The holidays are here, and you know what that means – parties! And what’s the best part about a holiday party? The food. If you’re playing host this year, I have 21+ amazing Christmas party food ideas that will WOW everyone.
21+ Festive Christmas Party Food Ideas To Wow Your Guests
1. Mini Roast Beef & Gruyère Tarts
These mini tarts are so delicious, and the presentation is on point. Savory, flaky puff pastries are filled with tender roast beef, herbs and Gruyère cheese.
You’ll need just a few things to make these: puff pastry, roast beef, Gruyère cheese, onion, garlic, thyme leaves, Dijon mustard and spices.
2. Crispy Cheese Potatoes Stacks
These crispy potato stacks will steal the show at your table. They’re so simple to make, but absolutely delicious.
To make the potato slices crispy, use a mandolin slicer to make your slices extra-thin.
Fresh herbs, like thyme and oregano, add so much flavor, but it’s the sharp cheddar cheese that’s really the star here.
Related: 21 Creative Christmas Party Food Ideas for a Crowd
3. Spicy Lamb Meatballs with Green Goddess Dip
These lamb meatballs are spicy and served with a tasty green goddess dip that adds festive color to the table.
For this dish, you’ll need ground lamb, cilantro, breadcrumbs, shallot, oregano, cloves, paprika, cumin, crushed red pepper and fennel seeds. These ingredients are what give the meatballs their spice.
The green goddess sauce is a decadent mixture of Greek yogurt, avocado, parsley, basil, mayo and green onions.
The meatballs are cooked in the oven, and topped with some feta cheese.
4. French Onion-Gruyere Mini Boules
How cute are these mini boules? But these little tasty treats are more than just looks. They offer a taste of classic French onion soup.
And the best part? You don’t have to bake bread from scratch. You can use frozen dinner rolls for your boules.
Savor the Best walks you through how to make these boules step by step, including how to cook the onions to perfection.
5. Herby Olive Goat Cheese Tartlets
These mini cheese tartlets are delightful, and your guests will be impressed by the presentation. Baking the Goods shows you how to make the tart shells from scratch, but you can buy premade phyllo shells or tart shells to save some time.
The delicious whipped goat cheese filling pairs so well with the marinated olive topping. Garnish with parsley leaves and lemon zest to add that gorgeous finishing touch.
6. Pork Belly & Apple Flavour Pearls
This recipe is one of the most unique Christmas party food ideas on this list. And it’s also one of the fanciest looking, too.
The crazy part? You only need a few ingredients: pork belly, fennel seeds, garlic, lemons, olive oil and apple flavour pearls.
If you can’t find apple flavour pearls, you can try popping pearls that they use for boba tea.
7. Smashed Potatoes With Crème Fraîche and Caviar
These gourmet smashed potatoes are a delight. The crispy edges of the potatoes give way to the creamy and tender insides. The crème fraîche and salty caviar are the perfect combination, and the chopped chives add a mild onion flavor to the dish.
If caviar isn’t your style or is out of your budget, you can use imitation caviar, vegan caviar or just skip it.
8. Spinach Puffs
These flaky puffs are stuffed with spinach, feta, garlic, green onions, artichokes and salty cheeses.
These puffs look fancy and have an impressive presentation, but they’re so easy to make. Premade puff pastry sheets will save you so much time. Just roll out the sheets, add them to a muffin tin, top with your filling ingredients and twist the top of each puff to seal it closed.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, and you have the perfect Christmas party food.
9. Party Sausages – 3 Ways
Sausages are the ultimate party food. They pair well with just about everything, and you can prepare them in so many different ways.
Recipes Made Easy shares three awesome ways to make pork chipolata sausages:
- Honey and mustard
- Sticky BBQ
- Chilli, soy and sesame
You can choose one of these flavors or serve all three. Making them is as simple as baking them in the oven and topping them with your preferred sauce.
10. Moroccan American Lamb Meatballs with Pomegranate Glaze
These delicious lamb meatballs are spiced with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, mint and parsley. They’re perfect for a holiday party, especially with the pomegranate glaze.
The best part? Apart from the spices, they have very few ingredients. Just mix them all together, bake the meatballs and serve.
Quick, simple and still impressive. That’s a winning combination for a holiday party.
11. Irresistibly Sticky Pigs in Blankets
Pigs in a blanket are a must-have dish for any holiday party, but this recipe takes it to the next level. Instead of puff pastry, these sausages are wrapped in bacon slices. Maple syrup, Dijon mustard and a pinch of nutmeg add so much flavor to this dish and really round out the flavors.
You can cook these guys in the air fryer or the oven. Either way, they’re ready in just 10-12 minutes.
Related: 12 Christmas Foods You Should Avoid and What to Serve Instead
12. Basil Pesto and Cheese Puff Pastry Christmas Trees
These festive puff pastry trees are perfect for your holiday party. Just roll out some puff pastry sheets, top with basil pesto and mozzarella, cut into slices, and roll up to make a tree shape.
Hold it all together with a bamboo skewer, bake and top with a cheese star. Use little star cookie cutters to cut out the tree toppers.
13. Fondant Potatoes
These fondant potatoes (melting potatoes) are divine. They’re little rounds of creamy potatoes cooked in a garlicky butter sauce, herbs and vegetable stock.
Because these potatoes are cooked in a pan, this isn’t an ideal dish for a large crowd, but it’s perfect for an intimate Christmas party with friends and family.
14. Blue Cheese Tart with Cranberry Chutney
A flaky tart filled with delicious blue cheese and topped with a tasty cranberry chutney. The Galley Gourmet shares how to make the tart and the chutney from scratch (it’s easier than you think).
Serve each bite-sized tart with a dollop of chutney and add a sprig of rosemary to the serving platter to make the presentation more festive.
15. Polenta Mushroom Canapes
You’ll break this canapé into three distinct parts:
- Polenta, which is made with water, salt, cornmeal, butter and grated Parmesan cheese.
- Mushroom ragout, made with sliced mushrooms, olive oil, garlic, onion, rosemary and parsley, salt and pepper and balsamic vinegar.
- Caramelized onions, made with onions, olive oil, balsamic, agave nectar and salt and pepper.
Fiesta Friday walks you through the entire recipe.
16. Braised Beef Crostini with Blue Cheese Butter
Who knew that crostini could be this filling? As one of the more complicated Christmas party food ideas on this list, I do want to warn you that you’ll need over three hours for prep and cook time.
You’ll need to make your braised beef in a Dutch oven and cook for up to three hours with salt, pepper, paprika, oregano, bell peppers, onions, thyme and garlic.
And then you’ll start prepping the crostini, which you’ll spread your cheese butter and braised beef on.
17. Fig & Honey Ricotta Crostini
Fig and honey ricotta is a light snack that’s perfect to put on the table for guests as they arrive. Presentation is everything with this dish, which includes:
- Classic French baguette
- Ricotta cheese
- Fresh figs
- Honey
- Fresh lemon juice
- Salt and pepper
- Fresh mint or basil leaves
You’ll toast your baguette slices lightly with some olive oil on a baking dish. Combine your ricotta, lemon juice and salt in a blender and blend until it’s nice and creamy. Assemble your crostini, top with your figs, drizzle some honey on top and sprinkle with your spices.
Garnish with your basil or mint leaves.
18. Pomegranate & Nut Cheese Ball
You’ll struggle to find a Christmas food that looks more festive than this dish. Simple and healthy (I was shocked, too), this recipe calls for:
- Cream cheese
- White, sharp cheddar cheese
- Spinach
- Pecans
- Garlic
- Nutmeg
- Salt
- Pomegranate seeds
Pulse your spinach in a food processor until it’s fine and then do the same for the pecans. Pulse the cheddar, garlic, nutmeg and salt together. Warm the cream cheese, combine with your spinach and pecan mix and place in the fridge for an hour.
Remove your cheese ball, cover it in the pomegranate arils and serve with crackers.
19. Potato Cannoli
You’ll make your cannoli shells with six russet potatoes that you wash and slice thinly. For the filling, you’ll make mashed potatoes with:
- Butter
- Milk
- Salt
- Parmesan cheese
- Nutmeg
And for the sauce that you put on top, you’ll need fresh cilantro, grapeseed oil, shallots, Sherry vinegar, salt and black pepper. One odd piece of equipment that you’ll need is a taco frying basket.
20. Warm Figs with Goat Cheese, Pistachios and Balsamic Glaze
Christmas party food ideas are rarely this simple, but trust me when I say that it’s a delish dish that I recommend. You’ll need 12 ripe figs, 12 teaspoons of goat cheese, one-fourth cup of pistachios and your fave balsamic vinegar.
Add the vinegar to a small saucepan and heat until it simmers. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Remove the fig stems, cut a deep “X” into the fig and open it to add your teaspoon of goat cheese. Once all of them have cheese, grill until the cheese bubbles and remove. Add your pistachios on top and drizzle with the glaze you made.
21. Mushroom Goat Cheese Filo Pastry Parcels
A delish appetizer with just a handful of ingredients: filo dough, olive oil, leeks, thyme, goat cheese, salt and pepper, butter and mushrooms. Start by making the filling of mushrooms, leaks and goat cheese.
Roll out the filo sheet, brush with melted butter and then cut into twelve equal sheets.
Add your filling and bake for 25 minutes.
Related: 23+ Best Christmas Side Dishes That Will Steal the Spotlight at Dinner
22. Balsamic & Thyme Roasted Grapes with Burrata
Fifteen minutes of prep time is all it takes to make this wonderful side dish, and it will cook for about 20 minutes. Start by preheating your oven ro 425℉, then place your grapes, figs and seasoning in a baking dish.
Whisk together your:
- Honey
- Olive oil
- Minced thyme leaves
- Salt
Drizzle the mixture over your grapes and then bake until the skin of the grapes begins to open and wrinkle. Break your burrata balls into chunks and place them over the grapes and bake, but this step is 100% optional.
