Maple Roasted Vegetables
Thanks to a drizzle of maple syrup, Brussels sprouts and carrots are beautifully caramelized in the oven. Apply this treatment to any roasted vegetable: The maple-olive-oil mixture is also delicious when drizzled over squash, sweet potatoes, or green beans. If you stick with Brussels sprouts and carrots, we recommend serving this side with a hefty pork chop and chilled white wine.
VIEW RECIPE Horseradish Potato Gratin
This preparation of au gratin potatoes eschews cheese in favor of spicy horseradish. Trust us—you won’t miss the extra dairy (or calories). And better yet? Set aside just 10 minutes to chop and prep, then let the oven do the rest of the work.
VIEW RECIPE Croissant and Chocolate Bread Pudding
This decadent chocolate bread pudding couldn't be easier: Just combine all the ingredients and bake for 30 minutes.
VIEW RECIPE Boozy Apple Cider Slushie
Some fall seasons can be especially warm, right? Or are we just making excuses to drink this spiked apple cider slushie? Either way, this frozen cocktail is a seasonal stunner. You make a boozy granita using a mixture of bourbon, apple cider, and a super easy spiced brown-sugar syrup. Then you freeze and scrape, freeze and scrape until you reach, er, "slushie" texture (you know what we mean). It's pretty garnished with a slice of apple but cinnamon sticks would add another fragrant dimension. Cheers to the season!
VIEW RECIPE Pears With Blue Cheese and Prosciutto
Striped Bass With Shallot Vinaigrette
This whole-meal striped bass recipe checks off all the nutritional boxes. Coming in at just 307 calories, the preparation offers up 34 grams of protein and a side of spinach, all ready in just half an hour. If you tend to cook salmon or shrimp at home, widen the net (har, har) a little with striped bass, a sustainable seafood choice available wild and farmed. Halibut’s a great substitution, too, if you can’t find bass at your local market. For this all-in-one supper, you’ll sauté shallots and make a quick vinaigrette before cooking the striped bass and spinach and plating it altogether.
VIEW RECIPE Brussels Sprouts Salad
This is the kind of salad to commit to memory since it's guaranteed to make entertaining a breeze. It's a stunner for hosting in fall or winter, and perfect for the Thanksgiving table or Christmas dinner. Thinly sliced Brussels sprouts mingle with colorful strips of bitter radicchio, pecans and dried cranberries contribute nuttiness and sweetness, and a tart apple cider vinegar dressing brings it home. Light shavings of aged provolone offer sharp, salty notes throughout, but Parmiggiano-Reggiano or even an extra-sharp cheddar will work perfectly, too. For feathery cheese shavings use a vegetable peeler and shave strips of cheese right off a wedge. Prep the vegetables two days in advance; just be sure to hold the cheese and dressing until right before serving.
VIEW RECIPE Broccoli and Gruyère Gratin
Let's start with the basics: Gruyère is a hard Swiss cheese made in Gruyères, the French part of Switzerland (although there's also a version made in France, distinguished as "French Gruyère"). Touted as the most popular Swiss cheese in Switzerland, as well as in most of Europe, Gruyère has a distinctive but not overpowering taste, making it well suited for baking. You'll find it featured in quiche, fondue, French onion soup, and chicken or veal cordon bleu.
VIEW RECIPE Ginger Apple Tarte Tatin
Don’t let the beauty of a tarte Tatin intimidate you. It’s easier to make than it looks, especially when you rely on store-bought puff pastry. Traditionally, this French upside-down apple tart is made by covering the bottom of a baking dish with butter and sugar to caramelize around apples held together by a flaky pastry crust. In this recipe that’s perfect for Thanksgiving or any holiday, you'll infuse caramel with fresh ginger. Then drape thawed puff pastry on top and let it turn flaky and golden in the oven. Flip the entire thing over for the big reveal table-side, and expect oohs and ahs.
VIEW RECIPE Ponche Crema, a Christmas Cocktail From Venezuela, Is About to Be Your Favorite Holiday Drink
From Dutch advocaat to Puerto Rican coquito, almost every country seems to have its own version of eggnog. In Venezuela, this classic holiday drink is known as ponche crema, and it’s made with ingredients like sweetened condensed milk, cinnamon, and dark rum.
VIEW RECIPE Goat Cheese Spread Recipe
Two packages of soft goat cheese are mixed together with fresh, chopped herbs and black pepper to create this simple, earthy spread. Use any variation of fresh herbs you love, like chives, tarragon, flat-leaf parsley, or dill. Experiment with combinations until you've found your signature spread, and serve it alongside crackers.
VIEW RECIPE Roast Beef and Onions
Whether it's dinner with the fam or a holiday extravaganza, a roast is always the star of the show. Here's a tip for guaranteeing yours rave reviews: The day before, season your roast and wrap it up tight, letting the salt work its magic overnight. The day of, leave it uncovered in the fridge for an hour or two to let the surface dry out. You'll end up with a beautifully browned crust that'll wow everyone at the table.
VIEW RECIPE Spiced Carrot Salad
Reminiscent of a Moroccan carrot salad, this shredded carrot salad gets seasoned with a warm garlicky, cumin-spiced oil with a spicy kick. The citrus-plumped raisins add bursts of sweetness throughout.
VIEW RECIPE Collard Greens With Bacon
Butternut Squash Bake With Wild Rice
This wild rice and butternut squash bake is a hearty side dish with all the elements of a crowd favorite: creamy, satisfying, and rich. Serve it as a gluten-free stuffing option, vegetarian main, or a bonus side dish.
VIEW RECIPE Easy Ice Cream Cake
The secret to this astonishingly simple four-ingredient dessert? Using ice cream sandwiches to build your cake.
VIEW RECIPE Pomegranate Royale Champagne Cocktail
You can make a batch of this festive-hued cocktail with either elderflower liqueur or Chambord, depending on what you have handy (and what you like).
VIEW RECIPE Caprese Skewers With Balsamic Glaze
Is there anything more delicious than the simple ingredients of a Caprese appetizer? The richness of mozzarella paired with juicy ripe tomatoes and fresh basil is perhaps the best combination of flavors ever.
VIEW RECIPE Raspberry-Maple-Glazed Pork Tenderloin
It's hard to improve on perfectly grilled pork tenderloin, but this pepper-infused raspberry glaze manages to do it. You'll baste the meat with the maple-and-jam sauce as it cooks until the glaze is shiny and caramelized. Just enough vinegar and Worcestershire sauce balance out the sweet raspberries and syrup, bringing welcome acidity and savory depth.
VIEW RECIPE Garlicky Green Beans With Pine Nuts
Give standard green beans a flavorful upgrade by adding garlic and tossing with toasted pine nuts.
VIEW RECIPE Honey-Butter Creamed Corn
This side is a winner for lovers of savory-sweet combos. Buttery onions and corn combine with honey and thyme, and did you see the heavy cream in there? It’s the perfect comforting dish to spoon alongside seared steak and blanched green beans, or roasted chicken and juicy salt-sprinkled tomatoes. Taking the time to purée some of the corn gives this dish its generous body, while the thyme and honey draw out the corn’s sweetness.
VIEW RECIPE Gingersnap Cherry Cheesecake
Spiced Hot Toddy Recipe
A classic hot toddy consists of nothing more than whiskey, sugar, hot water, and perhaps a cinnamon stick for stirring. But if you're looking for something spicier, this hot toddy recipe is just the ticket. This warm whiskey drink is packed with fragrant baking spices and sweet honey draws the flavor of the spices into an infused simple syrup.
VIEW RECIPE Red Pepper Walnut Knots
These gorgeous appetizers only look like they came from the hottest bakery in town. The secret is two supermarket shortcuts: puff pastry and jarred roasted red peppers.
VIEW RECIPE Smoky Maple Turkey
Just when you think you've learned all the tips and tricks to make a succulent Thanksgiving turkey, a surprising one appears. In this recipe, you'll start by coating the turkey in a smoky maple butter that goes under the skin for a pop of flavor and then on top for a mouth-watering golden color. After the bird roasts, this beauty can be served on the spot—after it rests, of course, to ensure that the turkey's juices settle in. But this clever reheating technique from Aimée Wimbush-Bourque, author of Brown Eggs and Jam Jars, will allow you to roast the turkey a day in advance. Simply store the cooked, carved turkey in iceberg lettuce leaves drizzled with a little stock, and then reheat in the oven. The lettuce keeps the meat tender and juicy, and you'll be less stressed on Turkey Day.
VIEW RECIPE Rosemary-Roasted Golden Beets and Carrots
This recipe for roasted beets and carrots couldn't be easier: Just toss all the ingredients together on a baking sheet and roast until tender.
VIEW RECIPE These Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes Couldn't Be Easier
Butterscotch Bananas With Vanilla Ice Cream
Spiced Apple Kombucha Cocktail
Spiced rum is the secret to this delicious drink because it adds depth and flavor with just one ingredient. If you really want a stand-out cocktail, it's easy to make your own spiced rum. Simply combine a bottle of rum with whole spices such as cloves, cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, black peppercorns, and star anise (fresh ginger is also a great addition). Store it in a large jar with a tight-fitting lid and let steep for a few days, shaking daily. When the flavor is to your liking, strain and bottle it, then put it to use in cocktails such as this one.
VIEW RECIPE Cheesy Chile Pull-Apart Bread
Whoever invented pull-apart bread should be awarded a medal. The genius is in the cross-hatch slicing method, which allows you to tuck cheese and other fillings into every bite so that there’s no fighting over the good bits. Here, those “good bits” include a green chile and garlic butter, plus an exceptional amount of spicy pepper Jack cheese. Don’t be shy about getting the butter mixture and cheese all the way to the bottom of the cuts—it’s the key to getting a pull of cheese in every bite. Shopping tip: Avoid a sourdough loaf, which will amp up the chilies’ tanginess too much.
VIEW RECIPE Slow-Roasted Lamb Shoulder
This perfectly-tender lamb roast is paired with a sweet and slightly sour sauce, providing a welcomed acidic balance to the rich meat.
VIEW RECIPE Sauteed Tomatoes and Shallots
Macaroni and Cheese With Cauliflower
Can you think of a better way to sneak an entire head of cauliflower into a dish without compromising on richness and cozy factor? We can't either. Here, you'll stir in sharp cheddar, sour cream, mustard, and milk to create an ooey, gooey delight. Top with fresh, homemade breadcrumbs and bake. Plus, it's ready in less than an hour. It's a win-win.
VIEW RECIPE Vanilla Sweet Potatoes
A very aromatic twist on sweet potatoes (that perfectly pairs with a traditional turkey dinner) but also goes great with any weeknight dinner.
VIEW RECIPE Gooey Chocolate Caramel Tart
Rosemary Pecans
For this addictive recipe, pecans are mixed with melted butter, sugar, cayenne, and salt, before roastings. Once toasted, chopped fresh rosemary is tossed into the mix for an earthy, woodsy finish.
VIEW RECIPE Chocolate Bar Fondue
Use your imagination when choosing ingredients for dipping in this chocolate fondue—try pound cake, flavored marshmallows, graham crackers, or even pretzels.
VIEW RECIPE Pistachio Pudding
If you'd like some nutty nutrients along with your sugary dessert, this pistachio pudding is perfect for you. Pistachios are packed with fiber, protein, and antioxidants. And this easy pudding recipe is made entirely on the stovetop—no baking required.
VIEW RECIPE Plum Tart Recipe
This easy plum tart recipe uses only three ingredients, including store-bought puff pastry.
VIEW RECIPE Marshmallow and Chocolate Shortbread Slices
Can you say decadent and delicious three times fast? These shortbread slices are like a homemade candy bar, thanks to their crunchy cookie base, marshmallow filling, and chocolate coating. And though they are fancy looking, they are surprisingly easy to make. Almond meal and cocoa powder upgrade a standard shortbread dough, which are then topped with sweet-tart apricot preserves. These are followed by a fluffy filling made from cream cheese, whipping cream, and marshmallow fluff. Finally, each cookie is decked out with a melted milk chocolate coating and sliced almonds. Bring these out after dinner and have everyone dig in to this sweet wonderland.
VIEW RECIPE Everything Dinner Rolls
Shortcut alert: skip making dinner rolls from scratch this Thanksgiving and dress up store-bought rolls with everything seasoning. Begin with your favorite frozen dinner rolls, then simply brush the tops with honey butter for a gorgeous sheen and touch of sweetness. The garlicky and seedy everything seasoning will stick to the glossy glaze as the rolls finish in the oven. These flavorful buns will be devoured in record time. Pro tip: everything seasoning is a versatile gem of a blend to keep on hand. Make your own by mixing sesame seeds, dried garlic and onion, flaky sea salt or kosher salt, and poppy seeds.
VIEW RECIPE Citrus Spice Cranberry Sauce
There's something incredibly satisfying about making cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving or any meal. And for this short-cut recipe, you won't need to hunt down fresh berries (although you could!). Canned cranberry sauce does the trick. You'll then add the magic touch by infusing the sauce with spices and fresh oranges. Juicy orange segments are a welcome surprise to this year’s cranberry sauce. Pro tip: wrapping the cloves, star anise, and cinnamon in cheesecloth ensures no one accidentally gets a bite of the potent spices that flavor the sauce.
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