Elegant Christmas Dinner

Create an unforgettable Christmas dinner this year with a timeless table and luxurious feast. Festive martinis, prime rib and a stunning layered dessert take this holiday tradition to the next level for an unforgettable celebration — our recipes and tips will show you how.

 

 

Set a festive tone at the beginning of the evening by offering guests something colorful to sip. Our cranberry martinis will do the trick (and with only a handful of ingredients, they’re easy to mix). Serve with a platter of smoked salmon on toast points, a classic and beautiful hors d’oeuvre for entertaining.

 

Once seated, treat guests to a series of special occasion-worthy courses. Our layered pasta with crab and broccolini is sure to impress, starring the season’s anticipated Dungeness crabs. A salad of blood oranges, fennel and hazelnuts follows perfectly, cutting the richness of the pasta and creating a colorful presentation.

 

For the main course, a roast of herb-crusted prime rib is a dramatic centerpiece. Served with a spicy horseradish cream sauce, the dish is flavorful and satisfying, yet surprisingly simple to prepare. Pair it with a couple of vegetable sides — crisp-tender fingerling potatoes and haricots verts with a crunchy topping.

 

Layers of gingerbread-spice quickbread, lemon pastry cream and poached pears make up our holiday-inspired gingerbread trifle. Rustic but elegant, its warm and lively flavors are a wonderful way to end the meal.

 

 

• Christmas is the perfect time to play with a classic pattern in new ways. Check out five creative combinations for tartan prints.
• Consider fresh presentations for your dishes, especially when serving at the table. We love the look of the prime rib on a vintage olive board — it’s a great way to mix and match different textures.
• Skip flowers in favor of elegant hurricanes showcasing natural, flickering candlelight.  The result is a table that feels clean, not crowded, and a beautiful ambiance.
• Elements with similar themes pair well, even if they don’t look exactly the same. Salt and pepper shakers in the shapes of Christmas trees pick up the scene of our glasses etched with pines.

 

Shop our Christmas dinner essentials here.