Elegant Christmas Day Buffet Recipes

Happiest Christmas Menus Ever

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Bacon-Brown Sugar Brussels Sprouts pictured. Butternut Squash Risotto pictured. These dishes create unexpected twists without being too fancy. Best of all, you can pull off this fabulous menu for 6 to 8 with plenty of time left to share with family and friends. Holiday Roast With Gravy. Sugared Cranberries and Mint. This mouthwatering plate of holiday favorites may look fancy, but it's easy enough for even the novice cook to pull together with success. Cajun Green Bean Stir-fry. This marvelous meal is full of spicy Louisiana flair.

Christmas buffet recipes

Gather family, invite friends, kick back, and relax—Cajun style. Caribbean Rice and Peas. Serve Caribbean- and African-inspired dishes before Santa arrives this year. Each recipe is perfect to serve buffet style and easy to eat with a fork while balancing a plate on your lap. So fill your plate, find a comfy chair, and be joyful. This merry menu creates an easygoing style but reflects Ted and Matt's serious food knack for updating Southern classics without loosing a lick of their delectable essence. Let these outstanding recipes, along with the warmth and laughter of these friends, resonate with you and your family.

Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta. Ring in the Christmas season with a special family dinner. It will set the tone for the season and create memories for your children. Do some prep work in advance to pull off this menu with ease and time to spare. Your family will love the twists on their favorite breakfast dishes. Green Beans with Garlic.

Leafy Green Salad with Pears. Mexican Chocolate Pound Cake. Invite over your office buddies or best girlfriends for a holiday luncheon full of Southern hospitality. Crispy Potatoes with Fennel. This beef tenderloin menu inspires the creative cook in you while pleasing guests who love a traditional meal. From the start to its grand finish—Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake—this Christmas celebration will be one for the memory book. Quick Winter Pickled Veggies. Warm Greens With Cornbread Croutons.

Test Kitchen pro Marian Cooper Cairns developed this mostly make-ahead menu that mixes traditional recipes with updated Southern classics. We'll clink to that. Red Velvet Dessert Buffet. This wondrous, Wonka-esque dessert buffet celebrates one of the South's most iconic flavors in creative new ways. And yes, you're going to need a bigger dessert plate.

Merry Morning Christmas Brunch. With a little help and advance prep work, these recipes deliver awesome flavor while you relax and reconnect with family and friends. Sweet Onion Pudding pictured. Simple Roasted Asparagus pictured. Refrigerator Yeast Rolls pictured.

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Mini Manchego-Tomato Chutney Tartlets. Green Beans with Shallots and Clementine Zest. Cornish Game Hens with Butternut Croutons. Cookbook author Katherine Cobbs shared her tried-and-true recipes for creating a memorable holiday meal that puts a new spin on classics.

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This hearty midwinter's meal showcases the bounty of the season and pairs especially well with a crackling fire. Close View all gallery. Plan a get-together for any occasion with these combinations of our favorite holiday foods. Prosciutto-and-Manchego Cheese Straws Recipe: Crispy Pork Meatballs Recipe: Spiced Orange-Bourbon Punch Recipe: Cider-Glazed Carrots with Walnuts Recipe: Herbed Potato Stacks Recipe: Buttermilk Fantail Rolls Recipe: Beet, Fennel, and Apple Salad This elegant sit-down dinner is everything you want in a celebratory meal—and it's easy on the cook too.

Pancake Bake with Cinnamon Streusel Recipe: Sausage-and-Cheese Grits Quiche Recipe: Country Ham Hash Recipe: Citrus Salad with Granola Recipe: Romaine with Creamy Olive Dressing Here's our gift to you: Chicken-and-White Cheddar Casserole Recipe: Steamed broccoli might sound boring, but give this everyday veggie a holiday lift with the addition of toasted hazelnuts.

First, toast the hazelnuts in the oven until fragrant make sure to keep an eye on them, as they can burn quickly. The crunchy nuts, fragrant garlic, and bright citrus will give broccoli a boost that even haters will love. Broccoli With Toasted Garlic and Hazelnuts. The sprouts are roasted, which brings out their nutty, sweet flavors and makes them tender and a bit crisp. Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Pecans. It seems as if every southern cook has a recipe for this classic.

Here, a straightforward approach gets its bite from pungent garlic. Make sure to discard the tough collard stems and cut the leaves into thin strips, which helps them become tender more quickly. This dish is simple and light, making it a refreshing and healthy addition to your holiday menu to balance out the heavier dishes. And if you already have a southern theme going on Cornbread stuffing? If the carrots are cooked to your liking before the liquid becomes a glaze, just remove the veggies, continue cooking the liquid until reduced, then return the carrots to the skillet and toss before serving.

Green beans are a staple side dish for any holiday meal, not just Thanksgiving. There are no creamy sauces or fried onions here; this lighter recipe pairs tender green beans with garlic and pine nuts and takes just 15 minutes to make. Season and toss, and the dish is ready for your table. Bring the flavors of the season to your Christmas table with this unique take on sweet potatoes—no marshmallows allowed. You can even prepare the syrup two days ahead.

Cut the potatoes into long wedges to make them look especially elegant. This dish is so good, you might even work it into your regular weeknight meal rotation. For a more rustic presentation, try serving sweet potatoes another way—mashed with honey, orange juice, sour cream, and nutmeg. The honey brings out their sweetness, while the sour cream adds some creaminess and helps smooth out the mash without making it too rich. Add a sprinkle of nutmeg as a nod to the holiday. The result is hearty, comforting, and perfectly seasonal—a great dish to include in your Christmas menu.

Give earthy root vegetables the love they deserve by roasting them with brown sugar, olive oil, and apple cider vinegar. During the last 10 minutes of cooking, add shiitake or cremini mushrooms, or a mix of both so much more flavorful than white button mushrooms , to roast along with the rest of the veggies.

Sweet, nutty, tender vegetables with a little crispness around the edges. Make sure you spread the veggies in two small roasting pans to give them room to brown and caramelize instead of crowding them into one. A creamy, comforting gratin is just the thing to warm up your holiday table. This recipe calls for ham, but you can easily skip it to make the dish vegetarian. The cauliflower bakes in the dairy-heavy sauce in the oven until meltingly tender, while a topping of bread crumbs adds a little texture and crunch.

Cauliflower and Ham Gratin. With the bright red of the grape tomatoes, this dish even looks festive. It has a nice sharpness and bite to it, thanks to the shallots and briny capers, which makes it a refreshing addition on the table to cut through the richer dishes. Make sure to use a decent drinking wine for the recipe, and feel free to serve the rest of the bottle with dinner or treat the cook to a glass before the holiday guests arrive. Rich with cream, potato gratin is a special-occasion recipe in all meanings of the phrase. Toss peeled, sliced potatoes in a mixture of cream, horseradish, and nutmeg, then transfer to a buttered baking dish.

Cover with foil, bake for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake for another hour or so, until the potatoes are tender and the top is golden brown. What feast is complete without a hearty side of mashed potatoes? These are flavored with sour cream and scallions to elevate them without getting overly fancy or complicated.

We like to use red potatoes and leave the skin on to add some color and create a more rustic texture. Start by boiling the potatoes until tender, then mashing with sour cream, milk, and butter until you get just the right consistency. Sprinkle with chopped scallions for a little oniony bite. With the red-skinned potatoes and the green of the scallions, this dish is appropriately festive for your Christmas celebration. Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes. After an elaborate holiday meal, you may want a simple finish.

You can bake your own cake from scratch or start with your favorite store-bought one your secret is safe with us. Dress up each slice with fresh orange segments and honey, then sprinkle with chopped fresh rosemary before serving for an unexpected savory note. The fresh citrus will brighten up the buttery cake, while the honey mixed with the orange juice creates a natural sauce to add moisture and subtle sweetness.

You can also serve this bread pudding at room temperature, so it would make a sweet addition to a holiday brunch, too. Bread Pudding With Fruit Compote. Cut up the croissants, then douse them with a mixture of egg yolks, milk, cream, and sugar, and bake in a dish with the chocolate until set. Croissant and Chocolate Bread Pudding. You can never go wrong with serving pie for dessert.

The humble apple pie gets a serious upgrade with tangy sour cream, plump raisins, crunchy walnuts, and a cinnamon crumb topping. Start with a homemade dough for the bottom crust, then top it with sliced apples, sugar, cinnamon, sour cream, and raisins. We like to use a combination of apple varieties to get the right balance of sweet and tart.

Spoon the filling into the crust, then sprinkle with chopped walnuts. Top with a buttery cinnamon crumble and bake for about an hour, until the crust is golden brown and the apples are tender. Sour-Cream Apple Crumb Pie. Many cuisines feature some type of a layered custard-and-cake dessert, but this take is closest to the classic English trifle. Refrigerate for a few hours to set, then spoon into small bowls to serve. For a holiday-worthy presentation, make the trifle in a large glass serving bowl.

Spoon a portion of apricot preserves into individual parfait glasses, then top with a cookie, some pudding, and more preserves. Finish with a dollop of fresh whipped cream. Feel free to change it up by using different fruit preserves; try cherry or raspberry to add some festive color. Stir in ripe yet firm sliced bananas to coat them in the butterscotch sauce. Once the flame goes out, stir in toasted pecans.

Serve the bananas and sauce over scoops of vanilla ice cream for a stunning finish. Serve with an assortment of treats for dipping, such as fresh strawberries, cubes of angel food or pound cake, jumbo marshmallows, and dried apricots, pineapple slices, or figs. Leftover Christmas cookies make delicious impromptu dippers, too—try gingerbread men, sugar cookies, or spiced molasses cookies to give your fondue a holiday twist.

It all starts with a chocolate wafer cookie crust, which chills in the refrigerator until firm.

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Continue to cook until a thick, smooth caramel forms, then pour into the chilled crust. A few minutes before serving, drizzle the caramel tart with melted chocolate and sprinkle with sea salt. Gooey Chocolate Caramel Tart. Top the cheesecake with vanilla sour cream and bake for another few minutes.

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