Best Italian Christmas Dinner Menu
Easy Italian Christmas dinner ideas for an elegant and delicious holiday meal for your family. Lots of festive Italian pasta recipes, easy Italian breads, and classic Italian desserts for a memorable Christmas feast.

Our family's favorite Christmas dinner usually involves a satisfying Christmas pasta dish like lasagna along with fresh bread and a salad.
We love this solution to the Christmas menu because it is widely popular with the whole family, easy to make ahead and serve, and the clean up after is nice and easy.
With all the festive colors that red tomato sauce and fresh green basil or spinach bring to the table, these Italian Christmas recipes are the perfect choice for your holiday dinner.
If you want our family's annual menu, you'll want to make:
And then add either the easy tiramisu or my husband's favorite panettone bread pudding with amaretto cream sauce.
But if you're looking for more options, I've gathered all my best Christmas pasta, side dishes, and desserts to help you plan the perfect Italian Christmas dinner.
Jump to:
- Make Ahead Sausage Lasagna
- Make Ahead Lasagna Roll Ups
- Classic Beef Bolognese Sauce
- Slowcooker Tuscan Chicken Pasta
- Baked Cheese Tortellini Skillet
- Pasta Rosa with Sausage
- Baked Chicken Parmesan
- Italian Sausage Pasta Casserole
- Pesto Chicken Casserole
- Christmas Charcuterie Board
- Bread Machine Focaccia
- Homemade Ciabatta Bread
- Homemade Italian Bread
- Homemade Garlic Bread
- Copycat Olive Garden Salad
- Caesar Salad
- Caprese Salad
- Panettone Bread Pudding
- Sweet Amaretto Sauce
- Easy Tiramisu
- Easy Cannoli Dip
- More Christmas Ideas
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Make Ahead Sausage Lasagna
This is the classic Christmas dinner my mom and I have made for many years.
I prepare the sausage lasagna on Dec. 23 and cover it in foil in the fridge. Pop it in the oven on Christmas Day for the easiest dinner ever.
Make Ahead Lasagna Roll Ups
The ruffly edges of these lasagna roll-ups make a pretty presentation for your Christmas dinner.
The recipe is still so easy to prep ahead and just bake and serve for your meal.
Classic Beef Bolognese Sauce
This classic Italian beef bolognese sauce simmers on the stove top for a few hours and the meat gets so tender and rich.
It is the most delicious topping for your favorite pasta shape, served over gnocchi, or even eaten with fresh bread for dunking.
Slowcooker Tuscan Chicken Pasta
This rich and delicious Tuscan chicken pasta dish is filled with the colors of the season. Red and green and so festive!
It's perfect if you want to have dinner kept warm for when you come home from church or you are welcoming family and friends Open House style.
Baked Cheese Tortellini Skillet
For a smaller crowd, this crispy baked cheese tortellini skillet has a rich tomato sauce with bits of spinach for color.
The crispy bread crumb topping is our absolute favorite!
Pasta Rosa with Sausage
Creamy pasta rosa with savory sausage is a super easy fresh pasta dish to make fresh for Christmas dinner.
The touch of heavy cream helps the tomato sauce to cling to the pasta in the very best way.
Baked Chicken Parmesan
My chicken parmesan recipe is a make-ahead dinner you can prep up to 24 hours in advance.
Use my special baking tricks to ensure the breadcrumb coating bakes up perfectly crispy in the oven.
Italian Sausage Pasta Casserole
When we're not serving lasagna, you can bet this recipe is gracing our Christmas table.
My mom has made this sausage casserole for years and years and it is always a hit.
The trick?? Serve it with fresh pineapple! It's a unique choice but is perfect with this dish.
Pesto Chicken Casserole
Creamy pesto chicken casserole is another prep-ahead dish that is fun for Christmas.
Red and green veggies are sprinkled throughout and who could resist that crispy crumb topping??
Christmas Charcuterie Board
Plan a variety of Italian meats, cheeses, and olives for this absolutely adorable Santa-themed charcuterie board as an appetizer.
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Bread Machine Focaccia
Once you have your Christmas pasta chosen, pair it with a yummy fresh bread.
This bread machine focaccia will help soak up all the delicious pasta sauces from your plate. Top it with fresh rosemary before baking for a wonderful aroma.
Homemade Ciabatta Bread
My favorite ciabatta bread is the heartiest bread for your richest sauces. It also makes amazing toast with butter if you want to make a chicken parm sandwich.
Homemade Italian Bread
Bake a loaf of this Italian bread and cut it into wedges to serve alongside olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping. It is the easiest starter to your Italian Christmas dinner.
Homemade Garlic Bread
Homemade garlic bread with a perfectly crispy buttery top is always a family favorite for a holiday dinner. Cut it into wedges for the bread basket.
Copycat Olive Garden Salad
You can buy a bottle of the Olive Garden Italian dressing and make this simple copycat salad right at home.
BONUS: This is easy to scale for a large dinner.
Caesar Salad
Toss together a simple Caesar salad for your green vegetable. Everyone will be so happy with the pasta and bread, but it is nice to have an easy vegetable to go with it.
Caprese Salad
While typically a summer recipe, caprese salad is so festive for Christmas with the bright green basil and pretty red tomatoes.
Serve it with fresh mozzarella and your family will forgive you for serving a summertime classic.
Panettone Bread Pudding
The classic Italian Christmas bread panettone makes amazing bread pudding that works for a Christmas dessert for after dinner but leftovers could hang out for Christmas morning, too!
Sweet Amaretto Sauce
Top the panettone bread pudding with this sweet amaretto cream sauce or stir it into your after dinner coffee for a special treat.
Easy Tiramisu
The classic Italian dessert tiramisu is the perfect ending to your Christmas dinner because you can make the whole thing the day before and let it rest in the fridge. The lady fingers will soak up all that lovely espresso.
Easy Cannoli Dip
Pile up the butter cookies and dunk them into this rich and decadent cannoli dip with chopped pistachios and mini chocolate chips over the top.
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