Sheet-Pan Dinners for December's Busiest Weeks

A plate of chicken piccata with lemon slices and capers on a table next to glasses of white wine — Serious Eats / Jatin Sharma

I was ecstatic when sheet-pan dinners started popping up on recipe websites and social media. Their appeal is obvious: Everything cooks on a single baking sheet, which you can optionally line with parchment paper or foil for minimal-effort clean-up. Many of these meals are also quick and simple to prep, making them a go-to option when time is tight. Below, we've gathered 12 of our favorite zero-fuss sheet-pan dinners to help make life a little easier during December's busiest weeks, when most people are juggling holiday shopping, hosting, and cookie swaps galore. These recipes—including crispy, tender gnocchi with sausage and a riff on chicken piccata—are straightforward and satisfying, and you're bound to find something to add to your weeknight rotation.

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Sheet-Pan Roasted Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, and Brussels Sprouts

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

A trick for sheet-pan dinner success is to add the ingredients to the pan in stages, so each one is only cooked for as long as necessary, ensuring nothing overcooks. Here, the chicken and vegetables get a spicy-sweet-umami punch from gochujang, which is whisked into an oil and vinegar dressing.

Sheet-Pan Roasted Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, and Brussels Sprouts
Sheet-Pan Salmon and Kale

Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt Ward, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless, Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey

This pomegranate-glazed sheet-pan salmon is surrounded by piles of kale. Massaging the kale before roasting tenderizes the leaves and jump-starts wilting, and guarantees the vegetable crisps evenly in the oven.

Sheet-Pan Salmon and Kale
Roasted Chicken Thighs With Bacon, Apples, and Cabbage

Serious Eats / Melati Citrawireja

Sweet, tangy, and savory, this easy chicken dinner with bacon, apples, and cabbage tastes like the very best of fall and winter. Placing the bacon in the center on its own prevents the meat from overcrowding and steaming, and allows the fat to render and crisp. Mixing the pan drippings with apple cider vinegar and maple syrup makes for a flavorful sauce to pour over the meal before serving.

Roasted Chicken Thighs With Bacon, Apples, and Cabbage
Sheet-Pan Pork Tenderloin With Sweet Potatoes and Broccoli

Serious Eats / Two Bites

To get juicy pork, lightly browned sweet potatoes, and tender broccoli, you only need 30 minutes. Here, we preheat the pan before adding the vegetables, so the sweet potatoes start cooking as soon as they hit the pan, resulting in better browning.

Sheet-Pan Pork Tenderloin With Sweet Potatoes and Broccoli

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Sheet-Pan Gnocchi With Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

Serious Eats / Victor Protasio

Store-bought gnocchi hold up to high heat and become wonderfully crisp and tender when cooked on a sheet pan. Plus: There's no boiling water, potato prep, or sauce required. Start with gnocchi and sausage first, then add the broccoli and tomatoes.

Sheet-Pan Gnocchi With Sausage and Broccoli Rabe
Sheet-Pan Spiced Cauliflower and Tofu With Ginger Yogurt

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

This spiced roasted cauliflower and crispy tofu make for a filling meal. Finely diced preserved lemon and a sprinkling of tart dried sumac add extra pops of acidity and complexity, but don't worry if you don't have them: Ginger yogurt and an onion-herb salad pack more than enough flavor on their own.

Sheet-Pan Spiced Cauliflower and Tofu With Ginger Yogurt
Musakhan (Palestinian Chicken and Potatoes)

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

In this sheet pan version of musakhan, a classic Palestinian dish, potatoes replace the traditional taboon bread. The spuds get a 10-minute head start in the oven, ensuring they turn tender once the chicken and onions are added and everything finishes cooking. Arranging the chicken pieces along the edges of the pan places them in the hottest spot, helping the skin render and become crispy.

Musakhan (Palestinian Chicken and Potatoes)
Sheet-Pan Chicken Piccata

Serious Eats / Jatin Sharma

Chicken piccata is easy to prep on the stovetop, but often involves searing or frying chicken in hot oil—which can leave behind a greasy mess. On a sheet pan, you can cook all your chicken at once and avoid the splatter. This riff on the classic is just as juicy and saucy, with chicken cutlets nestled in a buttery sauce with sliced lemons and shallots.

Sheet-Pan Chicken Piccata

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Sheet-Pan Chicken Thighs With Potatoes, Fennel, and Mustard-Beer Sauce

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

The secret to this dinner's success lies in knowing just how to cut and arrange everything. Placing the chicken thighs around the border of the sheet pan puts them where the heat is highest, leading to crispy brown skin while protecting the potatoes and fennel below from scorching. Once the chicken's done cooking, you'll use the leftover chicken juices in the pan to make a quick pan sauce.

Sheet-Pan Chicken Thighs With Potatoes, Fennel, and Mustard-Beer Sauce
Sheet-Pan Harissa and Orange Chicken With Chickpeas

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

This harissa and orange chicken with chickpeas is vibrant, bold, and aromatic from a flavorful marinade of harissa, fresh orange zest and juice, and warm spices, including cumin, coriander, turmeric, and ginger, which coats every element of the meal. It takes just a few minutes to prep before cooking completely hands-off in the oven.

Sheet-Pan Harissa and Orange Chicken With Chickpeas
Honey Mustard Sheet-Pan Chicken

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

Juicy chicken thighs, crispy croutons, and tender, broiled asparagus are all cooked on a single baking sheet, then served over a bed of frisée. A zippy dressing of mustard, honey, and red wine vinegar does double duty as both a flavorful marinade and a glaze for the chicken thighs.

Honey Mustard Sheet-Pan Chicken

Explore more:

12 Zero-Fuss Sheet-Pan Dinners Perfect for December’s Busiest Weeks

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