18 Christmas Dips and Appetizers You Can Make the Night Before

The doorbell rings twenty minutes early every single year, and whoever is mid-whisk when it happens loses the evening to the kitchen instead of the party. These eighteen dips and spreads solve that one problem: each can be mixed, chilled or assembled the night before, so party day only asks for an oven timer or a spoon.

Expect cold spreads that get better after a night in the fridge sitting next to baked dips you build ahead and finish in the oven while people hang their coats. The palette runs red cranberry and pepper against green herb and olive, all of it against cream cheese and melted cheddar, so the table looks pulled together without a single matching napkin ring.

Dairy runs through almost everything here, shellfish sits in the crab dip, fish in the smoked salmon, and gluten rides along on whatever cracker you choose, so keep a gluten-free option nearby if anyone needs one. The beer cheese dip is the only one with alcohol in it: pour it for the adults, and swap in a non-alcoholic lager if the guest list skews mixed. Once the food is out, 20 Christmas Party Ideas and Games for an Unforgettable Night or 22 Christmas Games for Adults for a Grown-Up Night In can carry the rest of the evening.

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Cranberry Jalapeño Dip

She will assume it is sweet and get a small, pleasant jolt of heat instead. A whole block of cream cheese under a spoonful of bright relish looks like more effort than it is, and it sits on the table looking very Christmas without any shaping or piping.

This easy dip involves spooning a cranberry sauce over a brick of softened cream cheese, and you can prep all the pieces in advance and just assemble and serve with crackers. If jalapeño feels like too much for the table, pickled jalapeño brings the same color with less bite.

Prep: 15 min | Total: 1 hr 15 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 16 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and minced
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Pulse the cranberries, jalapeño, sugar, lime juice, cilantro and salt in a food processor until finely chopped but not pureed.
2. Scrape the relish into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate at least 1 hour so the flavors round out.
3. Unwrap the cream cheese and set it whole on a shallow serving plate.
4. Spoon the chilled relish over the top, letting it spill down the sides a little.
5. Scatter a little extra cilantro over the top just before serving.
6. Serve with crackers or pretzel thins for scooping.

Hot Crab Dip

This is the one that gets a little bow in front of it because crab reads as an occasion. Warm, briny and rich, it wants nothing more than a stack of crackers and someone who will admit they ate most of it themselves.

Mix the filling the night before and hold it in the fridge; bake it fresh so the top browns properly instead of just reheating. If lump crab feels steep this week, a good claw meat does the job just as well and nobody at the party will say otherwise.

Prep: 15 min | Total: 35 min | Yield: 3 cups, serves 10

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 cup lump crab meat
• 1 cup shredded gruyere
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning
• 2 scallions, sliced

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F and butter a small baking dish.
2. Beat the cream cheese, mayonnaise and sour cream together until smooth.
3. Fold in the crab meat, half the gruyere, lemon juice and Old Bay.
4. Spread the mixture into the baking dish and scatter the remaining cheese over the top.
5. Bake 20 minutes until bubbling and golden at the edges.
6. Scatter the scallions over the top and serve hot with crackers or crostini.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Everyone says they are not that hungry, and then this bowl is empty before the main course. It is the dip that needs no introduction and no apology, which is exactly why it belongs on a night with too much else going on.

To get ahead, assemble the dip without baking, then on the day of, top it with a little extra cheese and bake until golden. If spinach is not her thing, swap in the same weight of chopped kale and nobody will notice the difference once it is baked in.

Prep: 15 min | Total: 40 min | Yield: 4 cups, serves 12

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 14 oz artichoke hearts, chopped
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Beat the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise until smooth.
3. Stir in the spinach, artichokes, garlic, half the mozzarella and all the parmesan.
4. Spread into a baking dish and top with the remaining mozzarella.
5. Bake 25 minutes until golden and bubbling at the edges.
6. Rest 5 minutes before serving with toasted baguette.

French Onion Dip

This is the one that outgrows the powdered packet forever. The onions take half an hour of patience, but all of it happens on the stove while something else gets done, and the payoff is a dip that tastes like it belongs next to real glassware.

It is one of those make-ahead Christmas party dips that actually tastes better after it sits in the fridge for a bit, so do it the night before and just stir before serving. No stove time to spare: a store-bought caramelized onion jam stirred in gets most of the way there.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 2 hr 45 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat and add the onions and salt.
2. Cook, stirring occasionally, 30 to 35 minutes until deeply golden and jammy.
3. Remove from the heat and cool completely.
4. Stir the caramelized onions into the sour cream, mayonnaise, Worcestershire and pepper.
5. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours so the flavors settle.
6. Serve cold with kettle chips.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Someone always asks for the football dip at a Christmas party, and there is no reason to pretend otherwise. Hot, orange, faintly dangerous, it clears a bowl faster than anything with the word ‘cranberry’ in its name.

Shredded rotisserie chicken turns this into a ten-minute assembly job. Build it unbaked the day before and bake it fresh so the top gets properly bubbling instead of just warmed through.

Prep: 15 min | Total: 35 min | Yield: 4 cups, serves 12

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup ranch dressing
• 1/2 cup buffalo sauce
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 1 cup shredded cheddar
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Beat the cream cheese, ranch dressing and buffalo sauce until smooth.
3. Fold in the shredded chicken and half the cheddar.
4. Spread into a baking dish and scatter the remaining cheddar and blue cheese over the top.
5. Bake 20 minutes until bubbling.
6. Serve hot with celery sticks and crackers.

White Bean Rosemary Dip

Put this out next to the richer bowls and watch the quiet guests find it first. It is the one dip on the table that can honestly call itself light, and the rosemary makes it smell like the tree before anyone takes a bite.

No cooking at all here, just a food processor and five minutes. Swap rosemary for thyme if that is what is already in the fridge, the effect barely changes.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 10 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 (15 oz) cans cannellini beans, drained
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for serving
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped, plus more for serving
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Combine the beans, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, rosemary and salt in a food processor.
2. Blend until completely smooth, scraping the bowl once.
3. Taste and adjust the lemon juice or salt.
4. Spoon into a serving bowl and drizzle with more olive oil.
5. Scatter extra rosemary over the top before serving.
6. Serve warm or at room temperature with flatbread.

Whipped Feta With Honey

This is the bowl that photographs itself: a pale, fluffy cloud with honey running into every ripple. It tastes expensive and takes ten minutes, which is a rare and worthwhile combination this time of year.

This creamy, tangy dip keeps well in the fridge for several days, so it is a great holiday appetizer to make ahead, just hold the honey and chili flakes until serving so they stay glossy instead of soaking in. Short on feta: swap half for more cream cheese and nobody minds a gentler tang.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 10 min | Yield: 1.5 cups, serves 6

Ingredients

• 8 oz feta
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp honey, for drizzling
• pinch of chili flakes

Instructions

1. Combine the feta, cream cheese and olive oil in a food processor.
2. Blend 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down once, until completely smooth and fluffy.
3. Spoon into a shallow bowl and swirl the surface with the back of a spoon.
4. Drizzle the honey generously over the top.
5. Scatter chili flakes over the honey.
6. Serve with warm pita or crackers.

Pimento Cheese

She grew up on this or she did not, and either way it disappears fast once the first cracker gets dragged through it. Sharp, a little spicy, pink-flecked and completely unfussy, it is the Southern answer to everything else on a cold-dip table.

This make-ahead appetizer takes just 20 minutes to prepare, does not require an oven, and can be prepped two days in advance, and it genuinely tastes better after a night in the fridge. Grate the cheddar yourself: the pre-shredded bags have a coating that keeps the dip from going properly creamy.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 1 hr 10 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 8 oz sharp cheddar, shredded
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 4 oz jarred pimentos, drained and chopped
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Instructions

1. Beat the cream cheese and mayonnaise together until smooth.
2. Stir in the cheddar, pimentos, cayenne and garlic powder.
3. Mix until just combined, leaving it a little textured rather than smooth.
4. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
5. Let it sit at room temperature 15 minutes before serving.
6. Serve with crackers or celery sticks.

Seven Layer Dip Wreath

This is the one bowl that looks like someone planned a whole theme around it, when really it is the same seven layer dip arranged in a ring instead of a square. Built on a round platter with a gap left open in the middle, it reads as a wreath the second it hits the table, much like the shapes in 30 Elegant Christmas Tree Decorations That Look Like a Designer Did It.

Layer the beans, guacamole and sour cream a day ahead and keep the whole platter covered; add the tomatoes, olives and scallions right before guests arrive so the colors stay sharp instead of fading into the cheese.

Prep: 25 min | Total: 55 min | Yield: serves 16

Ingredients

• 2 cups refried beans
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tbsp taco seasoning
• 2 cups guacamole
• 1 cup shredded cheddar
• 1 cup diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup sliced black olives
• 1/4 cup sliced scallions

Instructions

1. Spread the refried beans in a ring on a round platter, leaving the center open.
2. Stir the taco seasoning into the sour cream and set aside.
3. Spread the guacamole over the beans in the same ring shape.
4. Dollop the seasoned sour cream over the guacamole.
5. Scatter the cheddar over the top, pressing gently so it holds the ring shape.
6. Arrange the tomatoes and olives around the ring like wreath berries and chill 30 minutes.
7. Scatter the scallions over the top as the greenery just before serving with tortilla chips.

Pesto Cream Cheese Dip

Green on cream, with a little dusting of red sun-dried tomato, this one covers the whole palette in a single small plate. It needs no cooking and no bowl of its own worth washing, just a spatula and ten quiet minutes.

Build it a full day ahead and keep it covered; the layers only get cleaner looking once they have had time to firm up in the fridge. Basil pesto can swap for sun-dried tomato pesto if red feels more festive than green this year.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 40 min | Yield: 1.5 cups, serves 6

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup basil pesto
• 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
• fresh basil leaves, for garnish

Instructions

1. Spread the softened cream cheese into an even layer on a small plate.
2. Spoon the pesto over the cream cheese, leaving a cream-colored border visible.
3. Scatter the sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts over the pesto.
4. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes so the layers set.
5. Top with fresh basil leaves right before serving.
6. Serve with crackers or sliced baguette.

Beer Cheese Dip

Warm, sharp and a little sticky, this is the dip that belongs next to pretzels and whatever is already open on the bar cart. It uses real beer, so keep it with the adult spread and pour something non-alcoholic alongside for anyone who is driving or not drinking.

Make the base a few days ahead and keep it covered; reheat it low and slow on the stove, stirring often, with a splash of beer or milk to bring it back to glossy. A lager with real character makes a noticeably better pot than whatever is left in the fridge from last weekend.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 20 min | Yield: 2.5 cups, serves 10

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 3/4 cup lager beer
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
• 1 cup shredded gruyere
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk in the flour.
2. Cook 1 minute, then slowly whisk in the beer and cream until smooth.
3. Simmer 3 to 4 minutes until slightly thickened.
4. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the cheddar, gruyere, mustard and garlic powder a handful at a time.
5. Stir until completely melted and glossy.
6. Serve warm with pretzels or crusty bread.

Smoked Salmon Dip

Cold, pink-flecked and faintly briny, this one sits closer to a spread than a dip, and it is the bowl the quieter corner of the party usually finds first. Bagel chips or cucumber rounds carry it without competing.

Mix it the day before so the dill and lemon have time to settle in; it holds well for two days but, since it carries fish, that is the window worth respecting rather than stretching. Capers can drop out entirely for anyone who finds them too sharp.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 1 hr 10 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 4 oz smoked salmon, flaked
• 2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp capers, chopped

Instructions

1. Beat the cream cheese and sour cream together until smooth.
2. Fold in the smoked salmon, dill, lemon juice and capers.
3. Mix gently, keeping some flakes of salmon visible.
4. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
5. Scatter extra dill over the top before serving.
6. Serve with cucumber rounds or rye crisps.

Hot Corn Dip

Sweet corn against melted pepper jack and a flick of chile, this one is warm and a little unexpected on a table otherwise full of the usual suspects. It is also the dip that uses up the frozen corn bag that has been sitting in the freezer since summer.

Assemble it unbaked up to two days ahead and bake it fresh, adding a few extra minutes since it goes in cold from the fridge. Canned corn, drained well, works just as well as fresh when the market stalls have packed up for the season.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 35 min | Yield: 3 cups, serves 10

Ingredients

• 2 cups corn kernels
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup shredded pepper jack
• 1 jalapeño, minced
• 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 2 tbsp chopped scallion

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Stir the corn, cream cheese, mayonnaise, half the pepper jack, jalapeño and red pepper together.
3. Spread into a baking dish and top with the remaining cheese.
4. Bake 25 minutes until bubbling and golden.
5. Scatter the scallions over the top.
6. Serve hot with tortilla chips.

Cranberry Feta Dip

Salty feta under a spoon of tart cranberry sauce looks like a small, deliberate gift sitting in the middle of the table. It needs no oven and no last-minute attention, which earns it a permanent spot on the cold side of the spread.

Build the whole thing up to two days ahead and keep it covered; the longer it sits, the more the cranberry juice seeps into the cheese, which only improves it. Leftover cranberry sauce from the main dinner works here too, so nothing goes to waste.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 40 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 8 oz feta, crumbled
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
• 2 tbsp chopped pecans
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tsp orange zest

Instructions

1. Beat the feta and cream cheese together until mostly smooth with small flecks remaining.
2. Spread into a shallow dish in an even layer.
3. Spoon the cranberry sauce over the top, leaving a cream-colored border.
4. Scatter the pecans, thyme and orange zest over the cranberry sauce.
5. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
6. Serve with crackers or toasted baguette.

Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Smoky, faintly sweet and the right shade of red for the table, this one covers the fastest route to the color scheme without a single candy cane in sight. It blends in minutes and needs nothing more than a jar of peppers already sitting in the pantry.

Make it up to four days ahead and let it sit; the smoked paprika and garlic only get friendlier with time. Fresh roasted peppers work if there is an oven slot to spare, but the jarred kind is genuinely fine here.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 1 hr 10 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 12 oz jarred roasted red peppers, drained
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Pat the roasted peppers dry and add to a food processor with the cream cheese, sour cream and garlic.
2. Blend until smooth, scraping down once.
3. Add the smoked paprika, lemon juice and salt and pulse to combine.
4. Spoon into a bowl and swirl the top.
5. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
6. Serve with pita chips or vegetable sticks.

Tzatziki

Cool and garlicky against a table otherwise full of warm cheese, this is the one that resets a palate between bites of everything else. It also happens to be the easiest make-ahead item on the whole list, since it genuinely needs the rest time to taste right.

No oven, no stove, just a grater and a clean towel to squeeze the cucumber dry so the dip does not turn watery. It holds three days refrigerated and tastes better on day two than it did fresh.

Prep: 15 min | Total: 1 hr 15 min | Yield: 2 cups, serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 cups Greek yogurt
• 1 cucumber, grated and squeezed dry
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil, plus more for serving
• 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Grate the cucumber, then squeeze it in a clean towel to remove excess water.
2. Stir the cucumber into the yogurt along with the garlic, olive oil, dill, lemon juice and salt.
3. Mix until evenly combined.
4. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour so the flavors meld.
5. Drizzle with a little more olive oil before serving.
6. Serve cold with warm pita or cut vegetables.

Queso Dip

This is the one the kids’ table would raid too if it were not kept firmly with the grown-up spread tonight. Molten, a little spicy, endlessly dippable, it is built for a crowd that wants something hot the second they walk in.

Make the base up to three days ahead and reheat it low and slow with a splash of milk to bring back the shine; it will look split for a minute and then come right back together. American cheese is the trick to a queso that stays smooth instead of going grainy once it cools.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 20 min | Yield: 3 cups, serves 10

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 10 oz diced tomatoes with green chiles, drained
• 8 oz American cheese, cubed
• 8 oz Monterey Jack, shredded
• 1/2 cup milk
• pinch of ground cumin

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and soften the onion 3 minutes.
2. Stir in the tomatoes with chiles and cook 2 minutes.
3. Reduce the heat to low and add the milk, then stir in the cheeses a handful at a time.
4. Stir until completely smooth and melted.
5. Season with the cumin.
6. Serve warm with tortilla chips.

Warm Brie Dip

A whole wheel, scored and topped, baked until the center gives when pressed: this is the dip that makes people stop talking for a second. It is the recipe that always finds its way into the pre-dinner spread, and it needs no bowl of its own, just a small dish and a knife to score the rind.

Build the cranberry and pecan topping a day ahead and keep it covered on the brie, then bake it fresh so the center turns properly soft instead of just warm. If she would rather not drill into the schedule with another oven dish, a microwave-safe version on low power gets most of the way there in a pinch.

Prep: 10 min | Total: 25 min | Yield: serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 (8 oz) wheel brie
• 1/4 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
• 2 tbsp chopped pecans
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F and place the brie wheel in a small baking dish.
2. Score the top in a crosshatch pattern without cutting all the way through.
3. Spoon the cranberry sauce over the top and scatter the pecans over the sauce.
4. Bake 15 minutes until the center feels soft when pressed.
5. Drizzle with honey and scatter rosemary over the top.
6. Serve warm with crackers or baguette slices, letting guests scoop the melted center.

Frequently Asked Questions

How far in advance can you make dip for a Christmas party?

Most cold dips keep well for several days in the fridge, and often taste better after a night resting, since dips keep three to four days refrigerated and generally improve after a night. Hot baked dips are best assembled unbaked a day or two ahead and baked fresh so the top browns properly instead of just reheating.

Which Christmas appetizers can be made ahead?

Cold spreads do the best job here, since dips, cheese balls, anything skewered and anything best served cold are the best make-ahead appetizers. For dishes best served warm, pre-assemble the dish, cover it tightly and store it in the fridge until it goes in the oven.

Can you freeze Christmas dip?

Bean-based and some cheese dips freeze reasonably well, but anything built on sour cream, mayonnaise or fresh seafood tends to separate once thawed. For those, stick to refrigerating rather than freezing, and plan to make them within the three or four days before the party.

How do you keep dip warm at a party?

A slow cooker set on low does the job without tying up oven space, since crockpot dips can be a host’s best friend, keeping dips warm and ready for guests throughout the entire party. Stir occasionally so the edges do not scorch and the center stays smooth.

What do you serve with Christmas dips?

Crackers and crusty bread work for almost everything, pretzels suit the beer cheese, tortilla chips suit the corn and queso dips, and cucumber or celery sticks give a lighter option next to the richer bowls. Having one gluten-free dipper on hand covers most guest lists.

Can you make hot dips ahead and reheat them?

Yes, since a dip can be made up to two days ahead and stored in the fridge in an airtight container, then brought to room temperature when ready to serve. Bake or reheat it gently from there, adding a few extra minutes since it is starting cold.