Christmas gatherings deserve food that brings people together—and nothing sets the mood like delicious holiday appetizers. Whether you’re hosting a formal Christmas dinner, a casual family gathering, or a festive holiday work potluck, these Christmas appetizers and easy finger foods make entertaining effortless.

From warm bites and cheesy dips to elegant handheld snacks, and make-ahead options, this collection has something for every party. Mix, match, and build your perfect holiday menu!

read more: If you’re looking for more sweet Christmas dessert options, check our our Christmas cookies and treats recipe roundup!

Holiday Classics & Crowd Favorites

These are the appetizers everyone expects at a Christmas party—warm, creamy, cheesy, and always demolished by the end of the night.

Sometimes the simplest things end up being the biggest wins. That’s how I feel about this cheesy, crispy, Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadilla. My boys and I threw them together a few weeks ago for the first time with some of the items we tend to on hand in the freezer. Suffice it to say that these are way tastier than they have any right to be!

Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadilla

I fell in love with the Just Bare brand of frozen chicken bites several years ago when I first found them at Costco. We make ours in the air fryer, and they are the perfect solution for adding some quick protein to a salad or a sandwich.

I could lie and tell you that this recipe was a long series of difficult developments. But, it’s so much simpler than that. We literally just threw together our favorite air fried chicken bites with cheese and some crumbled leftover bacon. Dip your hot quesadillas in some homemade ranch and it all still counts as cooking, OK?

And for what it’s worth, I’ll happily eat this for lunch, or for dinner. And I do. On repeat, my friends. I eat this on repeat. I’ve made a LOT of quesadillas over the years. They’re one of my favorite quick snacks or meals, and they never get old because you can just swap out ingredients.

And, what I’ve learned while making probably hundreds if not thousands of quesadillas over the years is that the right pan makes a big difference for steady, even heat. This hard anodized non-stick pan is HANDS DOWN the best nonstick pan I have ever used. Don’t waste your money on the trendy and viral brand names. I’ve owned them, and they aren’t worth it. This one will not let you down.

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These Pinwheel Cookies are a treasured family favorite straight from Grandma’s cookbook! Delicious vanilla cookie dough is rolled up with a sweet raisin filling that bakes into the most nostalgic treat. They’re the perfect Christmas cookies but just as delicious any time of year.

Even if you’re not a raisin lover, trust me, your whole family will fall for these!

These pinwheel cookies are sneaky little delights with delicious raisin-filled swirls, simple to look at but impossible to stop eating. They’ve been a hit with my cousins for years, and now we keep the tradition alive in our own kitchen.

I’ll never forget standing in my grandma’s kitchen, pouring the vanilla and feeling trusted to help. Baking these cookies instantly brings back those warm, silly, perfect memories. Grab a kid, make a batch, tell some stories, and pass the magic (and the vanilla) along.

Pinwheel Cookies Ingredients

This great recipe has two parts: the cookie dough and the raisin pinwheel filling. I’ve seen recipes online for date pinwheel cookies, but my family has always made the filling with raisins.

Here’s what you’ll need to make pinwheel cookies:

• Vanilla Extract: Boosts flavor and adds warmth
• Shortening: Provides structure and tenderness for the cookie dough
• Granulated Sugar: Adds sweetness and helps with spreading
• Brown Sugar: Adds moisture, chewiness, and rich flavor
• Eggs: Bind the dough and add moisture
• All-Purpose Flour: Forms the base of the cookie dough
• Salt: Enhances all the flavors
• Baking Soda: Helps cookies rise and brown
• Raisins: Sweet filling for the pinwheel center
• Water: Moistens the raisin filling

How To Make Grandma’s Pinwheel Cookies:

Don’t let the pretty pinwheel pattern fool you into thinking these cookies are tough to make! These Christmas pinwheel cookies require little prep work and are super simple t

December 6, 2025

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! It’s a chilly one here in Ohio. I have pipes that tend to freeze here in my studio, so we’ve had faucets going on a slow drip for days (yes, that’s really a thing, friends in Phoenix) and I’m grateful to know to do this now after the first few years of frozen pipes. 

Anyone with a different solution? Feel free to message me, we’ve had plumbers look at the situation and basically shrug or tell us it’s just an old house, so I think we’re probably stuck with this method. At least the pipes don’t freeze if we leave the faucets dripping when we have single digit temps. Weird way to start the newsletter, I know, but I’m hoping someone might have a creative solution we might not have tried!

ON THE BLOGS THIS WEEK: Whenever the temperature dips and soup season arrives, I find myself using my crockpot even more than usual more. I am convinced that this slow cooker white chicken chili is the reason crockpots exist. No stress. Just tender chicken, hearty beans, spicy chile, and a house that smells divine.

When it comes to dinners that are lightning fast but still feel luxurious, baked pesto salmon is the way to go. Topped with a homemade parsley pesto with crunchy pine nuts, this dinner takes just 20 minutes from start to finish!

Store-bought puff pastry just might be the ultimate kitchen hack. No more rolling butter and dough and waiting. Just an easy solution for the flaky, buttery crust we all crave. And, this elegant chicken pot pie with puff pastry puts it to good use, covering a savory filling that is loaded with tender chicken, hearty vegetables, and a creamy sauce.

Leafy greens, crunchy apple slices, and chewy raisins are fabulous together in this spinach apple salad with a tangy sweet dressing. The salad is a delightful balance of flavors and textures, making it one of my favorites to share with friends.

Creamy peanut butter, chewy marshmallows, indulgent almond bark, Rice Krispies, and chocolate chips? Stop talking, I’m already interested! But, combine them in a no-bake cookie recipe? Oh, yeah. Sign me up. These unbelievably good avalanche cookies are ready to eat in just 10 minutes.

Decadent fudgy mint brownies are topped with a peppermint buttercream frosting and a heavenly dark chocolate ganache. I may be biased, but you won’t find a better brownie recipe out there. And, bonus? They’re way easier to make than they look!

There’s something gleefully unrestrained about turning a drink as comforting as horchata into ice cream. You still get the sweet, creamy flavors of cinnamon and vanilla in horchata

Our Antipasto Italian Focaccia Recipe is the ultimate way to use up leftover charcuterie ingredients for the most delicious and easy bread recipe! You’re going to love the salty, chewy crust, tender crumb and those meaty toppings!

I was on a phone call with an important business colleague who knows his stuff. I casually mentioned that we were working on both a focaccia bread and pasta recipe that helps to use up the leftovers from a charcuterie board or antipasto board. He immediately chimed in that he loves charcuterie and is often stuck in the same dilemma; what do I do with all of this stuff?!

Why I Love Antipasto Focaccia Bread

I’m the queen of “recreate it.” I don’t love when we make something that needs a very special ingredient or a bunch of things that I just need a little of but you have no choice but to buy a lot.

I LOVE this focaccia bread because not only does it use up leftovers, but it’s also so satisfying! In fact, because of the meats and olives, it’s a hearty bread that can totally count as a main dish at dinner. It’s like pizza!

Ingredients for Antipasto Focaccia Bread

• Flour: Adds structure and the base of our bread.
• Water: Essential to get that yeast going and make the bread.
• Salt: While many Italian breads skip the salt, like in Florence, I never do.
• Sugar: Helps the yeast rise and balances the acid and salt of this dish.
• Yeast: Get that bread rising and fluffy.
• Meats: Grab any combination you love on a normal antipasto platter.
• Olives: We love a mixture from kalamata to black.
• Tomatoes: Try using fresh and sun dried for more texture and flavor.
• Peppers: We love a touch of smokiness from a roasted red pepper.
• Artichokes: Adds a little brine and acid to the bread.

How to Make Antipasto Focaccia Bread

1. Stir: Make the bread by simply stirring together the flour, salt, sugar and water.
2. Refrigerate: Let this bread dough sit overnight in the fridge for enhanced flavor and texture.
3. Chop: Chop all of your ingredients to the same size so nothing cooks more than the ingredient next to it.
4. Dock the Bread