12 Easy Holiday Side Dishes

Have you been making the same holiday dishes year after year? If you want to try something new here are twelve easy holiday side dishes – emphasis on easy! – to try this year. There are a few classics (hello, cranberry sauce and creamed spinach!) and plenty of new and creative sides that have just a handful of ingredients and don’t require a lot of steps and time to get them on the table. I hope you find a new family favorite!

12 Easy Holiday Side Dishes

Easy Holiday Side Dishes

Click on the photos or the recipe title to get more details about these easy holiday side dishes!

glazed carrots in a pan.

LEMON-HONEY GLAZED CARROTSGirl Gone Gourmet | Simple carrots cooked on the stove with some lemon juice and honey, until they’re tender and pick up a little caramelization. They don’t take up space in the oven and take all of 20 minutes start to finish.

,Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Blistered Green Beans with Potatoes

BLISTERED GREEN BEANS WITH POTATOESTwo Healthy Kitchens | Leave the canned green beans on the shelf because these roasted fresh green beans might be your new favorite holiday side dish. Serve them on their own or add in some potatoes for an easy side that goes with any main course. Also, learn how to prep them ahead to make your holiday cooking life easier.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Roasted Beets and Carrots

MAPLE ROASTED BEETS AND CARROTS – Salt and Lavender | Holiday dishes tend to be more on the brown side of things – the turkey, mashed potatoes, and gravy need a little pop of color to share the plate. Hello, technicolor beets and carrots! How beautiful is that bowl of veggies? They’re simple to make, too. Just roast and toss them in a sweet maple glaze and they are ready to go.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Broccoli Salad with Bacon

BROCCOLI SALAD WITH BACONSugar Spun Run | Broccoli salad is one of those year-round go-to side dishes and for this time of year, dressing it up with some cranberries and nuts makes it a great option for the holiday table.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Pomegranate Mint Relish

POMEGRANATE MINT RELISHMy Kitchen LoveI love this creative relish – the color is wonderful and I imagine the pomegranate and mint flavors add a pop of freshness that’s a nice contrast to traditionally heavier and richer holiday dishes. Plus, you can make it ahead and just pull it out of the fridge when it’s time to eat.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranate and Pecans

POMEGRANATE PECAN BRUSSELS SPROUTSDinner at the Zoo | More pomegranate, but this time it’s with brussels sprout and pecans. This easy side has very little prep and takes about 30 minutes start to finish with most of it hands-off time freeing you up to focus on other dishes that need to be made.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Creamed Spinach

CREAMED SPINACHSavory Tooth | Creamed spinach is a holiday dinner classic and this version cooks up in one pot in about 15 minutes. Top it with shaved parmesan and it’s ready to go!

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Roasted Balsamic Brussels Sprouts and Shallots

BALSAMIC ROASTED BRUSSELS SPROUTS AND SHALLOTSGirl Gone GourmetWhen I roast brussels sprouts I like them deeply caramelized and tend to leave them in the oven for an amount of time some might think is too long. But, doing it this way turns them into little veggie candies – they are so sweet and tender. Pair them with some sweet roasted shallots and some balsamic and you get a super easy side dish that is full of flavor.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Italian Green Salad with Homemade Dressing

ITALIAN GREEN SALAD WITH HOMEMADE DRESSINGCooking with Mamma C | With so many rich dishes sometimes it’s nice to have something that is crisp and cold and, of course, easy to make like this simple green salad dressed with a homemade Italian dressing.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Roasted Parmesan Potatoes

ROASTED PARMESAN POTATOESGirl Gone Gourmet | Instead of mashed potatoes how about some roasted potatoes? All you have to do is toss some potatoes in olive oil and salt and let them roast until crispy and hot. Top them with grated Parmesan and serve!

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

WHOLE BERRY CRANBERRY SAUCEBeyond the Chicken Coop | Cranberry sauce is another classic and if you’ve only had the stuff in the can this is the year to try homemade cranberry sauce! This recipe has just four ingredients and calls for less sugar than other recipes allowing the tart cranberries to shine.

Easy Holiday Side Dishes: Peas with Scallions and Dill

PEAS WITH SCALLIONS AND DILLVeggies Don’t Bite | Sometimes we might get tired of our family recipes, so borrowing someone else’s old family recipe is a great way to enjoy a new recipe that we know tried-and-true. Sophia shares her mom’s simple peas with scallions and dill, a beloved family side dish, which might just end up being your family’s new favorite side dish.

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3 Comments

  1. This is such an absolutely gorgeous line-up of truly easy side dishes! They’re all so lovely that no one will even realize how they made life a little simpler on a busy holiday! Absolutely want every stressed-out hostess needs! Can’t wait to share this! Thanks a million for including our Blistered Green Beans – we’re honored to be part of such a wonderful recipe collection!

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