Christmas Eve
We used to do a big BBQ meal on Christmas Eve at our house, but timing does not allow for that any longer. My daughter now hosts Christmas Eve at her house, and we just have a bunch of appetizers and finger foods. I have listed some of the things that we have and any needed information about each. I have linked if there is a recipe or a location for purchase.
- Cheese, meat, and crackers
We like a variety of sliced cheeses, sliced summer sausage, and some sort of crackers with this. We usually make the “firecrackers” (seasoned saltines).
- Meatballs
Use frozen meatballs and then follow a recipe for the sauce or just use BBQ sauce. You can put them in the slow cooker to heat up and stay warm.
- Veggie dip and chips/vegetables
Dip mix from theresidentchef.com. Veggies such as baby carrots, broccoli, celery, and cherry tomatoes go well.
- Cream cheese with jalapeno jelly and crackers
If you have never had this, it is delicious. Let a block of cream cheese soften on a platter. Spoon a jar of jalapeno jelly (any flavor) over it and serve with some sort of plain cracker such as Ritz or Townhouse crackers.
- Hot spinach dip and crackers or chips
Another mix from theresidentchef.com.
- Cheese dip
One pound of Velveeta and one can of RoTel tomatoes – melt the cheese on the stove or in the microwave. Add in the RoTel and stir and heat until incorporated. Keep warm.
The ones we used were purchased at Sam’s.
- Pigs in a blanket
Little Smokies wrapped in crescent rolls and baked in the oven.
- Sweets
We already have so much, we like to just have some cookies and/or brownies.
This is the only actual recipe. I found it years ago for a Christmas party, and it has been a tradition ever since. It can be found at tasteofhome.com. It uses instant coffee and chocolate drink mix, but this year we are using Maxwell House International Suisse Mocha flavor in place of the chocolate drink mix. It still gives the chocolate taste but gives a stronger coffee flavor. You can stick with the drink mix if you don’t want a stronger flavor. I also let the ice cream sit out for a while before trying to mix it all in. It incorporates faster that way.
Christmas Breakfast
We usually don’t have our Christmas dinner until about 2:00, so I always try to cook a good breakfast. Here is the list for this year:
This quick bread has been a favorite for Christmas for many years. I found the recipe in a Taste of Home cookbook. I have linked the recipe from tasteofhome.com, although it is slightly different from the original that I use. My original recipe mixes the cinnamon and sugar with melted butter instead of sprinkling it on the batter dry. Also, just a reminder that if you don’t have buttermilk, you can add 2 teaspoons of lemon juice to every ½ cup of milk to “make” buttermilk. I usually mix up all the dry ingredients the night before to make it a little faster to prepare that morning.
We tried these frozen cinnamon rolls from Rhodes at Thanksgiving, and they were wonderful, so we decided to have them again at Christmas. You do have to plan correctly since they need to rise. I use the “refrigerator method” the night before.
- Scrambled Eggs
I think this is pretty self explanatory.
The bacon and sausage both came from Sam’s. The sausage is Swaggerty’s brand.
Christmas Dinner
Many of these are the same as for Thanksgiving.
- Fried turkey
My husband does the turkey. He injects it with Tony Chachere’s Creole-Style Butter Injectable Marinade and also sprinkles the outside with Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning. We have an infrared fryer, so we get all of the flavor of fried turkey without all of the mess and expense of the peanut oil.
- Ham
We use a cooked spiral-cut ham. Instead of using the glaze that it comes with, we mix some apple juice and Dr. Pepper together and pour it over the ham and place it in a slow cooker on warm for a few hours. It’s delicious!
- Cornbread dressing/cranberry sauce
My recipe comes from a church cookbook called Happy TImes with Home Cooking from First Baptist Church of Leesville, Louisiana. The recipe was submitted by Geraldine Mann, and I have been using it for years. It is a little vague but can be perfected with practice.
Diced celery, green onions, and onion (for a single batch, I use a whole yellow onion, 1 to 2 stalks of celery, and 2 to 3 green onions)
2 pkg. Gladiola/Martha White yellow cornbread mix, cooked
2 pieces bread, toasted brown
5 boiled eggs, chopped
1 can cream of chicken soup
Chicken broth (lots)
Garlic powder, dried onions, salt, and pepper
Get everything prepped and then just mix it all together. My MIL taught me a trick of cooking the veggies in some broth to soften them. It usually takes about a can a broth. Nobody likes crunchy vegetables in their dressing (at least I don’t!). Boil and peel the eggs and chop them up. Toast your bread. Bake the cornbread according to the package directions. Many times I cook the cornbread the day before.
Crumble cornbread into a greased 9×13 pan, leaving some in bigger pieces. Crumble toast on top. Pour in the veggies and broth as well as the chopped eggs. Sprinkle with the garlic powder, dried onions, and salt (all to your taste). Stir in the cream of chicken soup and mix together. Start adding in broth until you get a slightly soupy mixture. Be sure everything is wet. Sprinkle heavily with black pepper.
I usually do everything up to this point a day ahead. I cover it with foil and put it in the fridge. I just think it tastes better if you can do this.
The day we are having the dressing, I try to set it out to start coming up to room temperature about 2 hours before I am ready to cook it. When you are ready, bake at 375 degrees without a covering for 30 minutes or until it begins to brown. Cover with foil and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes or until it is hot all the way through.
It sounds like a lot of work, but it’s really not, especially if you like homemade cornbread dressing. We serve it with cranberry sauce. You can make some or just use the canned variety.
- Mashed potatoes and gravy
You can make homemade mashed potatoes, and we do sometimes, but most of the time for a meal with this many dishes, we use pre-made mashed potatoes. We either use Bob Evans Mashed Potatoes or Member’s Mark Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes from Sam’s. These come with two big tubs, which you may or may not need. If you only need one, you can save the other one for Leftover Mashed Potato Soup (see that recipe in Menu #12). The gravy can be whatever you prefer. I recommend Harry’s Turkey Gravy from Sam’s. It is two large tubs of fresh gravy, but you can freeze one of them, if needed.
- Cheesy potatoes
My mother calls these Funeral Potatoes because they are a good dish to take to a dinner after a funeral! We love them, although they are not good for you!! It’s the holidays. What food is good for you this time of year? Cut up about 3 to 4 pounds of russet potatoes. Boil until soft. While those are cooking, melt a pound of Velveeta with a can of cream of mushroom soup and a stick of butter. Once that is melted, add a cup of sour cream. Drain the potatoes and place in a 9×13 baking dish. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the cheese mixture over all the potatoes. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly – about 20 minutes.
My MIL has always made this and the corn casserole. She uses recipes from an old cookbook that she has. I don’t have those recipes, but I have linked some that are almost identical to hers. This recipe from shugarysweets.com uses canned yams, which is what she uses to make her casserole. She has told me that the amount of topping that it calls for you to make is too much in her recipe. I’m not sure about this recipe. I just know you don’t want the topping to be so thick that you have to cut through it.
As stated above, my MIL makes this casserole. I couldn’t find one exactly like hers because I know her recipe uses whole kernel corn, cream-style corn, and Mexicorn. However, this recipe from unsophisticook.com seems to be just like hers except for the Mexicorn.
- Green Beans
I think this one is pretty self explanatory. Heat up some canned or frozen green beans and season as you like. We like salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Rolls
Same as above. Choose what you like.
My husband is always in charge of the pumpkin pie. I can do it, but it’s his thing to do. He follows the recipe on the can of Libby’s pumpkin. The only thing he does differently is that he leaves out the cloves. We don’t care for the flavor of cloves. We do use the name brand pumpkin, but we use the off-brand of evaporated milk. This recipe makes two regular-sized pies or one deep dish pie.
- Pink Salad
We have always called this Pink Stuff. It is similar to Cherry Fluff but has mandarin oranges in it and no coconut. It can be a side dish, salad, or dessert. I always make it a day ahead so it has time for the flavors to meld together. Thaw an 8 ounce tub of Cool Whip. Mix this in a large bowl with a can of sweetened condensed milk until blended. Mix in a can of cherry pie filling, a small can of mandarin oranges, drained, a small can of pineapple tidbits, drained, and a cup or two of mini marshmallows. You can also add in some chopped nuts if you would like.
New Year’s Dinner
My MIL typically cooks New Year’s lunch for us. This is the menu that she usually prepares.
I have linked a recipe from willcookforsmiles.com that I think is similar to what she uses.
This recipe from divascancook.com has been in a couple of prior menus, but I have linked it again. It uses chicken broth instead of water, so there is lots of flavor and very little smell!! I like to use a little bacon grease in mine as well for flavor. Or you can put in a piece of bacon or some ham to add that meaty flavor.
My MIL cooks hers on the stove. I have done mine in the Instant Pot and they are delicious. I have linked a recipe from 40aprons.com for them. You can find simpler recipes, but I’m not sure they have as much flavor.
- Mashed potatoes and gravy
See the Christmas menu above for suggestions.
- Cornbread
My MIL tends to make sweet cornbread. I mix up a package of yellow cornbread from Gladiola.
- Salad
- Dessert
Managing the Mundane 
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