Everyone at your holiday celebration will find a new favorite with this big collection of more than 50 festive Christmas Appetizer Recipes.
Have you started planning the menu for your Christmas celebration?
Whether you’re creating a whole meal for a dinner party, planning a holiday party for friends, or if you’re just bringing a dish or two to share for a holiday potluck celebration – you can’t forget the appetizers!
While we often want the traditional foods for the main holiday meal – ham, beef roast, turkey and the like – the appetizers are a chance to change things up a little bit!
The appetizer course is where you can get a bit creative, try new things with a unique twist and maybe find a few favorite new Christmas appetizers that will become a tradition for your family.
Make a few different types of appetizers to offer variety and make sure that everyone can find one they love.
When planning your Christmas appetizers to precede a meal there are a few things to keep in mind. You want the dishes you choose to complement the entrees and the sides that come next and not compete with them.
For example, if you’re serving cranberries as a side dish, you probably don’t want to serve a cranberry-based appetizer – unless your family is made up of cranberry fanatics, of course!
When it comes to serving your appetizers great presentation can go a long way. One way to make the presentation pop is with the right serving dish.
Take a look at some of the festive options below that can make your holiday table extra festive:
Balsam Lane Hors D’Oeuvre Tray
Spode Christmas Tree Square Handled PlatterWooden White Christmas Sandwich Tray, MelamineCertified International Homestead Christmas Rectangular PlatterGodinger Serving Tray Party PlatterCertified International Christmas Story Rectangular PlatterLenox Holiday Tree Shaped Party PlateBoston International Holiday Ceramic Rectangular Serving PlatterMud Pie Stoneware White Christmas Tree Serving PlatterLenox 830143 Holiday Serving Platter, Red & GreenDofira Acacia Wood Serving Platter with Antler HandlesSanta Chip and Dip PlatterLe Creuset Stoneware Noel CollectionSonemone 14 Inch Red Serving PlatterFarmhouse Merry Little Tray & Dip SetPfaltzgraff Winterberry Bless This House Plate –Santa, Snowman & Reindeer Ceramic 3-Section ServerChristmas Ceramic Serving Dish
When it comes to deciding which recipes to actually make, how many different appetizers you prepare and how much also depends on the flow and pace of your Christmas celebration.
If appetizers are something you serve while the main dinner is still being prepared and they are eaten over a longer course of time, you might want to make more than if your appetizer is a first course that will be quickly followed by the rest of the meal.
This list also has both hot and cold appetizer options. The cold items are great for a long-running party because you can leave them out for a longer period of time.
Just be sure to keep cool if necessary by placing plates in a tray of ice or use a serving tray or bowl with an ice compartment.
If needed, you can keep hot appetizers warm using a chafing dish, or make one or two appetizers at a time and serve once ready, which gives a nice rotation of foods to choose from during your party. That option does mean more time for you in the kitchen though.
Whatever your plan, one or more of these delicious appetizers for Christmas should work perfectly for your celebration.
50+ Festive Christmas Appetizer Recipes
Start your Christmas dinner or holiday celebration with a burst of flavor when you serve one or more of these delicious Christmas appetizers!
This elevated appetizer Recipe is a beautiful and delicious way to start any dinner party or get-together. The bright color of the cranberries is extra festive!
This festive Christmas charcuterie forms fresh mozzarella, Italian cold cuts, fresh basils and tomato into the shape of a candy cane!
Thin slices of potatoes and Italian cheeses combine in this easily elegant appetizer.
Mini peppers are stuffed with a cream cheese and bacon filling to make this delicious appetizer. They're even keto friendly! You can choose to use only green and red peppers to make it Christmas color coordinated.
This easy-to-make puff pastry delight perfect for a family celebration or to kick off dinner. This recipe uses leaf cookie cutters to decorate the pastry, but you could switch it to snowflakes or another wintery theme.
For an appetizer with a kick, make buffalo deviled eggs! They're very pretty with the red sauce and green chives and taste fantastic!
I think this one is absolutely adorable! This cheese ball in the shape of a Christmas tree is decorated with peppers, pine nuts and parsley.
Fresh celery is stuffed with cream cheese and cheddar with extra flavor from bacon and everything bagel seasoning.
Start your meal the same way you do at Red Lobster - with these delicious and easy-to-make Cheddar Bay Biscuits!
Long, thin slices of cucumber help to form the branches of this pretty little Christmas tree shaped appetizer bite.
For an appetizer the kids will love (who am I kidding - EVERYONE loves these) make creamy on the inside, crunchy on the outside mac and cheese bites!
This easy-to-make appetizer uses frozen mozzarella sticks combined with cherry tomatoes and fresh basil. The combination of red and green makes them look Christmassy!
For a deliciously sweet Christmas appetizer, try this Hot Cocoa Dip! It has all the flavors of a cup of hot chocolate blended up in a cool and creamy dip perfect for dipping graham crackers, pretzels, cookies and more.
Dip is a must for any party, no matter the occasion or holiday!
Bright red cranberries give salsa a new twist. Serve it with tortilla chips, veggies, or for dipping chicken apps.
Combine the salty goodness of bacon and parmesan to create a super yummy appetizer.
For another festive Christmaas charcuterie board option, I love this Christmas wreath! It's packed with good things to eat. The salami rosette is my favorite!
Not just a side dish, roasted brussel sprouts make an excellent appetizer.
Offer a gluten-free appetizer option with these mushrooms stuffed with a quinoa filling.
Meatballs get a classic holiday touch with the addition of cranberries. This recipe can also be made in the slow cooker, Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi.
A dinner time favorite goes bite-size with these delectable bites.
This light, creamy and elegant salmon appetizer is ready in less than 5 minutes. What a great way to impress with only a small amount of effort!
Bacon and ranch are both delicious on their own, but combinging them into a cheese ball takes the whole think to the next level!
Build a towering Christmas tree of olives! This one is so pretty it also makes an excellent table centerpiece! I'm thinking two or three on the table would be evene better!
Ground turkey is mixed with cranberry sauce and dried sage for a hearty appetizer perfect for the holidays.
Shrimp are tossed with olive oil, minced garlic, lemon juice, and parmesan cheese and then baked on a sheet pan in this easy recipe.
This elegant appetizer is actually super easy to make with only 3 ingredients: cream cheese, bacon and dates.
Such a beautiful Christmas appetizer! Flavorful bruschetta with lots of goodies is shaped to look like a Christmas Tree!
Arancini are an authentic Italian rice ball that are stuffed and fried. So good!
Bacon, brie, and a touch of maple syrup into one delicious bite that's both salty and sweet!
Who says sweet is only for dessert?!?! Start your Christmas dinner with this deliciously sweet and creamy egg nog dip!
Creamy green guacamole is formed into a Christmas wreath complete with "holly berry" tomatoes!
Sweet potatoes are a holiday tradition and we have a way to stuff them!
Hot artichoke dip is a party food classic! It's surprisingly easy to make with a jar of marinated artichoke hearts as the star.
Comfort food to the core, this pull-apart bread gets a kick from jalapeno peppers.
Start with a tube of polenta and add thinly sliced apple and crumbled gorgonzola for a delicious start to your holiday meal.
Make delicious garlicky meatballs with Grandma's recipe!
This classic French pastry is filled with a savory filling featuring chicken and mushrooms. Aren't they pretty?!?
Everything tastes better when it's deep fried! These beer battered brussels sprouts will make even the veggie haters ask for more.
Starting with spinach tortilla wraps makes this appetizer perfect for Christmas. The little pinwheels are filled with cream cheese, ranch seasoning and red bell pepper.
Mushroom lovers will swoon over this delicious crostini made even better with wine and herbs.
Circle your favorite dip with broccoli, cherry tomatoes, and cauliflower florets to make this festive and healthy raw veggie tray.
You can't get much more beautiful than these tasty little garts featuring bright red cranberries and gruyere cheese.
How fun is this?!? Made from pizza dough and cheese, these garlicky little pizza bites can be dipped in your favorite dipping sauce!
Olives and walnuts combine with cream cheese to stuff into celery for this classic appetizer.
Featuring classic Christmas colors, these creamy little bites are simple to make.
Steak makes this appetizer super hearty and the smoky roasted piquillo pepper sauce makes it extra good.
This elegant fish appetizer can be made ahead of time. It's tasty, healthy and easy to make.
Apple slices are spread with seasoned cream cheese and then topped with arugula and bacon crumbles in this delicious and easy-to-make appetizer.
Be original with a refried bean dip for a party app or to kick off your meal.
It only takes a few moments to put together this festive dip that gets a burst of flavor from sweet orange marmalade.
It only takes three ingredients to make this delicious and cheesy appetizer. Serve it with crackers or toasted bread - or even make a sandwich out of it!
Juicy shrimp are wrapped in crispy bacon and brushed with a sweet and spicy honey Cajun glaze in this eleveated appetizer.
Fondue is always fun whether it's served as an appetizer or if it's the star of the party!
Made with cream cheese, lime juice, and lump crab, this tasty dip comes together in just a few minutes.
It only takes a few minutes to make these cute little Christmas trees with uncured hot dogs, sausage or beef sticks along with English cucumbers and cherry tomatoes.
Which ones do you think you’ll serve for your Christmas celebrations?
Want some great recipes for the END of your meal? Check out these fun Sweet Treats recipes for Christmas!
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