How To Host an Elevated and Enjoyable Holiday Dinner Party
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Food & Drink
How To Host an Elevated and Enjoyable Holiday Dinner Party
December 06, 2024
Holiday entertaining is an art. And while coming together with loved ones is one of the things that makes this season special, it can also be a lot of work. To make things easy, we created an elegant but straightforward holiday party playbook in partnership with recipe developer Cucina Melissa. Below, you’ll find all the outfit ideas, table inspiration, and custom recipes you need—keep reading for the entire plan.
The Outfit
When it comes to easy elegance, you can’t go wrong with classic denim and a Cashmere Cocoon Cardigan. It’s a comfortable yet put-together pairing for rolling gnocchi or refilling glasses of wine.
The Tablescape
Here, rich hues and dimensional elements elevate more simple pieces—like Pacific Dinner Plates and Bowls, vintage-inspired cutlery, and delicate glassware. Linen napkins and slipcovered Sunset Dining Chairs ground the set-up.
The Menu
Cucina Melissa delivered a dream menu, full of dishes that feel festive but not overly indulgent and can be (mostly) prepared ahead of time. Her menu features an acorn squash appetizer, a sweet potato gnocchi with a buttery sage sauce, and poached pears that are almost too pretty to eat.
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Instructions to Prepare
Prep the squash by cutting the squash in half and scooping out the seeds. Cut the squash in wedges, sprinkle with oil and a generous rain of salt and pepper.
Line a baking sheet with parchment. Wrap each squash with a slice of prosciutto. Drizzle each squash with honey and roast for 30 minutes, turning halfway through.
While the squash is roasting, brown the butter in a saucepan. Once browned, add the sherry vinegar. Set aside.
Add olive oil to a pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot add the diced shallots and cook until browned and crispy. Once the squash is roasted, remove the oven. The squash should be fork tender.
Plate the squash by pouring over the browned sherry butter and adding the crispy shallots. Top with a sprinkling more of salt and pepper. Plate and enjoy!
Instructions to Prepare
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Bake the sweet potato until cooked through, approximately 1 hour. While still warm but cool enough to handle, use a blunt knife to remove the skin. Use a fork to break up the sweet potato and then allow to cool slightly.
While the sweet potato is cooling. Heat olive oil in a pan and add the 8 sage leaves until the leaves get crispy. Set aside to cool on paper towels. Sift the flour over the sweet potato and use your hands to mix in well. Add the yolks, herbs and salt and pepper, mix together to form a dough. Add more flour if the dough is too sticky. Roll out the dough into long sausages, approximately 1 cm thick. With a sharp knife cut into 1/2 inch wide dumplings.
Bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Drop in the gnocchi and cook for 2 minutes Remove with a slotted spoon and place into iced water. This will stop the cooking process immediately. Drain well.
Heat the butter in a frying pan and once it starts to foam, add the gnocchi and cook for 1 minute. The gnocchi should take on a nut-brown color. Add the lemon juice and toss until the mixture becomes emulsified. Once off the heat add a tablespoon of the cooking water and grated Parmesan cheese. Finish off the heat until everything is combined! Plate with the crispy sage, more parmigiano, and salt and pepper.
Instructions to Prepare
Add wine, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, orange zest and juice to a pot. Peel your pears then use a small scoop to remove the core from the base of the pear.
Place peeled pears in poaching liquid and poach on low until soft and vibrantly red. About 30-45 minutes. Press the pears down into the poaching liquid with parchment and place in the fridge to cool.
While the pears are cooling, remove the spices from the liquid and turn the heat to high until it reaches a boil. Once boiling reduce the heat to low and let it simmer until the liquid coats the back of a spoon.
Serve the pears on top of the syrup once everything has chilled down. Serve with coconut whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream!
Photos by Bliss Kaufman