I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season! When we got married this year, I knew I wanted to start a new tradition of hosting Christmas dinner. In fact, when we bought our house, I had visions of the whole family gathered around our table on Christmas and knew I needed to make it happen! I love hosting, and usually have friends over for football games or New Year’s Eve but hosting an actual dinner like this was a little intimidating but I was determined to do a great job!
Tablescape
One thing that was super important to me was making sure the tablescape was beautiful but not over the top. When I was shopping in Hobby Lobby one day, I saw this village set and knew that it would be the perfect centerpiece for our table. When I registered for wedding gifts earlier in the year, I made sure to add Christmas dinnerware (we aren’t really fine china people but I wanted something special), to make my table feel special! We had to bring up an extra table and chairs to accommodate everyone but here is my set table!
I also used some of the leftover chargers, votives, and candles from my wedding to add some lighting and a little extra oomph to the table!
Shop my tablescape here:
Menu
The menu was probably the most intimidating part to me, as I had never made a prime rib before and that’s what my husband’s family likes to eat on Christmas. My mother in law brought a ham, and desserts were provided by my sister in law’s grandma so after scouring Pinterest for hours, here is the menu that I made:
- Bacon wrapped Smokies and a cheese plate for an appetizer
- Garlic Herb Prime Rib (this recipe)
- Mac and Cheese (this recipe except I only used sharp and white cheddar)
- Green Beans (the way my mom makes them- with bacon and white onion, I’ll put a recipe up soon!)
- Mashed Potatoes
- Stuffing (from the box because it’s way too much work lol)
Everyone loved it and I got so many compliments! I don’t have any pictures of the finished buffet but here is a before and after of my first prime rib ever!
All in all, it was a beautiful evening and I’m so happy I was able to accomplish this- it has been such a dream for so long, and I’m so happy I could share my love of food with my family!
Have you hosted a holiday dinner before? Let me know over on Instagram!