If you’re looking to change things up this Friendsgiving, you have to give my Frenchgiving menu a try! It was such a fun theme to lean into and the recipes are not only delicious, but they’re super easy too!
THE TIMELINE
Dinner parties can seem intimidating or stressful, but I make sure to plan for them in a way that creates the most low stress hosting experience possible so I can actually enjoy the night alongside my guests. Here is a rough outline of how I would recommend preparing for this specific dinner party.
Month Prior:
- Invite your guests (of course!)
- Draft a menu and grocery list, inclusive of dietary needs and taste preferences of your guests. Choose whether you will make the dishes yourself or assign guests to bring certain dishes to help out.
- Take inventory of your plates, linens & serve ware to ensure you’re covered based on the amount of guests and types of dishes/drinks.
- Order any supplies or ingredients that need to be purchased online.
Week Of:
- Main grocery shop of everything that can be purchased in advance (aka non perishables)
- Make menus or food labels as a fun (and completely optional) touch!
Day Before:
- Gather, organize and label all serve ware so it’s ready to be set out.
- Prep any recipes and ingredients that can be made in advance.
- Arrange any florals and organize additional decor, if using any.
Morning Of:
- If needed, secondary grocery shop as soon as the store opens to get any final needs and so you have as much time as possible to cook.
- As soon as you get home, measure and prep all ingredients that can be prepared in advance and set aside into stations based on each dish.
- Decorate/set up your space and of course, get yourself ready!
1-2 Hours Before:
- Finish any dishes that need prepared.
During:
- Enjoy!
Bonus Tips:
- Have food made in advance that you can eat while prepping because you probably won’t want to be cooking when prepping multiple dishes for your party, plus it saves time!
- Run and empty your dishwasher before the party so you can load everything instead of hand washing and taking up counter space. The easier the cleanup the better!
- Clean your spaces the night before hosting then do last minute touch ups prior to guests arriving.
THE MENU
Below is everything that I included on the menu. These recipes are inspired by French dishes that I love and are all super easy to prepare. It is absolutely doable to make them all on your own but definitely feel free to split up the dishes amongst your guests to lighten the load!
Boissons:
Keep it simple with an assortment of French wines and champagne.
Entrée:
- French Onion Soup – serve in tea cups with toasted baguette croutons!
Plat Principal:
Plats d’Accompagnement:
Dessert:
- Family Style Chocolate Mousse
- Baguette & Fromage – did you know they serve cheese after dinner in France?!
A NOTE ON CALORIE COUNT, NUTRITIONAL INFO AND SERVING SIZES
Due to my past experiences, I do not include most of the above information within my recipes as it is unsafe for me to do so personally. While I try to share a rough estimate when it comes to the serving size, please note that it is very subjective as we all have different hunger levels both from person to person and even from meal to meal.
If any of the above information is important to you, I understand! We are all different and have various goals and needs. If you’d like, you are welcome to calculate the information needed based on the ingredients you use when making one of my recipes.
I hope you understand! This comes from a place of love and protection both for myself and others like me. If you ever have any questions, send me an Instagram message for the quickest response time! Thank you for being here!
Looking for something more traditional?
FOLLOW ALONG
Be sure to follow me on Instagram and TikTok to see all of the behind the scenes of recipe creation as well as how to videos to watch them come to life! You can also head over to my Pinterest to save all of my recipes in one spot that you plan whip up in the future.
PS – If you make any of my recipes, I would be so grateful if you left a review so I can hear what you think! I also am happy to answer any questions you may have on here, but if you want a quicker response, be sure to shoot me a message on Instagram. Thank you so much and talk soon!
A huge thank you to Kayla for the inspiration behind this menu and aesthetic. Our wonderful step-dad, who teaches French for a living, was diagnosed with aggressive, terminal cancer at the end of October. He is only 63. He and my mother have never traveled to France together, and at this point…Never will. The timing of this Frenchgiving was nothing short of fate. We held heartbreak and joy together very closely this holiday weekend. Our family gathered from all corners of the states to be together, and man. We are so grateful. We followed the suggested menu fairly closely, and had a great time gathering all the different decor. We made it our own, thrifted most things, and surprised our parents with a beautiful, beautiful tablescape and an elegant (not to mention delicious) menu. They were thrilled with the vibes and honestly just felt very loved.
A massive success. Can’t thank Kayla enough.
Stephani, I hardly have words. Thank you so much for sharing this with my and for allowing me to be a part of such a special, important memory. Your family is so lucky to have you and I am so thankful that you created this special moment for everyone to enjoy together. You brought and created the magic! I am so sorry about his diagnosis and sending your entire family all of my love!