Christmas in my family has always been the pinnacle of the holidays. Growing up, my parents hosted a very large Christmas Eve party with all of my cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents. Some years the guest list neared 35 people. The size of the party never deterred anyone from throwing a properly formal meal, fit for the occasion. The table was always set with linens, china, and silver; the menu multi course and seated.
Over the years I began stepping in to lead the charge on cooking this menu. It became a collaboration between myself and my grandfather and I loved the tradition each year. Choosing dishes required careful consideration as they needed to be scalable, able to be prepared ahead of time, festive - and different from thanksgiving.
As I plan my meal for an intimate table of 12 this year, I’m doing a nearly the same menu as always. I’ll begin my prep today so Christmas Eve is not too crazy and I can enjoy the party. Maybe you need some Christmas Eve dish inspiration, too. Enjoy!
Starters: This is a course perfect to oursource to guests! We usually do Maryland Crab Dip, or a charcuterie plate. Caviar is always a showstopper too.
Sides:
Kale Gratin is one of the easiest and delicious dishes you will make. The hearty kale stands up to the long bake while the cheese browns on top. This has been on my menu for years. However, I’m not making it this year because I’m serving…
Scalloped Potatoes with Caramelized Onions - The most time consuming part of this recipe is caramelizing the onions which is easily achievable the day before. You can actually bake this entire dish ahead of time and reheat it before dinner. Just make sure you have some fridge space.
Mrs. Janice’s Green Beans - This recipe is from a friend’s mom and it goes like this - cook down a pack of bacon (I like to get the thick sliced bacon at the deli counter), then caramelize sliced shallots (about 12 - you can’t have too many!) in the bacon fat. (keep the temp low so you don’t char). Then, blanche your green beans in very salty water (blanching is quick - 3-5 minutes at a rolling boil). Put beans in an ice bath - they should be bright green. At this point you can store everything for assembly later, or if you’re ready to serve - toss the green beans in the bacony shallots, top with toasted slivered almonds, and bake until warmed through. Serve! This is a perfect non-casserole green bean dish that feels decadent but also light.
Roasted Mushrooms - (cannot be made ahead) I have not done this in years past but we have a vegetarian at the table this year so I’m including a heartier side dish on her behalf. I like to use exotic mushrooms for this dish - this year I have enoki and king trumpet. I’ll make a sauce of 5-6 cloves of sliced garlic, a twig of rosemary, some fresh thyme, a splash of soy sauce, butter and olive oil. Toss the mushrooms in this and bake in a baking dish at 425 until browning. Salt before serving (if you salt in the beginning the mushrooms will release a lot of liquid - not a terrible thing but will just make them more watery and might not brown as well).
Other classic Christmas side dishes are Glazed Carrots, Mashed Potatoes, Spinach Gratin, or if you’re Italian like us, Manicotti.
Main Course
For us, the main course is traditionally a prime rib. We rub the rib in a salt/rosemary/garlic/pepper rub, and then cook it, the technique varies depending on who’s cooking and how big the meat is. This year I think we will slow roast it for several hours til its 125 internal temp, let rest, and broil before sitting down for dinner to get crispy. I usually serve this with homemade horseradish sauce.
Another dish I love serving at large parties especially if you have people adverse to meat is a cold poached salmon. This can be made ahead of time and refrigerated - and it’s served cold/room temp. I buy a large flank of salmon for the number of guests and put my roasting pan on the stove, salt the water well (you can also put aromatics in like herbs, bay leaves, wine). Then put the salmon in the water, bring to a boil, simmer for a few minutes and turn it off. Let the salmon and the water cool completely. I serve this with a salsa verde and its absolutely delicious. It’s also incredible the next day.
Another dish I love to make is the Giada de Laurentis Stroccato. The porcini mushrooms are a must have and you can usually find them dried near the spice section. I buy them anytime I see them because they can be a bit hard to find. But this dish is perfect for an all day roast and I like making this one Christmas Day.
Dessert
This year I am torn between making a pavlova and a chocolate mousse. Both can be made ahead of time, are texturally light but very decadent. I think the easier of the two would be the chocolate mousse but I am going to make a last minute decision on this one.
Hope you enjoy these recipe ideas and cheers to a happy holiday season to you!