When we think of Christmas, lights, presents, affection, but also a lot of food come to mind. Between sweet and savoury, the Christmas season is rich in traditional recipes in all parts of the world.

Every country brings its own specialities to the table, both for Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas lunch, which are handed down from generation to generation. Flavours that bind families and peoples together and bring back childhood memories, the older ones, and can be new for the little ones who are experiencing life for the first time.

What magic is Christmas! A spell that is repeated every year and always manages to create indescribable emotions, perhaps more than any other holiday. Of course it is also a busy time, especially when it comes to preparing the recipes with which to delight the whole family or for flatmates, a second family that welcomes members of other nationalities or with different habits and traditions.

Living in a shared flat also means sharing different traditions and organising a Christmas dinner with roommates is a perfect opportunity to prepare the world's most famous Christmas recipes! You can choose one recipe each if you come from different countries and regions, otherwise, to help you out, we have prepared a list with Christmas menu ideas: from starters, through first and main courses, to desserts and concluding with suggestions for great cocktails for each toast.

Have fun with all our recipes and find the best combinations for you!

Easy Christmas recipes for appetisers

What a Christmas lunch or dinner would be if it did not start with starters! So many different and tasty dishes that serve precisely to start whetting the palate and prepare for the main courses, i.e., the first and second courses. Missing the starters is like starting a sporting activity without having warmed up first, so you can't give up.

The secret of hors d'oeuvres is that they must be beautiful, tasty and fairly quick to prepare, so here are some perfect ideas for all tastes:

• Smoked salmon: with which you can make canapés, small milk sandwiches, filled vol au vents or simply arrange slices of salmon, alternating with fresh spreadable cheese, slices of lime or perhaps some avocado curls forming a garland, then a circle composition in a round dish in the middle of which you can put breadsticks and toast;
• Bacon rolls: fry the bacon so that it is crispy but soft enough to be rolled around chunks of cheese and then topped with a few basil leaves;
• Vegetarian rolls: instead of bacon you can use slices of grilled courgette and for the filling spreadable fresh cheese and chopped chives, in which case you can garnish with more chives or mint leaves for a fresher taste;
• Shrimp cocktail: simply sprinkle the shrimps with pink sauce to taste and then serve in bowls with a few salad leaves;
• Mini cocktail of datterini tomatoes and stracciatella: in small glasses or bowls put some fresh stracciatella and garnish with datterini tomatoes cut in half or in four, dress with a drizzle of oil and a basil leaf;
• Ceviche: a Latin American dish, typical of Costa Rica, made with fresh fish, lime, pepper and onion;
• Pan de Jamón: a traditional Venezuelan dish, a bread stuffed with ham, smoked bacon, green olives and sultanas;
• Empanadas: typical Argentinian dumplings filled with beef, peppers, spices and hard-boiled egg; they can also be made with cheese filling or a vegetable variation for vegetarians, although real Argentine carnivores might turn up their noses;
• Quiches and savoury pies: Quiche Lorraine is typical French and can be made with infinite variations of filling, really for all palates.

There are so many possibilities for preparing appetisers. If you are looking for something from a particular country, we suggest you identify that country's favourite foods and then indulge in finger food preparations.

Famous Christmas main dishes around the world

Coming to the main dishes, let's not make a real distinction between first and second courses, but let's discover some of the typical recipes in different parts of the world.

ITALY

The first thing to clarify is that, traditionally, in the north we celebrate mainly with lunch on 25 December, while in the south we start with Christmas Eve dinner. Generally speaking, dinner on 24 December is fish-based, while Christmas lunch is usually meat-based. Among the most traditional dishes are:

• Lasagne, ravioli, tortellini in broth;
• Salt cod, polenta, eel;
• Tripe with sauce or cheese;
• Stuffed capon, liver, roast lamb, roast turkey, stewed stew;
• Baked fish or pasta with fish sauce;
• Risottos or pasta dishes.

SPAIN

Even in Spain, there are those who celebrate mainly on the 24th and those who prefer lunch on the 25th. In any case, each Spanish community has its own Christmas recipes of which they are very proud and almost jealous:

• Escudella: a soup made with potatoes, cabbage and different types of meat in which a special shell-shaped pastry is cooked;
• Stuffed turkey: the dough for the stuffing is a little different depending on the locality, but usually the leftover meat is then used to make cannelloni;
• Cocido: typical Madrid soup made with chickpeas, vegetables, potatoes and veal and pork;
• Risottos;
• Lamb with white wine and herbs or meatballs, las albondigas, typical of Valencia and Murcia.

FRANCE

In France, snails, oysters, salmon and pâté de foie gras are a tradition. For those who are not used to them, the flavours and textures may be a little unusual, but they are worth trying. Some of the most typical dishes include:

• Coquilles Saint-Jacques: a large shellfish that is au gratin and baked in the oven;
• Fressure de porc: pork offal with potatoes;
• Turkey with chestnuts;
• Goose or a piece of ham baked in the oven;
• Soups and cheese fondues in which to dip meat or vegetables.

GERMANY

Meat dishes are also popular in Germany, such as:

• Roast goose;
• Roast suckling pig;
• Boiled white sausages;
• Potatoes, red cabbage and onions;
• Christstollen: a bread made with nuts, sultanas, lemon and dried fruit.

GREAT BRITAIN

England, Wales, Scotland and elsewhere juggle tasty carnivorous preparations:

• Cornish pasty: with veal, onions and potatoes;
• turkey also excels here;
• Pigs in Blankets: sausages wrapped in slices of bacon;
• Roast Beef;
• Beer stew.

AMERICA

Here we see both typical US recipes and others that are mainly from Latin America:

• USA: the famous roast turkey that dominates tables especially on Thanksgiving, Mashed potatoes, i.e. an ultra-creamy mashed potato; pies stuffed with chicken or turkey meat;
• Latin America: in addition to the Empanadas mentioned earlier and grilled meats as Christmas is done with short sleeves, there are other dishes that come from the European or even Italian tradition or reinterpretations of meat and pasta.

At the end of this review of exceptional dishes, the desserts that are the one and only conclusion of the Christmas meal cannot be missed.

Dessert Ideas

In Italy, the Christmas sweet par excellence is Panettone, closely followed by Pandoro. There are usually two factions: those who side with Panettone, rich in raisins and candied fruit, or covered in chocolate or pistachio cream; those who cheer for Pandoro, more elongated in shape and served with mascarpone cream. Then there are those with a sweet tooth who don't give up either! Typical especially in southern Italy are struffoli, mostaccioli, chocolate truffles and amaretti biscuits.

Famous in Great Britain is Christmas Pudding, a pudding made of dried fruit, candied fruit, almonds, rum and spices. Hidden inside is a chocolate coin that will bring good luck to whoever finds it. Not to be forgotten are the famous ginger biscuits with sugar decorations of English origin.

In Spain, the most famous cake is the Roscon de Reies, shaped like a doughnut and reminiscent of the texture and flavour of brioche, also made with candied fruit and sugar. Also, somewhat like in Italy, nougat and marzipan are traditional sweets.

In general, the worldwide Christmas tradition sees sweets rich in dried fruit and candied fruit, with cinnamon or ginger flavours, chocolates of all kinds or sweets reminiscent of Christmas trees, reindeer, snowmen and gift packs. It is not only the recipe that makes Christmas, but also the creativity in making it.

Merry Christmas cocktails

Another thing that is typical of Christmas, as of all festivities, are the toasts of good wishes. So let's see how to accompany all the delicacies we have mentioned with some excellent drinks.

In addition to bottles of wine, bubbly, red, white and rosé wines, here are some simple cocktail ideas to make your best wishes even tastier:

• Christmas Spitz: you can make it with Aperol or Campari, to give it a perfect orange or red colour;
• Negroni or Negroni Sbagliato;
• Bellini: more delicate, ideal to accompany the starter
• Mimosa: with orange juice and champagne.

The advice is to choose brightly coloured cocktails that will make the atmosphere even more fun. Then follow your own tastes and those of family and friends, and in the end, Christmas will be perfect if you are in the place and with the people you consider home.