Here is our suggestion for Christmas Dinner that is suitable for a variety of dietary restrictions or lifestyle choices. It includes some of our family’s longest traditions and new favorites. Scroll down to see how each dish meets a common allergen or diet need. We also have a workback schedule listing what can be made ahead or not.
It begins with Vichyssoise! I’m not sure when we started it, but my family has had this at Christmas Eve dinners for decades. My siblings and I would always fight over the leftovers the next day. Unfortunately, my children are not as enamored of the rich, savory, soup, but it’s so easy to make and so good that I don’t mind having it all to myself.
This year we are highlighting Beef Wellington, a dish my son has perfected over the past decade and that he makes for most Christmases now. We tried several vegan Wellington recipes and found this amazing one, paired with a mushroom gravy, which is superb.
Side dishes include both a cauliflower dish as well as brussels sprouts. These two dishes are the only ones that need to be made the day of. All the other dishes can be wholly or partially made the day before or even earlier. A fresh green salad works well to balance out the side dishes. I added cranberries and spiced walnuts for a festive take on a mixed green salad, but you can add anything your family or guests prefer.
For bread at this meal, we chose a focaccia with a Christmas design. Of course, any soft bread would work well for this meal. For dessert, a selection of Christmas cookies is really the only thing to serve. We added the Tiramisu Roulade as it is naturally gluten free as most cookies generally are not. That said, peppermint bark and peanut butter balls (see below) definitely are!
The cookies on our tray include amaretti, peanut butter balls, peppermint bark, and cranberry, chocolate chip, oatmeal cookies. All of them happen to be naturally gluten-free and vegan except the amaretti, which normally calls for egg whites, but with aqua faba we have created a vegan one! We’ll post the recipe shortly. We also have a vegan fruit cake! And we’ll post that recipe soon as well.
While we are building this meal around a beef main dish, there is plenty for a vegan/vegetarian to eat. If you use a gluten-free puff pastry, then there’s plenty for your gluten-sensitive guest as well!
| Menu Item | Dairy-free | Egg-free | Gluten-free | Tree nut-free | Vegan | Vegetarian | Substitution* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vichyssoise | X | X | X | X | |||
| Christmas Focaccia | X | X | X* | X | X | X | Use gluten-free flour. |
| Beef Wellington | X | X* | X* | X* | Use milk to or plant-based milk instead of egg yolk. Use gluten-free puff pastry. Omit chestnuts. | ||
| Vegan Mushroom Wellington | X | X | X* | X | X | X | Use gluten-free puff pastry. |
| Mushroom Gravy | X | X | X* | X | X | X | Use gluten-free flour. |
| Brussels Sprouts with Walnuts and Cranberries | X | X | X | X* | X | X | Omit walnuts. |
| Roasted Cauliflower | X | X | X | X* | X | X | Omit pistachios. |
| Green Salad | X | X | X | X | X | X | |
| Tiramisu Roulade | X | X | X | ||||
| Christmas Cookies | X* | X* | X* | X* | X* | X | Depending on your choice of cookies and desserts. |
*If appropriate substitutions are made and/or if some ingredients are served on the side.
- Vegetarians can eat everything but the Beef Wellington. They won’t even miss it!
- Vegan/Plant-based could eat everything but the Beef Wellington and the Vichyssoise.
- Gluten-free can eat everything but the Wellingtons unless you use gluten-free puff pastry.
- Dairy-free only need to forgo the Vichyssoise.
- Tree nut allergy could eat everything if the tree nuts are omitted for the three dishes where indicated.
The menu features a wide array of dishes, and you might be curious about how to prepare them all. Amazingly most of the dishes can be made the day before. They either need to rest, chill, or rise long enough that prepping them all the day before works to make a very light day of cooking. We baked both Wellingtons together and then made the sides dishes while those were baking.
| Menu Item | Do Day Before | Total Prep & Cook Time | Chill or Rest Time | Start Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas cookies | All of them! | |||
| Fruit cake | Should start 10 weeks prior! | |||
| Tiramisu Roulade | All except the final garnishing. | 50 min | 30 min | T – 15 min |
| Beef Wellington | All the prep except for cooking. | 65 min | 30 | T – 60 min |
| Mushroom Wellington | All the prep except for cooking. | 1 hour 45 min | 2 hours 10 min | T – 60 min |
| Vichyssoise | All of it except the heavy cream. | 50 min | 30 min | T – 10 min |
| Focaccia | The initial rise of the sponge. | 30 min | 20 min | T – 4 hours |
| Brussels Sprouts | 45 min | T – 55 min | ||
| Roasted Cauliflower | 35 min | T – 40 min | ||
| Green Salad | Make spiced walnuts, if desired. | 20 min | T – 30 min | |
| Mushroom Gravy | 25 min | T – 30 min |
(T is your target mealtime. I.e., if you want to eat at 6:00 pm, plan to put the Wellingtons in about 5 pm.)
Should any of these dishes not meet your preferences, we have a variety of alternatives. As an example, for those who do not favor cold, potato soup, the Seafood Bisque would be a great alternative! Doing this would allow for a potato side dish, which we avoided due to the potato soup. To find alternatives, simply navigate to the All Recipes page and filter by Course and Sensitivities or Lifestyles to explore all available choices.