Quick & Easy Christmas Recipes

Staff Picks

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas

Chickpeas, once roasted, take on the flavor and texture of nuts, making them a fun snack with drinks. Prepare the simple appetizer in under 15 minutes for any holiday cocktail party.

Fennel and Orange Salad

The classic flavor combination of fennel and orange makes a wonderful winter salad.

Frisee Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette

Frisee has a slightly bitter taste and crisp, curly leaves. Pair it with a tangy vinaigrette for an easy side dish.

Pomegranate Cosmopolitan

Replace the usual cranberry juice with pomegranate juice for a tart, refreshing twist on the classic cocktail. A lime wheel makes an eye-catching garnish against the garnet-hued drink.

Turnip and Potato Mash

Serve this peppery replacement for mashed potatoes alongside seared steak.

Tortellini en brodo ("in broth") is a traditional first course for Christmas feasts in northern Italy. Because it calls for only a few ingredients, make sure they are of the highest quality, especially the chicken stock (now is a good time to use any you might have in your freezer).

Ginger Red-Wine Spritzer

To get the party started, stir or shake up a round of these festive drinks.

Easy Chocolate Mousse

Easiest dessert ever! Break out the blender and bring on the spoons for this rich chocolate mousse that's a snap to make.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Grapes with Walnuts

The red grapes' sweetness brings out the nutty notes in the sprouts. Walnuts can be swapped for almonds or pecans.

Fried Mozzarella

No guest will be able to resist this bite-size ball of gooey goodness.

Olive Tapenade and Goat Cheese Crostini

A good-quality jarred tapenade -- a salty olive paste -- makes these hors d'oeuvres a breeze to put together.

Flavored Cheese Balls

Make all 3 flavors of cheese balls or prepare just 1 or 2, adjusting the ingredients accordingly.

Inspiration and Ideas

Elderflower-Champagne Punch

This festive punch will get your party started and keep it rolling all night.

Easy Crostini

This recipe adapted from "Martha Stewart Holiday Party Foods."

Tequila-Cranberry Cooler

Persimmon and Brie Crostini

Date Chutney

Baked Cinnamon Apples

Cranberry Simple Syrup

Use this cranberry simple syrup to create cranberry cocktails to serve at any holiday gathering.

All Quick & Easy Christmas Recipes

Salad with Cranberries and Almonds

The cranberries and spicy almonds give this salad a sweet, spicy kick.

Maple-Bourbon Cider

Stir or shake up a round of these festive drinks to get the party started.

Scallop Ceviche

A chilled ceviche of bay scallops, lime, avocado, cilantro, and hearts of palm is served in scallop shells atop a bed of rock salt. If the scallops are too large they may be cut in half before marinating. Similarly, if you need to substitute sea scallops you may cut them into 1/2-inch pieces.

Buttered Carrots

Buttered carrots are an excellent side for Roast Poussin with Prunes and Thyme.

Fried Herbed Almonds

These crunchy thyme-flecked nuts are delicious served with sherry and slices of manchego cheese.

Martha's Favorite Royal Icing

Royal icing is best for decorating cookies, since it dries to a plaster-hard finish. This recipe yields enough to cover about 100 three- to four-inch cookies. To ice all those in this story, you will need to make two batches of icing; increasing the recipe by half won't work well.

Bacon-Wrapped Ginger Shrimp

These festive, easy appetizers will get the party started.

Sauteed Peas and Red Onion

This is a delicious accompaniment to our Rib Roast with Rosemary-Garlic Potatoes.

Eggnog

A delectable drink, Eggnog is a holiday favorite.

Sparkling Campari Punch

You can reach for all Italian bottles to make this festive, effervescent punch: prosecco, Campari, and Cocchi Americano. Mix with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice and rounds of your favorite citrus--we used grapefruit, orange, and Meyer lemon.

Coffee Coquito

Coquito translates to "little coconut" in Spanish and refers to the coconut milk in this Puerto Rican rum cocktail. Put a twist on the classic by adding a shot of espresso.

Figs and Prosciutto

Sweet and delicious, figs make the perfect pairing for a thin slice of Prosciutto di Parma -- which, by the way, is nitrate-free and low in saturated fat. Get more healthy holiday recipes

Sparkling Pear and Cranberry Cocktail

This cocktail is made with icy Moscato d'Asti, which is sweeter than champagne but much lighter than the rich dessert wine also made from Italian moscato grapes. Just the right medium for this fizzy drink, it adds flavor to the silky pear and tart cranberries.

Glazed Carrots and Ginger

For a less spicy dish, omit the chili pepper.

Whole Wheat Seeded Crackers

Making these big, pleasantly scraggy crackers involves nothing more elaborate than a basic whole wheat flour dough and a quick toast in the oven. Great on their own, the speckled snacks are even more enticing on a cheese board next to a wheel of something creamy.

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