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Honored Contributor
Posts: 16,195
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

I'd just love to have some of your side dish recipes that were a hit for Christmas dinner, as well as salads, snacks, tid-bits, etc.!

I'd like to compile a little file of them so when a need arises I'm not scrambling around trying to find tasty recipes to prepare.

My family and I always seem to fix the same old - same old and we're all craving a few new things. Or at least a few new twists to some old recipes!

Thanks - I appreciate it so much!

"A day without sunshine is like, you know, night." - Steve Martin
Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,354
Registered: ‎03-21-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

On 12/29/2011 dominosmom said:

Funny you should ask...I made mac and cheese from scratch to serve with a spiral ham and my family are still talking about it. Their mac and cheese experience has been from the package or frozen Stoufers so my version was gourmet to them. Looks like I'll be making it again for New Years Day. I found the recipe on allrecipes.com and I think it's a winner.

Please do share?

Super Contributor
Posts: 462
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

For our actual Christmas dinner we had homemade pizza and a big garden salad. (The grand kids loved it!) But for a regular Christmas dinner I would serve Christmas Salad: A mixture of fresh broccoli & cauliflower flowerets a pint each of whole cherry tomatoes and small button mushrooms marinated in a good Italian dressing. YUMMMMM!

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 6,539
Registered: ‎11-23-2013

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

I changed the macaroni and cheese and added bacon grease instead of butter. It was a delectable holiday change. Bacon makes everything better.

I made a Maple and Thyme Butternut Squash. My son, who hates vegetables, devoured all of it. I got that recipe from Bon Appetit.

Fresh vegetables roasted with balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

Get your flu shot...because I didn't.
Honored Contributor
Posts: 20,648
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

Usually, for that holiday, I make a ham. So one side that seems to go with it nicely is mashed sweet potatoes (sweet potatoes, NOT yams). It's always popular. I'm one of those who likes to keep sweet potatoes as a savory dish - no cinnamon or sugar or any of that stuff - so it's usually either mashers or just regular baked.

I like to rub them down with olive oil and a little s&p, then roast them (whole) in the oven. Then I take them out and remove the peels (I like having the peels on white potato mashers, but it's different for sweet potatoes). I mash them with some sort of cheese - either cream cheese, or a hard cheese like asiago, romano, or parmesan, plus butter (of course!), and s&p. That's it. They are nice and, because they are sweet potatoes, I don't do a gravy with these.

Super Contributor
Posts: 819
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

We always have beef of some sort for our Christmas dinner and I always try to have a couple of new and different sides. Last year, this one from Mario Batali was a huge hit. I'll probably do it again this year. I fixed the simple version. Watch for sales on the onions ahead of time; they're not cheap, but if you can find them on sale, they will keep for more than a week or so.

Sautéed Cipollini Onions Mario Batali

Sautéed Cipollini Onions Recipe: Give your sautéed onions an extra special touch with robiolina cheese and shaved white truffles.

Olive Oil
3 T Sweet Butter
2 lb Cipollini Onions, peeled and roots trimmed
1 T Sugar
Salt
freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 c fresh thyme leaves
1/3 c sherry
1/4 c heavy cream

For the Special:
1/2 c Robiolina Cheese
1/4 c freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

For the Spectacular:
White Truffles, shaved and very finely grated

Olive Oil
2 lb Cipollini Onions, peeled and roots trimmed
Salt
1 T Sugar
3 T Sweet Butter
1/4 c fresh Thyme leaves
1/3 c Sherry
1/4 c Heavy Cream
freshly cracked Black Pepper

Heat a large skillet oven medium-high with a few T of olive oil. Add onions, and season with salt. Sprinkle the onions all over with sugar. Cook, undisturbed for one minute, and then add the butter, continuing to cook until the onions begin to develop deep caramelization. Flip the onions, and cook for one minute, and then add the thyme, followed by the sherry. Cook for 10 minutes or until onions are richly caramelized and. Remove from heat and stir in cream. Adjust seasoning to taste.

1/2 c Robiolina Cheese
1/4 c freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
For the Special: Stir in the Robiolina and Parmigiano-Reggiano off of the heat.
White Truffles (shaved and very finely grated)
For the Spectacular: Shave truffles over the onions, and then sprinkle the truffles with salt.

Helpful Tips:
You can use pearl or even frozen pearl onions instead of Cipollini.
Do in two batches so there’s no overcrowding in the pan, and all the onions have the nice dark color on the bottom.

You could also use Mascarpone, ricotta, or even cream cheese instead of Robiolina cheese.





Valued Contributor
Posts: 946
Registered: ‎09-10-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

we like to do a Christmas Eve/Christmas Day Buffet! Good food for Christmas Eve that can be used for Christmas Day. 'Lil Smokies in a sauce/crock pot are a big hit! (anytime)

Two Packs of little Smokies

12oz of ketchup or chili sauce

one 8oz jar of orange marmalade

**Hot Sauce of choice to taste

Heat Smokies in boiling water for a minute and then drain, add other ingredients, warm for about 10minutes and serve with toothpicks. Good for a crockpot to keep warm.

ENJOY!

CAT

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,249
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

On 10/21/2014 gacat123 said:

we like to do a Christmas Eve/Christmas Day Buffet! Good food for Christmas Eve that can be used for Christmas Day. 'Lil Smokies in a sauce/crock pot are a big hit! (anytime)

Two Packs of little Smokies

12oz of ketchup or chili sauce

one 8oz jar of orange marmalade

**Hot Sauce of choice to taste

Heat Smokies in boiling water for a minute and then drain, add other ingredients, warm for about 10minutes and serve with toothpicks. Good for a crockpot to keep warm.

ENJOY!

CAT

Another good way to fix these is to just put them in the crockpot and then put brown sugar in with them. Turn it high for a few minutes until the sugar starts to melt them stir and move to low heat and let simmer. Delicious and so easy!

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,249
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

On 1/6/2012 SpaGal said:
On 1/6/2012 kibbi said:

butternut squash casserole with gorgonzola cheese.


Kibbi---I now have 3 butternut squash from our CSA...please post the recipe or where you found it....please!

I would love this recipe also. Please share.

Super Contributor
Posts: 415
Registered: ‎03-09-2011

Re: Side dishes you served that were a hit for Christmas!

I made the "green bean casserole," but with fresh green beans and a scratch cream sauce with tons of fresh mushrooms. I put a mixture of the crispy onions and toasted panko bread crumbs on top. So it's sort of like the one made with canned green beans and soup. But waa-a-a-a-a-ay better IMO.