Christmas Dinner Ideas: 50 Recipes for Your Whole Christmas Menu
Christmas dinner ideas for the whole table, from the first appetizer to the cookie tray. There are 50 recipes here, grouped by course, and most of them are made ahead so you are not cooking all day on the 25th. Here is how to build your menu, one course at a time.
If you only make three things, make my marinated cheese, braised short ribs and the Yule log. That covers a starter, a main and a showpiece dessert, and all three are done before Christmas morning.
Here’s why you’ll Love these Christmas dinner ideas
A few reasons this list covers the whole holiday:
- It tastes like Christmas – caramel and hazelnut, beets and horseradish, cranberry and white chocolate. These are the flavors people wait all year for.
- Every guest finds a favorite – roast turkey and cinnamon rolls sit right next to Olivier salad and Kiev cake, so there is something familiar for everyone.
- Most of it is done before the day – the salads, cakes and cookies all want a night in the fridge, so Christmas itself stays calm.
- It works for any size table – one recipe per course feeds a small family, two per course feeds a crowd.
How to Build Your Christmas Dinner Menu
A full Christmas menu has five parts. Pick from each group below and you are done:
- Two or three appetizers – something cured or marinated, something for bread, and one warm bite.
- One or two salads – one hearty and one fresh.
- One main – make two if you are feeding more than twelve.
- Two or three sides – a potato, something green and something a little sweet.
- One cake and a cookie tray – the cake is the showpiece, and the cookies go home with guests.
Here are two menus built that way, one classic and one Eastern European:
| Course | Classic Christmas dinner | Eastern European Christmas table |
|---|---|---|
| Appetizers | Garlic shrimp, stuffed mushrooms | Salmon caviar, kholodets, marinated cheese |
| Salads | Creamy beetroot salad | Olivier salad, shuba |
| Main | Brined roast turkey | Stuffed cabbage rolls |
| Sides | Mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffed acorn squash | Potato pierogi, braised cabbage |
| Bread | Bread wreath | Cozonac |
| Dessert | Yule log, crinkle cookies, cranberry bliss bars | Napoleon cake, oreshki, rum balls |
Christmas Appetizers
Set these out before dinner so everyone has something to nibble while the main course finishes. Almost all of them are made ahead, which keeps the stove free. More to pick from in my appetizer recipes.
For the cured salmon, start with the right fish. Curing does not cook it, so use salmon that was frozen at -4°F for 7 days, or buy it labeled previously frozen.
Marinated Cheese
Start here. White cheddar cubes soak in olive oil with garlic, parsley, red pepper flakes and olives. No cooking at all, just a night in the fridge.
Get the marinated cheese recipe →
Homemade Salmon Caviar
Salmon roe cured in brine at home, for a fraction of the price of a store jar. Spoon it onto buttered bread and watch it disappear.
Get the salmon caviar recipe →
Cured Salmon (Selyodka Style)
Salmon cured in a salty-sweet brine with coriander, mustard seed and bay leaf. It eats like herring, with no bones to pick out.
Chicken Liver Mousse with Balsamic Onions
Silky chicken liver mousse under sweet balsamic onions. Cook the livers to 165°F, chill overnight, and serve it with crusty bread and pickles.
Get the chicken liver mousse recipe →
Sweet Pepper Appetizer with Cheese
Mini peppers filled with egg and Gruyere, then sliced into red, orange and yellow rounds. Crunchy, creamy, and already dressed for Christmas.
Get the stuffed mini peppers recipe →
Garlic Shrimp
Jumbo shrimp seared with garlic and set on toothpicks. This is the one warm bite in the group, and it is done in minutes.
Get the garlic shrimp recipe →
Cheesy Stuffed Mushrooms
Marinated mushroom caps filled with caramelized onion, carrot, garlic and cheese. Serve them hot or cold, and let them sit in the marinade up to a couple of days first.
Get the stuffed mushrooms recipe →
Kholodets (Meat Aspic)
Tender meat set in its own clear broth and sliced cold. Serve it with spicy horseradish, the way every Eastern European holiday table does.
Christmas Salads
Hearty salads are the center of an Eastern European holiday table, and most of them taste better the next day. The rest of my salad recipes are here if you want something lighter.
Olivier Salad
Potatoes, eggs, carrots, pickles, peas and smoked sausage in mayo. Every Slavic family has its own version, and it is on the table at every holiday.
Get the Olivier salad recipe →
Shuba Salad (Herring Under a Fur Coat)
Beets, potatoes, carrots, eggs and herring, cubed and tossed instead of layered. You get the same flavor for half the work.
Garlicky Creamy Beetroot Salad
Beets and garlic in a creamy dressing, ready in minutes with cooked or canned beets. The bright pink looks great next to a roast.
Get the beetroot salad recipe →
Spicy Korean Carrots (Morkovcha)
Shredded carrots in garlic, coriander and hot oil. Tangy and a little spicy, it cuts through all the rich dishes around it.
Get the Korean carrots recipe →
Crab Salad
Crab sticks, sweet corn, eggs and cheese in a light mayo dressing. It sits on every Slavic holiday table next to the Olivier, and it is usually the first bowl to empty.
Christmas Dinner Main Dishes
Pick one showpiece. Every main here either cooks mostly hands off or can be made before the day, so you are not stuck at the stove while everyone else is eating appetizers. More in my main course recipes.
Braised Short Ribs
My pick for a stress-free Christmas dinner. Beef short ribs braise for hours until they hold their shape on the plate and fall apart at the fork. They reheat well, so braise them the day before.
Get the braised short ribs recipe →
Brined Roast Turkey
Not only for Thanksgiving. The brine keeps the meat moist, and the 18 tips in the post take the guesswork out of timing a big bird.
Beef Roast with Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms
Beef chuck cut into cubes so every piece gets seasoned, then cooked tender with caramelized onions and mushrooms. Spoon it over mashed potatoes.
Duck Breast
Three ingredients and about 15 minutes. Crisp skin and juicy meat, which makes it the best choice for a small Christmas dinner. Want to cook ahead? My duck confit is made days before and only needs crisping.
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Cabbage leaves wrapped around beef and rice, golden outside and juicy inside. Roll them ahead, and on the day you only reheat.
Get the cabbage rolls recipe →
Potato Pierogi (Varenyky)
Tender dumplings filled with potato and topped with caramelized onions. Make a big batch weeks ahead and freeze them.
Get the potato pierogi recipe →
Honey Glazed Salmon
Pan-seared salmon under a honey, garlic and ginger glaze. Lighter than the rest of this group, and a good fish course for Christmas Eve.
Get the honey glazed salmon recipe →
Christmas Side Dishes
Two or three of these fill out the plate. Start with a potato, then add something green and something a little sweet. All my side dishes are in one place.
Cheesy Potato Gratin
Thin potatoes baked in cream under a crispy cheese top. It looks like restaurant food and it is one of the easiest things here.
Get the potato gratin recipe →
Fluffy Whipped Mashed Potatoes
Light, creamy and whipped. Put them under the short ribs, the beef or the turkey.
Get the mashed potatoes recipe →
Crispy Oven Roasted Potatoes
Yukon Golds roasted crisp on the outside and creamy inside, with Parmesan and thyme. Choose these when you want potatoes without a sauce.
Get the roasted potatoes recipe →
Creamy Garlic Parmesan Green Beans
Green beans simmered in a garlic Parmesan cream sauce. Something green that still feels like a holiday.
Braised Cabbage with Bacon
Cabbage cooked low and slow with smoked bacon, tomatoes, caramelized onion and carrot. A spoon of sour cream on top is a must.
Get the braised cabbage recipe →
White Chocolate Orange Cranberry Stuffed Acorn Squash
Acorn squash baked with orange zest, brown sugar, butter, cranberries and white chocolate. The sweet side, and pretty on the plate.
Get the stuffed acorn squash recipe →
Christmas Breads
Sweet yeast breads belong on a holiday table. Bake them a day early and warm them before serving. More in my bread recipes.
Cozonac (Walnut Sweet Bread)
Soft sweet bread rolled around a rum-scented walnut filling. It is baked for Christmas and Easter in Romania and the countries around it.
Sweet Buns with Poppy Seed Filling
Soft sweet yeast buns rolled with poppy seed filling and glazed. My grandma made poppy seed rolls all the time, and they are still my favorite.
Get the poppy seed buns recipe →
White Chocolate and Blueberry Bread Wreath
A braided wreath with white chocolate and blueberries. Eat it warm with butter and jam, then turn the leftovers into French toast.
Christmas Cakes
This is where the Eastern European table shines. Most layer cakes need a night in the fridge anyway, so they are perfect for making ahead. Nothing here calling your name? Every cake on the site is in one archive.
Yule Log (Buche de Noel)
The Christmas cake. A caramel cake roll soaked in caramel syrup, then frosted, glazed with chocolate and topped with roasted hazelnuts. It is balanced, not too sweet, and it is the one everyone takes a picture of.
Russian Napoleon Cake
Crisp puff pastry layers sandwiched with buttery custard. It needs a night in the fridge to soften, so it is made for the day before.
Get the Napoleon cake recipe →
Holiday Cake (Shortbread Meringue Cake)
Shortbread, meringue, plum butter and walnuts under custard buttercream. My mom shared this one, and she says it was the most popular cake back in the day.
Kiev Cake
Sponge layers with peanut meringue and condensed milk buttercream. If you have ever bought a Kiev cake at a Russian store, this is the one.
Black Forest Cake
Chocolate cake, sour cherries and whipped cream under chocolate crumbs. My husband made this one start to finish, so you can too.
Get the Black Forest cake recipe →
Bird’s Milk Cake (Ptichye Moloko)
Chocolate sponge layers with a luscious custard buttercream, and only lightly sweet. It comes from my aunt Irina.
Get the bird’s milk cake recipe →
Chocolate Honey Cake (Spartak)
Thin chocolate honey layers with a fluffy sour cream filling. Honey cake for the chocolate lovers at your table.
Ferrero Rocher Cake
Hazelnut sponge, Nutella buttercream and crunchy wafers between the layers. It tastes like a giant Ferrero Rocher.
Get the Ferrero Rocher cake recipe →
Christmas Cookies and Candy
For the cookie tray, the dessert table and the little boxes you send home with guests. More in my cookie recipes and candy recipes.
Oreshki (Walnut Shaped Cookies)
Crisp shortbread shells filled with dulce de leche buttercream. I have packed them in small boxes as Christmas gifts, and they go fast.
Linzer Cookies
Shortbread sandwiches with tart apricot jam and cream cheese frosting. Sweet and tart in every bite.
Get the Linzer cookies recipe →
Plum Butter Cookies (Pesochnoe Pirozhnoe)
Soft shortbread sandwiches with tart plum butter, buttercream and a lemon glaze. They taste best a full day after filling, so make them ahead.
Get the plum butter cookies recipe →
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Soft, fudgy chocolate cookies with a little espresso to deepen the chocolate. The powdered sugar crackle looks like snow.
Get the chocolate crinkle cookies recipe →
Meringue Mushrooms
Crisp little meringues shaped like mushrooms. Set them around the Yule log or eat them as they are, and make them days in advance.
Get the meringue mushrooms recipe →
Cranberry Bliss Bars
A white chocolate and cranberry blondie under orange cream cheese frosting. In our house, these mean the holidays are here.
Get the cranberry bliss bars recipe →
Sugared Crescents
Soft sweet yeast crescents layered with vanilla sugar. Perfect with tea on a slow Christmas evening.
Get the sugared crescents recipe →
Kartoshka Rum Balls
Cake crumbs, condensed milk buttercream, walnuts, cocoa and rum rolled into truffles. Bakeries invented them to use up cake scraps.
White Chocolate Coconut Candy (Raffaello Copycat)
White chocolate and coconut rolled into little snowballs. No baking, and they make sweet holiday gifts.
Get the coconut candy recipe →
Lemon Truffles
Creamy lemon truffles made with just a few ingredients and no oven. A bright bite on a tray full of chocolate.
Get the lemon truffles recipe →
Christmas Brunch Ideas
For Christmas morning, when the kitchen still has to feed everyone. Two of these get prepped the night before. More in my breakfast recipes.
Poppy Seed Baked French Toast Casserole
Poppy seed pastries baked in milk, eggs, condensed milk and chocolate. Assemble it on Christmas Eve and bake it in the morning.
Get the French toast casserole recipe →
The Best Cinnamon Rolls
Soft rolls baked in cream, with gooey brown sugar filling and cream cheese icing. Give them an overnight rise and bake them fresh with your coffee.
Get the cinnamon rolls recipe →
Cranberry Bliss Coffee Cake
Soft coffee cake loaded with cranberries and white chocolate under cream cheese frosting. Once you make it, you will be asked for it every year.
Get the cranberry coffee cake recipe →
Ukrainian and Russian Christmas Food
In Ukraine the big meal is Sviata Vecheria, the Holy Supper on Christmas Eve. It traditionally has 12 meatless dishes, one for each apostle, and it starts when the first star comes out.
Kutia comes first: wheat berries with poppy seeds, honey and nuts. Uzvar, a smoky dried fruit drink, sits on the table beside it. From this list, the potato varenyky and the honey glazed salmon both fit a meatless Christmas Eve.
Meat comes back on Christmas Day. That is when the kholodets, the cabbage rolls and the layer cakes come out. Ukraine officially moved Christmas to December 25 in 2023, and many families still celebrate on January 7 too.
In Russia the biggest winter feast is New Year’s Eve, and Christmas follows on January 7. The New Year’s table is where you find Olivier, herring under a fur coat and red caviar on buttered bread.
Christmas Dinner Make-Ahead Timeline
This order keeps almost all of the work off Christmas Day:
- Two weeks before. Settle the menu and make the pierogi. They go straight into the freezer.
- Four or five days before. Bake the cookies and the meringue mushrooms, and roll the candy. Keep everything in airtight tins.
- Two days before. Start the cured salmon and the salmon caviar, marinate the cheese, and set the kholodets. Bake and assemble the layer cakes so they have a night to soften.
- Christmas Eve. Make the salads, braise the short ribs, roll the Yule log, and put the French toast casserole together for the morning.
- Christmas Day. Roast or reheat the main, make the potatoes and the green beans, and set out the appetizers while everything finishes.
Christmas Dinner Ideas FAQ
What are good Christmas dinner ideas for a small family?
Go with a quick main and skip the big roast. The duck breast takes about 15 minutes, so add one potato side, one salad and a cake you made the day before.
What is a traditional Christmas dinner menu?
In the US it is usually roast turkey or ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing, rolls and a pie or cookies. In Eastern Europe it is a table full of salads and cold appetizers first, then a meat main and a layer cake.
What should I make for Christmas Eve dinner?
Something lighter than the next day. Fish is traditional in many countries, so the honey glazed salmon or cured salmon with boiled potatoes works well. The Ukrainian section above covers the meatless supper.
How do I keep Christmas dinner warm until everyone sits down?
Braised mains hold well in their covered pot, and mashed potatoes stay hot in a slow cooker set to warm. Hot food should stay above 140°F, and nothing should sit out longer than two hours.
What can I bring to a Christmas dinner?
Bring something that travels cold and needs no oven when you arrive: Olivier salad, marinated cheese, or a tin of cranberry bliss bars.
More Holiday Recipes to Try
- Winter recipes – soups, braises and bakes for the whole cold season.
- 5 Best Napoleon Cake Recipes – every version of the layered puff pastry cake, side by side.
- Every dessert on the site – cakes, cookies, pastries and custards in one archive.
- The full recipe index – everything else on the site.
Originally published December 2013. Rebuilt with 50 recipes, two sample menus and a make-ahead timeline.
Which of these is on your table this year?
Tell me in the comments below. I read every one, and it helps the next reader plan their menu.
Marina | Let the Baking Begin
Impressive and elegant menu.
Thank you!