Plan your Christmas dinner menu with these delicious holiday appetizers, entrées, side dishes and desserts. Includes a FREE printable Christmas menu template, cooking schedule and shopping list to help keep you organized!
Christmas is one of my absolute favorite holidays. I love the festive decorations, music, holiday cheer and especially the FOOD! Between all of Christmas breakfast ideas, holiday desserts, Christmas cookies or the big Christmas dinner, it’s a dream come true for a foodie like me.
I look forward to Christmas dinner every year. I love spending time in the kitchen with my family making all of our favorite holiday dishes. Those are some of my most cherished memories.
Below are the dishes that I’m planning to make for our Christmas dinner this year. I thought I would share them in case you need a little extra inspiration. These Christmas menu ideas are super easy, delicious and perfect for celebrating the holiday season with the ones you love!
Christmas Dinner Appetizers
We usually keep Christmas appetizers pretty light so that we don’t ruin our appetite before the big meal. All of these recipes can be made with less than 5 ingredients and are so simple to prep!
Christmas Tree Fruit Platter
Easy Christmas tree fruit platter made with fresh fruit and a pineapple star. A fun, holiday centerpiece that comes together in minutes.
This classic cheese ball is an easy crowd-pleasing appetizer made with cream cheese, green onions, spices and pecans. It’s creamy, savory and a must for any holiday party!
This Christmas charcuterie board is made with cured meats, cheeses, dips, fruits and nuts. It's easy holiday entertaining presented on a beautiful platter.
These slow cooker cranberry meatballs with jellied cranberry and chili sauce are so easy to make in the crockpot. The perfect 3-ingredient appetizer for any holiday party!
Thiseasy holiday punch is simple to make with cranberry juice, orange juice, pineapple juice and lemon-lime soda. A festive Christmas party drink the whole family can enjoy!
Restaurant-style bread dipping oilis made with a blend of dried spices, fresh herbs and olive oil. It's easy to make and never fails to impress when served with crusty bread.
This oven baked ham recipe is so easy to make and is great for beginners. You only need 5 simple ingredients and about 5 minutes to prep. It's the perfect dish for the holidays!
Easy cheesy potatoes are a classic recipe made with diced potatoes in a creamy cheese sauce. Topped with a buttery cornflake topping it's a simple and comforting side dish!
This crockpot green bean casserole is a classic Thanksgiving side dish made hands off in the slow cooker. This creamy dish is a holiday favorite plus frees up oven space!
This creamed spinach is rich, flavorful and a quick and easy side dish made with frozen spinach and heavy cream. The silky white sauce pairs perfectly with the tender spinach!
A vibrant pear salad with pomegranate seeds, feta, and candied pecans tossed in balsamic dressing. Fresh, colorful, and easy to make, perfect for fall dinners or holiday gatherings.
This arugula beet salad is beautiful and bold with fresh arugula, feta cheese, candied pecans then tossed in a zesty balsamic dressing. It's stunning on any holiday table!
Soft and fluffy with golden brown tops, these are the best dinner rolls! This recipe makes one dozen homemade rolls making it the perfect holiday side dish.
These oven roasted vegetables are tender and packed with flavor from olive oil, balsamic vinegar and seasonings. Use this method and adapt it to any veggies!
These crockpot green beans are a simple side dish made with fresh green beans, onion and smokey bacon! This easy recipe made in the slow cooker will be your new favorite.
This classic crockpot stuffing has timeless flavors and mouthwatering aromas! Add a little calm to the holiday chaos by making a simple delicious slow cooker stuffing!
Raspberry jello pretzel salad is made with a cream cheese and Cool Whip mixture on a pretzel crust layered with raspberry Jello. It's a sweet and salty classic dessert salad!
I love decorating Christmas sugar cookies a few days before the holiday with my kids to serve for dessert plus it frees up extra time to make other holiday desserts to serve!
Yule Log Cake (Bûche de Noël)
This Christmas make a traditionalyule log cake (bûche de noël). A chocolate sponge cake is filled with creamy mascarpone, then covered with chocolate ganache for the bark.
These Christmas sugar cookies are the best with a soft texture, sweet buttery taste and decorated with an easy icing. These festive cookies are perfect for the holiday season!
These OREO balls are made with just 3 simple ingredients and are such an easy dessert recipe to make. Drizzle with chocolate or top with your favorite colored sprinkles for the perfect decorative treat!
This Christmas crack recipe is the best sweet and salty treat made with a layer of saltine crackers, sweet toffee and chocolate! So easy and irresistible!
Print out this free editable Christmas menu template when planning your Christmas dinner this year. It also includes a cooking schedule and shopping list to help you stay organized for the big day.
Debbi
Great collection of recipes! Thank you for sharing your ideas with us!
Jamielyn Nye
Glad you enjoyed them Debbi :)
Katie Crenshaw
This is a fabulous Christmas Dinner Roundup! Everything looks amazing. Thank you for including my Marinated Cheese Tray among such delicious recipes! Sharing now!
Sabrina
love the pork tenderloin recipes especially, but all of these look wonderful and didn’t notice any that couldn’t be made year-round, thank you for sharing all of these!
Sophia | Veggies Don’t Bite
Thank you so much for including my Pastitsio and Sharp White Mac and Cheese in your awesome roundup!! Looks like the holidays are set with this amazing list!
Christina | Christina’s Cucina
What a fabulous choice of dishes you’ve put together! Something for everyone and many of these would be great any night of the week, too! Thanks for including my turkey schnitzel!
Kathy McDaniel
Great recipes! Thanks for sharing!
Katie Crenshaw
This is a beautiful collection of Christmas recipes. I want to make them all!!!! Thank you for including my Marinated Cheese. I can’t wait to try out all the other recipes. Merry Christmas! xoxo
Rebekah | Kitchen Gidget
This round up is incredible! I have several holiday potlucks to attend already and this has given me some fabulous dishes to bring. Thank you SO MUCH for including my Puerto Rican roast pork!