55 Christmas Side Dishes You Need In Your Holiday Spread

These are the crispiest potatoes ever, thanks to a cornstarch slurry! For some flavor, we added rosemary and garlic, but just like our other roasted potatoes, feel free to add any herbs or flavors your heart desires.

Get the Roasted Fingerling Potatoes recipe.

Quick: Name one thing better than creamy, buttery, steamy, perfect mashed potatoes! See? You can't! So put down the instant potatoes, grab your favorite spuds, a large pot, a masher, and let's get ready for comfort in a bowl.

Get the Perfect Mashed Potatoes recipe.

The dried cranberries and balsamic vinegar add some sweetness and tartness, while the pecans add a crunch to these holiday-worthy vegetables. We use Brussels sprouts and carrots, but feel free to add extra vegetables or swap in some of your favorites.

Get the Holiday Roasted Vegetables recipe.

Is it even the holidays without this cozy side? This recipe makes green bean casserole even simpler; instead of using an oven, it can be mixed and cooked in your slow cooker.

Get the Crockpot Green Bean Casserole recipe.

Adding sweet potatoes to your spread is an easy and delicious way to eat healthy during the holidays—the vegetable is a total superfood, packed with vitamin C and fiber. They're also totally versatile, but baking them whole in the oven is arguably the simplest way to prepare them, and they will be the perfect base for all types of toppings.

Get the Perfect Baked Sweet Potato recipe.

Sweet baby carrots are the perfect match for this tangy balsamic glaze. Fancy enough for a holiday meal but easy enough for a weeknight, this recipe is endlessly riffable and guaranteed to deliver crisp-tender carrots every time.

Get the Roasted Baby Carrots recipe.

Have a leftover baked potato? The only logical thing to do is to mash the insides and make dinner rolls. These are truly the fluffiest. Dinner. Rolls. Ever. Fresh out of the oven, each roll has a crispy bottom, buttery top, and unbelievably soft center.

Get the Fluffy Potato Rolls recipe.

This simple yet satisfying wintery salad packs a flavorful punch with slightly smoky seared pears, creamy blue cheese, and ultra-crunchy candied pumpkin seeds. Tied together by a sweet-sour honey vinaigrette, it’s the perfect holiday side (or add some protein to make it a main!).

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We took our favorite green bean casserole and then wrapped individual portions in bacon. It's genius, really.

Get the Green Bean Casserole Bundles recipe.

There is nothing as creamy and decadent as risotto. This easy rice dish is as comforting as it comes, and while it may seem intimidating, it really is simple. All you need is an hour, some arborio rice, good-quality chicken broth, a little butter, cheese, and wine, along with your favorite aromatics like onion, garlic, and basil.

Get the Risotto recipe.

The air fryer works some kind of magic on potatoes—they get extra crispy all over and stay perfectly soft on the inside. Toss them in just a little bit of oil so all of the seasonings stick to make these the most delicious potatoes ever.

Get the Air Fryer Potatoes recipe.

These simple green beans come with a treat: 8 cloves of creamy, buttery garlic that get air-fried alongside the green beans for bites of roasted garlic that don’t involve turning on your oven. You can eat them alongside the beans or reserve them for another use, like smearing alongside butter and flaky sea salt on a slice of toasted sourdough bread.

Get the Air Fryer Green Beans recipe.

Need something else to do with your apple orchard haul? Kale yeah you do! Pair apples and kale with dried cherries, toasty almonds, and feta for a salad everyone will love this holiday season.

Get the Kale Salad with Apples and Toasted Almonds recipe.

Creamed spinach is a simple side dish that is also the perfect way to use up any dying spinach. The creaminess will make you forget you're eating spinach and turn anyone into a fan of leafy greens. It seems like a lot of spinach, but it will boil down to almost nothing, so don't skimp on it.

Get the Creamed Spinach recipe.

The flavor squad is here to provide standard corn muffins with a mega boost. The result is pimiento cheese corn muffins, which take their cues from the classic Southern cheese dip. Packed with shredded cheddar, diced pimiento peppers, garlic powder, and a generous amount of cayenne, the result is a savory delight.

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This sweet potato salad is the perfect way to lighten up any autumnal dinner, and especially your holiday spread. Feta, dried cranberries, and red onions pair really nicely with the earthy sweetness of the orange super food. Did we mention it's great warm or cold (which means you can make it ahead!)?

Get the Sweet Potato Salad recipe.

Just a heads up: Any dish that features the word “candied” is bound to be on the sweet side and more than likely something you won’t be eating every day. That said, don’t be shy about the amount of butter and brown sugar that goes into these candied carrots: Decadence is the goal here!

Get the Candied Carrots recipe.

Even though we love the stewy eggplant and squash interior here, our favorite part might just be the layered potatoes with melty cheese. We used Gruyère, as it's the melty cheese of choice in many French dishes, but feel free to use your favorite cheese to add to this bubbly baked dish.

Get the Vegetable Casserole recipe.

We all love classic sweet potato casserole, but sometimes it feels like the marshmallows steal the spotlight. So this year, why not mix it up—literally—and try mashing them instead? Steamed 'til beautifully tender and then blended with plenty of butter and half-and-half, these easy mashed sweet potatoes are creamy and just sweet enough. You won’t even miss the marshmallows.

Get the Mashed Sweet Potatoes recipe.

Beet lovers rejoice! This is the ideal fall and winter salad: creamy goat cheese (sub feta if you prefer it), roasted beets, avocado, and arugula. The secret is that instead of buying precooked beets, you simply wrap them in foil and bake them like a baked potato. It takes about an hour, but the resulting beets will be tender, earthy, and slightly sweet in a way that no store-bought beet can.

Get the Roasted Beet Goat Cheese Salad recipe.