Casual Christmas Eve Dinner Ideas

My family's custom as I was growing up was to have a large meal on Christmas Day, but to get together at Grandma's for a casual Christmas Eve dinner the night before. She would prepare "snack foods" -- chicken salad, homemade cheese dip, lots of chips, cookies, other sweets, and appetizers.

We are embracing that custom this year for our Christmas Eve dinner, when we will be hosting my husband's family. Here are my casual Christmas Eve dinner ideas for those who like to have a good time on Christmas Eve but who want to save the turkey and ham for Christmas Day:

Quesadilla Party -- The bulk of our Christmas Eve dinner will be a quesadilla bar, where everyone can build their own quesadillas with toppings they choose. I got this idea from Pioneer Woman's Superbowl Party (see accompanying links). I will prepare a variety of pre-cooked and seasoned veggies, meats, and cheeses so that everyone can assemble their own quesadilla according to their tastes. Some filling ideas would be sautéed onions, bell peppers (all colors), mushrooms, zucchini, fajita-seasoned beef or chicken strips, and pico de gallo. My favorite cheeses for this are Monterey (or pepper) jack, sharp cheddar, and Colby. Don't forget to serve sour cream alongside!

Other Appetizers -- In keeping with the Tex-Mex theme of our Christmas Eve dinner, I will also serve stuffed jalepenos (jalepeno peppers stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped with bacon -- secure with toothpick and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes), pico de gallo (finely chopped tomato, cilantro, onion, jalepeno, and garlic with a squirt of lime and salt), and guacamole (pico de gallo mixed with mashed avocado) along with tortilla chips. My husband is pushing for hot wings, too; so we'll see if we can squeeze that into the budget and time line!

On the Lighter Side -- To lighten things up a bit (and keep us all in decent shape for Christmas dinner!), I plan to serve a spring mix salad with homemade ranch dressing (as well as other store-bought varieties).

Dessert -- To polish off our casual Christmas Eve dinner, we will have a variety of sweets including Oreo ice cream pie, pumpkin roll, and turtle cheesecake.

We look forward to enjoying our casual Christmas Eve dinner with family and friends and hope that you benefit from these ideas. If you have any suggestions to contribute, please leave them in the comments section!