Christmas dinner was an extravagant feast during the late Victorian period, with elaborate, multi-course affairs. Of course, there were more modest holiday meals enjoyed, too—think Bob Cratchit's simpler but appreciated Christmas dinner in The Christmas Carol.
Dickens' novel was, in fact, a game-changer. The holiday became a day to party with platters of food and co*cktails, decorated homes, and gifts. So, with a nod to The Christmas Carol, here is a sampling of vintage Christmas recipes that graced holiday tables back in the day. You might not be enjoying the large-scale festivities of yore (thanks, COVID), but you can still throw things back with these vintage menu items. Many of the dishes are forever favorites, like oysters, cranberry sauce, applesauce, and gingerbread. Others, however, are ghosts of Christmas past.
And for more throwbacks, don't miss these 15 Classic American Desserts That Deserve a Comeback.
Oysters
Oysters were a cheap delicacy and extremely popular at the turn of the century. The bivalves were inexpensive because they were plentiful, according to Mental Floss. Like today, they were served on the half shell with a lemon wedge. Blue Points were harvested off Long Island and, at the time, were considered the pearl of oysters, and traditionally served as the first course at Christmas.
Get the recipe from The Fish and Wildlife Service.
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Plum Pudding
Like many Christmas favorites, plum pudding is a dish with British roots. Fact: There are no plums in plum pudding. The pudding (which is more like cake) was made with stale bread crumbs, scalded milk, raisins, figs, currants, wine brandy, suet, and spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. The adored dessert was made up to a year before Christmas because it was considered best when aged. If you decide to make it for your Christmas, start now. And do go the distance—when serving, douse it with brandy and set aflame.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Fruit Cake
The bunt of bad jokes, the outcast fruit cake certainly gets a lot of flak. But Fannie Farmer gave it some love with a Christmas recipe for Dark Fruit Cake in her 1896 cookbook, and it was a desired dessert.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Sugar Plums
Visions of sugarplums danced in children's heads, and the sweet confections appeared on Victorian Christmas tables, too. Dried plums or prunes were mixed with cinnamon, cloves, nuts, and other fruits, formed into balls, and rolled in sugar, for a very special Christmas candy. Sugarplums are a feature of our list of 6 Christmas Carols with Foods You've Never Actually Eaten.
Get a circa-1609 recipe from The Historical Cookery Page.
duch*ess Potatoes
The name suggests royalty, and these fancy-pants potatoes often had a special spot at the Christmas table. The mashed potatoes (butter, egg yolks, salt) were shaped using a pastry bag that piped the potatoes into whimsical shapes of baskets and roses, and then the potatoes were browned in the oven.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Consommé
Unlike today, consommé was held in high regard, including turtle consommé, as well as consommé made from beef, veal, and fowl. The clear soup was also sometimes called bouillon and was typically served early on as part of the multi-course elaborate holiday feast, including on Fannie Farmer's Menu for Christmas Dinner.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Roast Goose
Turkey was often served on Christmas, but it wasn't the only game in town (see what we did there?). Roasted goose was often the main event at Christmas dinner, served with applesauce and cranberry sauce.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Applesauce
A healthy and sweet addition to the holiday table and featured in Dicken's Christmas story, too, the saucy side dish would often get a kick, thanks to spices like nutmeg and cinnamon.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Cranberry Sauce
While cranberry sauce always relished at Thanksgiving, it was also served at Christmas and added a festive pop of color. Ocean Spray's canned cranberry sauce wasn't available in 1899, so the dish was always homemade. It's super easy to prepare—it's basically all about that tart little red berry and sugar.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Mince Pie
Traditionally made with chopped meat, by the turn of the century, the meat in this two-crust pie was commonly replaced with suet or butter, and it also included chopped apples, brandy or rum, dried fruits, and spices. Not only were mince pies featured in an 1896 Thanksgiving dinner menu in The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book, but there is also a recipe in Fannie Farmer's 1896 cookbook for Mock Mince Meat Pie, which used crackers instead of suet.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe fromThe Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Oyster Stuffing
Aside from being served on the half shell, oysters were also shucked to make a cameo appearance in an oyster stuffing, to accompany the bird (turkey or goose) starting in Miss Parloa's New Cook Book circa 1880. Oyster stuffing or dressing is still a traditional side dish and one of the30 Secrets for Making Perfect Stuffing.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe fromThe Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Chestnut Stuffing
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…. And roast they did, chestnuts were a favorite in Victorian times. Turkeys were also roasted with a chestnut stuffing tucked inside. And Jack Frost nipped at noses.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe fromThe Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Stuffed Bell Peppers
Bell peppers were a favored vegetable, and at Christmas, they got the extra attention they deserved—stuffed with rice and meat and tomatoes, much like today.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe fromThe Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Negus
This hot punch was served at Mr. Fezziwig's annual Christmas ball in Dickens' 1843 classic, A Christmas Carol. The punch was a stir of port wine, hot water, spices, lemon juice, grated lemon peel, and kissed with a sprinkle of nutmeg. Today, it's called a mulled wine and still finds a place on Christmas menus.
Get a traditional recipe from Esquire.
Manhattan co*cktail
There are varying accounts as to just who invented this city-slicker co*cktail, but there is no question that it was created in Manhattan and that it was a pour of rye, sweet vermouth, and aromatic bitters (and in fact, it was believed to be the first co*cktail to introduce vermouth to booze). The sip is still a trendy co*cktail, and particularly festive for Christmas—as it was in 1899.
Get a traditional recipe from Liquor.com.
Brandy Sauce and Hard Sauce
We always had hard sauce with our pie on Christmas; my dad insisted on it. In the Victorian era, it accompanied plum pudding or Christmas pudding. Fannie Farmer's recipe called for butter, powdered sugar, lemon extract, and vanilla. Brandy sauce is similar, but it's made with brandy, powdered sugar, butter, eggs, and milk or cream.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe fromThe Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Charlotte Russe
This classic cake, which dates to the 18th century in Europe, became a favorite in the 19th century at Christmas. It is a layer cake built with ladyfingers, Bavarian cream, cooked fruit, and a crown of whipped cream.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe fromThe Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Croquettes
A desired side dish often found on turn-of-the-century menus were croquettes—in fact, Fannie Farmer's 1896 Christmas menu included Chicken Croquettes and Green Peas.
Get the recipe from Fannie Farmer's 1896 Cook Book,The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Lobster Newberg
While turkey and goose were popular (and sometimes prime rib of beef), seafood and fish also had a special spot on Christmas menus. This rich and elegant seafood entrée was invented in 1876 at Delmonico's Restaurant in downtown New York City. The lobster special took off and became the "it" dish for special occasions, including the holidays, when it appeared on fancy hotel restaurant Christmas dinner menus.
Get the recipe from What's Cooking America.
Boned Capon in Aspic
Thankfully, this traditional Christmas dish has fallen out of favor. Why? A capon is basically a castrated rooster. And aspic is a meat-like-Jell-O. Are we not right? Well, if you're interested in trying your hand at it, there is a recipe in the bookRecherche Entrees: A collection of the Latest and Most Popular Dishes.
Get the recipe from Recherche Entrees.
Nesselrode Pudding
This frozen, chestnut-centric pudding was named for Count Nesselrode, a Russian diplomat. The fancy pudding was a decadent dessert and made with a chestnut puree, creamy custard, raisins, currants, sherry wine, and candied fruits like apricots and cherries.
Get the recipe from the James Beard Foundation.
Potatoes a la Maître d'hôtel
A favored potato dish that was often the house specialty in fine restaurants, like Delmonico's, it was made with sliced boiled potatoes, a rich, buttery sauce, and parsley.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Gingerbread
Gingerbread has stood the test of time and is still a Christmas treat as decorated houses and little men. Fannie Farmer's illustrious 1896 cookbook had a recipe for a Christmas gingerbread cake.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
Frozen Pudding
Think ice cream. This icy dessert, made with cream, sugar, eggs, rum, and candied fruits, was placed in a "brick mould" and then popped into the icebox to freeze.
Get Fannie Farmer's recipe from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book.
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