Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (2024)

While everyone has their own idea of how a Christmas lunch should be, there are a few classics that make the cut on most family’s tables each year. We’ve pulled together a collection of our most delicious recipes for the holiday season, channelling flavours that will bring a sense of nostalgia and joy. From our marmalade glazed ham and stuffed roast turkey, to our boiled fruit pudding and creamy pavlova, these recipes are guaranteed to delight your loved ones this year.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (1)

01

Spanish-style barbecue leg of lamb

Spanish-style barbecue leg of lamb

This deliciously tender piece of lamb is cooked using traditional Spanish flavours, combining salty chorizo and fragrant garlic and thyme to create a memorable dish for a roast dinner or Christmas lunch.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (2)

02

Christmas Yule log cake

Yule log cake recipe is perfect for celebrating the Christmas season – delicious vanilla cake filled with hazelnut cream and decorated with chocolate ganache.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (3)

03

Prosciutto-wrapped turkey breast

Prosciutto-wrapped turkey breast

Wrapping a turkey breast in prosciutto before roasting it helps keep the meat tender and juicy as well as adding lots of flavour to the finished dish.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (4)

04

Processor fruit cake

Processor fruit cake

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (5)

05

The great Australian Christmas pudding

Traditionally, Australians cooked English-style puddings at Christmas but, although we love them, a lighter pudding is more suited to a hot climate; hence the Great Australian Christmas Pudding was created ­ light, creamy and cool.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (6)

06

Rabbit and hazelnut terrine

Tender and flavoursome rabbit and hazelnut terrine – the perfect addition to your next dinner party or afternoon tea!

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (7)

07

Cherry, walnut and feta salad

Cherry, walnut and feta salad

Indulge in the delicious combination of cherry, walnut and feta in this fresh wholesome salad – a perfect addition to Christmas lunch this year!

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (8)

08

Orange pudding with rum sauce

Orange pudding with rum sauce

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (9)

09

Roast pork loin with rosemary gravy

Roast pork loin with rosemary gravy

Tender pork loin stuffed with capsicum and ciabatta crumb and served with a rosemary gravy.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (10)

10

Baked snapper with peppercorn and dill butter

Baked snapper with peppercorn and dill butter

Served with grilled asparagus, this stunning whole baked snapper is brimming with zesty flavours.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (11)

11

Individual boiled Christmas puddings

Individual boiled Christmas puddings

Nothing says the festive season quite like Christmas pudding – dense, moist and loaded with delicious dried fruit.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (12)

12

Ginger marmalade glazed ham

Ginger marmalade glazed ham

Ginger marmalade and ginger ale offer this ham glaze a wonderful hint of spice, while brown sugar and maple syrup impart a lovely caramel colour.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (13)

13

Chocolate chestnut cake

Chocolate chestnut cake

This gorgeous layered cake is the perfect balance of sweet and nutty. It’s the perfect celebratory cake to serve at Christmas time.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (14)

Classic roast chicken with gravy

This classic French technique for roasting keeps chicken moist and succulent while making sure you end up with beautifully crispy, browned skin.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (15)

15

Pavlova with berries and cream

Pavlova with berries and cream

Named after the Russian ballerina, the pavlova is a familiar and well loved Antipodean dessert. You can experiment with all kinds of fruit toppings, but berries and cream is always a winner.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (16)

16

Roast salmon with fennel and apple salad

Roast salmon with fennel and apple salad

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (17)

17

Roasted goose with spiced apples and onions

Roasted goose with spiced apples and onions

This deliciously tender roast goose recipe is stuffed with a pisatchio and fig stuffing, perfectly balancing sweet and nutty. It’s the perfect meal for a special occasion like Christmas.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (18)

18

Roast vitello tonnato

Roast vitello tonnato

Vitello tonnato is a well-known Italian veal dish accompanied with a tuna mayonnaise. It is usually served cold or at room temperature, making the perfect appetiser for a Christmas lunch.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (19)

19

Fruit cake and eggnog cheesecake

Fruit cake and eggnog cheesecake

With a fruitcake base, creamy cheesecake filling and fruit topping drizzled with toffee, this Christmas dessert is a wonderfully decadent treat.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (20)

20

Roast pork with cranberry sauce

This delicious cranberry and pistachio stuffed pork is tender on the inside, crispy on the outside, creating the perfect balance of flavours and textures for a roast dinner.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (21)

21

Beef rib roast with spiced salt

Beef rib roast with spiced salt

Spice up your beef rib roast, the king of roasts, with spiced salt and serve with luscious garlic mayonnaise on the side.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (22)

22

Maple-glazed baby carrots

Gorgeously sweet orange and maple glazed baby carrots. The perfect accompaniment for your next dinner party.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (23)

23

Roast turkey with prosciutto and pear stuffing

Roast turkey with prosciutto and pear stuffing

The contrast of salty and sweet in the pear and proscuitto stuffing adds great depth of flavour to this roast turkey with herbed butter.

Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (24)

24

Asparagus and goats’ cheese tart

Indulge in this deliciously crisp, cheesy and tender asparagus and goat’s cheese tart.

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Our favourite traditional Christmas recipes | Women's Weekly Food (2024)

FAQs

What is a traditional Christmas dinner menu? ›

Traditional Christmas dinner features turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and vegetables. Other types of poultry, roast beef, or ham, are also used. Pumpkin or apple pie, raisin pudding, Christmas pudding, or fruitcake are staples for dessert.

What can I do instead of Christmas lunch? ›

14 Alternative Christmas Dinner Ideas
  • 01 of 14. Peking Duck. View Recipe. ...
  • 02 of 14. Cranberry BBQ Chicken. ...
  • 03 of 14. Butternut Squash Lasagna. ...
  • 04 of 14. Grandma Carlson's Turkey Pot Pie. ...
  • 05 of 14. Stuffed Pork Tenderloin. ...
  • 06 of 14. Roasted Cauliflower 'Steaks' ...
  • 07 of 14. Fabulous Beef Tenderloin. ...
  • 08 of 14. Spatchco*ck Chicken.
Nov 6, 2020

What are some different ideas for Christmas dinner? ›

14 Alternative Christmas Dinner Ideas
  • 01 of 14. Christmas Tacos. ...
  • 02 of 14. Easy Seafood Linguine. ...
  • 03 of 14. Grilled Sweet Potato Nachos. ...
  • 04 of 14. Family Favorite Macaroni and Cheese. ...
  • 05 of 14. Honey Glazed Moroccan Carrots. ...
  • 06 of 14. Shrimp and Crawfish Jambalaya. ...
  • 07 of 14. Grilled Sea Bass With Garlic Butter. ...
  • 08 of 14.
Mar 20, 2020

What to eat after Christmas? ›

Christmas recovery recipes
  • Pomegranate chicken with almond couscous. A star rating of 4.7 out of 5. ...
  • Kale & apple soup with walnuts. ...
  • Prawn, fennel & rocket risotto. ...
  • Speedy lentil coconut curry. ...
  • Mediterranean fish gratins. ...
  • Fajita chicken rice bowl with burnt lime. ...
  • Thai curry noodle soup. ...
  • Piri-piri prawn wrap.

What is the most common Christmas meal? ›

The Most Popular Christmas Dishes

The #1 pick is roast potatoes, with a win percentage of 76%. Mashed potatoes came in second (75%), and turkey was third (73%)—the only protein in the top five. Check out this top-rated recipe for roasted potatoes.

What do Americans have for Christmas lunch? ›

Roast turkey and ham are popular for Christmas dinner throughout the country, but depending on the region, so are tamales, roast goose with red cabbage, crawfish jambalaya, roast pork or “seven fishes” seafood salad.

What is a good dish to take for a Christmas party? ›

Some popular options include:
  • Appetizers: Cheese and crackers, shrimp co*cktail, deviled eggs, bruschetta, meatballs, and spinach dip 1 2. ...
  • Main dishes: Roast beef, ham, turkey, lasagna, prime rib, and salmon 1 2 .
  • Side dishes: Mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, green bean casserole, stuffing, and cranberry sauce 1 2 .
Nov 18, 2015

What to have for Christmas dinner besides turkey or ham? ›

Here are six non-traditional dinner alternatives (vegetarian and meat) that you can swap out for turkey or ham this holiday season.
  1. Beef Wellington: The Showstopper.
  2. Christmas Roast Duck: The Twist on a Classic.
  3. Vegetarian Enchiladas: The Surprise Favorite.
  4. Roast Lamb: The Savory Star.
Dec 12, 2022

How can I make my Christmas dinner better? ›

To help, we've put these tips together with the help of our expert chefs from our kitchens.
  1. Organisation. ...
  2. Brine your Turkey on Christmas Eve. ...
  3. Have you got the right equipment for the job? ...
  4. Prep your veg the night before. ...
  5. Get your timings for the big day sorted. ...
  6. Keep it fun, get the family involved.

What meat to cook on Christmas Day? ›

The 5 Meats of Christmas
  • 1) Beef Tenderloin. If you love filet mignon, this is the holiday roast for you. ...
  • 2) Crown Roast of Pork. A crown roast is created by taking a bone-in pork loin and assembling it into a circle with the ribs pointed upward. ...
  • 3) Prime Rib. ...
  • 4) Spiral Ham. ...
  • Holiday Short-Cut Rump Roast.

What is the Christmas dinner after midnight? ›

What's Reveillon? A tradition in French speaking countries and former French colonies. This is a long meal that happens on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. Traditionally, the feast takes place after Midnight Mass.

What sells best after Christmas? ›

Winter clothing, electronics, holiday decorations, fitness products, and toys typically go on sale after Christmas. You can also find discounts on food, such as holiday candy and baked goods.

What veg do you have with a Christmas dinner? ›

Discover the perfect amounts of potatoes, carrots, parsnips, sprouts, peas and red cabbage to serve with your roast turkey. Need help planning your Christmas dinner?

What time should Christmas dinner be served? ›

It's just supposed to be a middle-of-the-day meal, so the Queen's speech, at 3pm, adapted to it rather than the other way round. In other parts of Europe, people prefer their Christmas meal on Christmas Eve and eat leftovers the next day. In Britain, much of the way we do it comes from the Victorians.

Why is ham a traditional Christmas dinner? ›

Ham remained a star of the table with some historians suggesting that the pig was a symbol of good luck in pre-Christian European traditions. The love for Christmas ham dinner arrived in America with the pilgrims, becoming particularly popular in the Southern US, where pig farming flourished.

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