Easy food ideas for X-mas eve

[can'tgetenufofwdw]

Looking for ideas for easy foods for x-mas eve. Sick of being in the kitchen all day. What are simple but tasty things that are easy to prepare but yet still feel like I'm feeding my family a "meal"?

 

[Praying Colonel]

Is this a meal or snacks? From your post I'm thinking maybe a meal?

If it's a meal, taco bar is easy and fun. Same for quesadillas. Make some homemade guacamole, queso and chips and it's a party.

You could also make a pot of chili or beef stew and some cornbread to go with it. Those things are better the next day, so you could make it on the 23rd and warm it up the next day.

We usually make a bunch of snacks and everybody kind of grazes: Chex Mix, cheese ball, mixed nuts, charcuterie plate, sliced fruit, etc.

 

[DLgal]

We always get Chinese take out on Xmas eve.

 

[kymom99]

We have done chili, baked potato bar, tacos, pasta…

 

[lynxstch]

We do a buffet. Shrimp, devilled eggs, potato skins, garlic bologna, cheese, and fruit. Some kind of dessert, haven't decided what it will be this year yet. They can all be prepared ahead of time except the potato skins which I do at the last few minutes. I will have them all prepped and ready to pop in the oven to reheat and melt cheese

 

[TwoMisfits]

Spiral sliced ham warmed in a crock.
Stouffer's mac and cheese warmed in the oven or for dairy-free option, baked sweet potatoes.
Roasted asparagus.
Fresh fruit salad.
Rolls.

Full meal with very little work and not too pricey. But seems like "a holiday" meal.

 

[Kitty 34]

sandwiches and dips and trays of "stuff"

 

[nw6675]

Party food Lots of finger foods (sausage balls, ham roll ups, dips, ham and cheese poppyseed sliders, veggie tray, grape jelly/chili sauce meatballs, etc.). This is my favorite part of the holidays lol. Can you also tell I'm from the south?

Or a couple of bars - taco bar, chili and/or potato bar since the toppings generally the same, plus a hot chocolate bar with marshmallows, cinnamon sticks, whipped cream, peppermints, etc.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

You could also make a pot of chili or beef stew and some cornbread to go with it.

Ooooo....I like this.

 

[can'tgetenufofwdw]

ALl of these are great ideas, thank you

 

[Buzz Rules]

I make a Spanish fish stew that’s a one pot meal. Here’s one that takes less than 40 minutes to make. I consider this light cooking.

https://spainonafork.com/mediterranean-vegetable-fish-stew-recipe/

 

[Robber Baron]

Christmas Eve last year I took 1/3rd of a whole pork, (the whole loins were ridiculously on sale at Costco for like .89/pound), dry rubbed it and threw it on the grille.

Sliced it thin and put out some hamburger rolls, mustard, swiss cheese & pickles and everyone made their own Cubano's.

They were a hit.

I also had a crock pot with scalloped potatoes and some corn salsa & chips.

 

[leebee]

We used to do Feast of Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve, but now I just make seafood chowder (shrimp, scallops, clams, fish, lobster, mussels, squid- if I can get them all) the day before, serve it with crusty rolls or bread. I usually do the creamy-style, but this year I might try cioppino. My sister suggested paella but it's too much rice for me. Christmas dinner is always something stupidly easy; last year's favorite was a bag of frozen stuffed shells from Sam's covered with sauce (I went all-out and doctored our favorite canned sauce) with salad and garlic bread. I suppose I could have gone really over the top and put frozen meatballs in the sauce, too! Ice cream sundaes for dessert. I decided I was OVER the big holiday meal one year when I saw DH reading his new Christmas book, DD putting together a holiday puzzle, both of them watching TV while I was IN THE KITCHEN all freaking day! I want to read my Christmas books, too!

 

[Her Dotness]

I used to like to do what I called a "munch platter."

Sliced deli meats rolled for easy grabbing, 2-3 cracker varieties, pickles, varied raw veggies with a dip or two. Another with cookies, raw bite-sized fruits sometimes with a cream cheese dip, whatever else says dessert to you.

Prep and bag the veggies and fruit and mix dips the day before, roll up the meats day of and lay out everything on platters or trays.

Easy to set out with paper plates so people can pick and choose what they want while watching a Christmas movie.

No, it's not particularly healthy but sure is easy.

 

[Southernmiss]

Walmart sells a nice seasoned pork loin-asaigo with peppercorn and garlic and rosemary. An hour in the oven at 350. Done. Serve as is is or

Sliced thin makes nice little slider sandwiches.

Instant pot macaroni and cheese is easy.

Idahoan brand instant mashed potatoes are good or you can add cream cheese, grated cheese, green onion and crumbled bacon to make it loaded mashed potatoes and bake.

Green salad and a roasted bag of broccoli, cauliflower mixed vegetables. Or Roasted asparagus.

Desserts.

 

[VandVsmama]

I second all of the suggestions for something in a crock pot.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Oh, another one: red beans and rice. Tastes like you worked on it all day, but super easy. This is my favorite version (I sub smoked sausage when I can't find andouille):

 

[fla4fun]

We do a homemade lasagna Christmas Eve and eat the leftovers Christmas Day. I use farfalle instead of lasagna noodles to make assembling and serving it easier. I can make it on the 23rd and then just stick it in the oven on the 24th, so I don’t spend time on the holiday in the kitchen.

 

[ronandannette]

We do a big Christmas Eve feast before church ever year, to accommodate one of the different groups we need to celebrate with. Easy meal for that night isn't in the cards for me. But a fairly easy festive meal is ham and scalloped potatoes - the ham cooks itself (in oven or crock pot) and Betty Crocker makes a mean packaged scalloped potato mix that literally takes less than 90 seconds to prep. A tossed salad, fresh buns and a condiment and pickle tray and you're done. Serve some of the many Christmas cookies that are probably around for dessert. We were at an early-season party last week that included a casual meal. They served chocolate-mint ice cream sandwiches for dessert. They were a hit and I thought it was a cute and festive idea.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

We used to go over to my grandparents' to exchange presents after candlelight service, and they would have a deli tray.

My family seems to switch between dinner out and some sort of baked pasta. We don't spend all day cooking Christmas Eve because our church service is on Christmas Eve. There were also a few years lately where we'd just make a bunch of frozen appetizers and watch Christmas movies.