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Healthy Christmas Sides

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These delicious, healthy Christmas sides are very tasty! They're the perfect side dishes for your holiday meal.

We've included some of our favorite healthy veggie sides, delicious salads, and fruit side dishes. You'll find roasted winter squash, greens, and more seasonal produce.

There are some classic Christmas side dishes as well as some new favorites that will be popular with the whole family.


An overhead shot of a white platter with persimmon and pear salad.

Healthy Salads for Christmas

  • Persimmon Salad with Pear - This delicious persimmon salad with pear and kale is a real treat. This tasty salad makes a great side dish.
  • Asian Pear Arugula Salad with Blue Cheese - This delicious Asian pear salad is made with blue cheese, arugula, frisée, and grapes. It's such a delicious and beautiful salad recipe.
  • Brussels Sprouts & Kale Salad - This shredded Brussels sprouts salad with kale and apples is quick and easy to make! It's full of crunchy bits and savory bits.
  • The Best Green Salad Recipe - This is the best green salad recipe - it's got crumbled pecorino, rich panko, soft butter lettuce, a bright jolt of red spring onions.
  • Roasted Grape Salad - This roasted grape salad is full of wonderful flavors! It’s a great side dish at a dinner party or for a holiday meal.

Roasted acorn squash on a white serving dish.
  • Roasted Acorn Squash - This delicious roasted acorn squash is a great side dish! You can also roast acorn squash and use it in salads or soups. It's incredibly flavorful and hearty.
  • Roasted Brussels Sprouts - Roasting Brussels sprouts brings out all their flavor! This great, easy side dish of roasted Brussels sprouts is always a hit.
  • Roasted Beets with Goat Cheese - This roasted beet salad with goat cheese recipe hits so many delicious flavor notes!
  • Roasted Squash and Grapes - This recipe for roasted squash and grapes is an elegant and delicious side dish for the holidays or other special meals.
  • Wild Rice Stuffed Delicata Squash - Wild rice pilaf heartied up with lentils, flavored with curry spices and cumin, and dotted with sweet dried cranberries and crunchy pecans - all served up in delicious roasted delicata squash halves. 
  • Roasted Root Vegetables - These caramelized roasted root vegetables with sweet potatoes, carrots and parsnips are such easy and healthy side dish. Great for the holidays or everyday meals.
  • Green Beans Almondine - A classic French recipe, green beans almondine, is elevated with sautéed shallots, garlic, freshly grated lemon zest, and lemon juice.

fennel gratin in a baking dish with a serving spoon

Healthier Casserole Recipes

  • Roasted Fennel Gratin - This fennel au gratin recipe is quite frankly wonderful.  This is a perfect side dish for a holiday dinner or a special meal!
  • Healthy Green Bean Casserole - This healthy green bean casserole recipe is made without canned soup! A delicious, from scratch recipe with incredible flavor.
  • Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole - This healthy sweet potato casserole is lightened-up, sugar-free version of the classic recipe! It's gluten-free, paleo and Whole30 compliant as well.
  • Wild Rice Pilaf - This wild rice pilaf recipe creates a side dish that’s full of delicious flavor. You can make this easy rice pilaf ahead of time, as it reheats well.

Healthy Potato Side Dishes

  • French Potato Salad - This French potato salad with green beans and hard boiled eggs is a hearty side dish.
  • Healthy Mashed Sweet Potatoes - These healthy mashed sweet potatoes are similar to a casserole but without the sugary topping. It's a lightened up savory recipe that pairs well with any protein!
  • Roasted Sweet Potatoes - These roasted sweet potatoes have a crispy caramelized exterior and a soft irresistible interior. The optional seasoning blend adds a perfect accent to these potatoes.
  • Artichoke Potato Salad with Dill - This delicious potato salad with dill is fresh and filling. It’s a simple recipe and is largely hands-off, as the bulk of the time is spent roasting the potatoes.

citrus fennel salad recipe

Side Dishes with Fruit

  • Citrus Fennel Salad Recipe - This salad combines grapefruit, Cara Cara oranges, blood oranges, fennel, and mozzarella into a delicious and bright fruit salad.
  • Citrus Pomegranate Salad - A delightful salad recipe that combines crumbly feta cheese, bright greens, slivered shallots, and a zesty dressing.
  • Homemade Cranberry Sauce - This homemade cranberry sauce is classic. Made from fresh or frozen cranberries and ready in 20 minutes.
  • Ham & Gruyere Tarts with Apples - These ham and cheese puff pastry tarts with apples are absolutely delicious! They're savory, flavorful, and easy to pull together. 
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Healthy Christmas Side Dishes

A large persimmon salad on a white platter.

Try one of our favorite healthy Christmas sides - this delicious pear and persimmon salad.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Additional Time 5 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 head Lacinato kale
  • 3 Fuyu persimmons
  • 1 Red Anjou pear*
  • 3 ounces crumbled goat cheese
  • 2 tablespoons slivered almonds
  • 2 tablespoons pepitas
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. Remove the kale leaves from the stem. Roll a few leaves together and cut them into very thin, long strips. Place the slivered kale in a mixing bowl. Top with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and massage it into the kale. Let the kale rest while preparing the rest of the salad. 
  2. Prepare your fruit by slicing the persimmons into ⅛ inch slices, then quarter those. Cut the pear into smaller pieces. 
  3. Toss the persimmons, pear, goat cheese almonds, and pepitas with the kale. 
  4. Whisk together the remaining two tablespoons of olive oil, red wine vinegar, sea salt, and black pepper. 
  5. Pour the dressing over the kale salad and toss to combine. 
  6. Plate on a large serving platter. 

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 282Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 636mgCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 7gSugar: 19gProtein: 6g

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