Christmas Brunch Recipes — When Breakfast Becomes the Main Event

For some families, Christmas brunch IS Christmas dinner. The Day's main meal happens at 11am or noon, then everyone naps, and the evening is leftovers and movies. If that's your tradition (or you want to start it), this is the guide.

Why brunch beats dinner for some families

Three reasons Christmas brunch makes sense:

1. Kids are already up early — feed them properly before the energy crashes
2. Less stress — no afternoon-long cooking project
3. More day for activities — the rest of Christmas Day is free

The mistake: trying to do both a big brunch AND a big dinner. Pick one as the centerpiece.

The brunch spread structure

A great Christmas brunch has 4-6 elements:

1. A centerpiece dish — a strata, frittata, casserole, or roast
2. A bread or pastry — cinnamon rolls, scones, croissants, bagels
3. A fruit element — fresh fruit, fruit salad, baked fruit
4. Something savory + simple — bacon, sausage, smoked salmon
5. Drinks — coffee + mimosas + sparkling cider
6. Sweet treat (optional) — a small dessert

The centerpiece dishes (pick one)

Cheesy sausage strata

See our Christmas breakfast ideas for the full recipe. Make Christmas Eve night, bake fresh in the morning. Feeds 8-10.

Smoked salmon platter

For elegant brunch with zero cooking:

• 8-12 oz smoked salmon (Norwegian or Scottish)
• Bagels (real ones from a bagel shop, not supermarket)
• Cream cheese (whipped, plain)
• Capers, sliced red onion, dill, lemon wedges
• Hard-boiled eggs
• Sliced cucumber and tomato
• Optional: smoked trout, gravlax, or trout roe for variety

Arrange on a large board. Zero cooking required.

Quiche Lorraine (or a vegetarian quiche)

A classic that holds up. Make the day before, reheat in the morning.

• Pre-made pie crust (or homemade if you're ambitious)
• 6 slices thick-cut bacon, diced and rendered
• 1 cup grated Gruyère
• 8 eggs + 1½ cups half-and-half
• ¼ tsp nutmeg, salt, pepper
• Bake at 375°F for 35-45 min

Vegetarian version: replace bacon with sautéed leeks + spinach + a sprinkle of Parmesan.

Bagel and lox bar

Set up a self-serve bar:

• Variety of bagels (everything, plain, sesame, asiago)
• Smoked salmon (lots — figure 1.5 oz per person)
• Plain and flavored cream cheese
• Sliced tomato, red onion, cucumber, capers
• Lemon wedges, fresh dill, fresh chives

Brunch becomes interactive and kids love assembling their own.

Christmas morning baked French toast

A make-ahead casserole that doubles as dessert:

• A loaf of brioche or challah, cubed
• 6 eggs + 1½ cups milk + ½ cup cream + ¼ cup maple syrup + 1 tsp vanilla + 1 tsp cinnamon
• Pour over bread in a 9x13 dish, cover, refrigerate overnight
• Bake at 350°F for 45 min
• Top with fresh berries and powdered sugar

Bread and pastry options

The cinnamon roll is the gold standard (see our breakfast ideas for the recipe). Other options:

Scones (make Christmas Eve)

• 3 cups flour, ⅓ cup sugar, 1 tbsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt
• 8 tbsp cold butter, cut into pea-sized pieces
• 1 cup heavy cream + 1 egg
• Add-ins: dried cranberry + orange zest, OR currants + Earl Grey
• Bake at 400°F for 18-22 min

Best served warm.

Croissants from a bakery

Pick them up Christmas Eve. Warm in the oven at 300°F for 5 minutes before serving. Don't try to bake them yourself — even great home cooks struggle with croissants.

A buttery pull-apart bread

• A pull-apart loaf with butter, herbs, and cheese baked in
• Serve warm with butter

The fruit element

Christmas brunch fruit doesn't have to be fancy:

Simple sliced fruit board

• Fresh berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries)
• Sliced citrus (orange, blood orange, grapefruit)
• A bunch of red grapes
• A pomegranate, halved and laid open

Baked fruit

• Pears or apples baked with brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon
• Top with crème fraîche when serving

Christmas fruit salad

• Pomegranate seeds, kiwi, orange segments, red grapes, mint leaves
• Drizzle with honey

Savory simple sides

• Crispy bacon (already-cooked the day before, reheated)
• Breakfast sausage links or patties
• Smoked salmon roll-ups with cream cheese and chives
• Hash browns from frozen (Trader Joe's does great ones)
• Roasted breakfast potatoes

Drinks

Coffee + tea station

• Real coffee (drip or French press, lots of it)
• A selection of teas
• Milk + cream + sugar + honey

Mimosa bar

• 2-3 bottles of prosecco or cava (cheaper than champagne for brunch)
• Pitchers of orange juice, pomegranate juice, peach nectar
• A bowl of sliced strawberries and pomegranate seeds
• Champagne flutes for adults, sparkling cider for kids

Adult-only options

• Bloody Mary if you have a tomato-juice-loving crowd
• Irish coffee for after the main meal
• A small pot of mulled wine if it's cold

The timing

Christmas brunch works best at 10-11am. The flow:

Time	Activity
5:30-7am	Wake-up, stockings, coffee for adults
7-8am	Presents
8-9am	Play with new toys, light snacks (fruit, yogurt)
9-10am	Brunch prep — heating the casserole, setting the table
10:30-11:30am	Brunch served
11:30am-onward	Lazy day mode, leftovers, naps, walks, movies

What to skip on Christmas brunch

• A multi-course brunch that requires hot serving of each dish
• Anything that requires you to be in the kitchen while presents are happening
• A new recipe you haven't tested
• Cocktails that take 5 minutes each to make — pre-pour or batch

The brunch table

A great brunch table is buffet-style for ease:

• Hot dishes on hot plates (warmed in the oven)
• Cold items on a cold platter
• A bread basket with butter alongside
• A drinks station off to the side
• Stacked plates and napkins at one end

Buffet means people serve themselves, the cook doesn't plate, and seconds happen naturally.

Still need help?

See our Christmas breakfast ideas, Christmas cocktails & drinks, or Christmas Day schedule for parents.