Skip to content

Top Navigation

Real Simple Logo Real Simple Logo
  • Food
  • Home
  • Life
  • Health
  • Money
  • Style and Beauty
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • News
  • Shopping
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • My Account
  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Free Organizing App this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Real Simple

Real Simple Logo Real Simple Logo
  • Explore

    Explore

    • How to Measure Your Ring Size at Home

      How to Measure Your Ring Size at Home

      Try one of these three easy methods to make sure your ring fits perfectly, every time. Read More
    • Here's the Right Temperature for Your Refrigerator and Freezer (Because a Few Degrees Makes a Difference)

      Here's the Right Temperature for Your Refrigerator and Freezer (Because a Few Degrees Makes a Difference)

      Keeping foods chilled properly helps them last longer and stay fresher. Sticking to the ideal refrigerator temps can help you avoid potential foodborne illnesses, too. Read More
    • 34 Great Books to Suit Any Mood or Interest

      34 Great Books to Suit Any Mood or Interest

      This list has you covered, no matter how you're feeling. Read More
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food
    9 Cheeses You Can Eat Even If You're Lactose Intolerant

    9 Cheeses You Can Eat Even If You're Lactose Intolerant

    Not all dairy is created equal. 
    • Recipes
    • Real Simple Cooking School
    • Cooking Tips & Techniques
    • Shopping and Storing
    • Kitchen Tools and Products
  • Home

    Home

    See All Home
    • Cleaning
    • Organizing
    • Decorating
    • Gardening
    • Home Improvement
    • Green Living
    • New Uses for Old Things at Home
    • Quick Fix
    • Real Simple Home
  • Life

    Life

    See All Life
    • Family
    • Entertainment
    • Technology
    • Wedding Planning
    • Travel Ideas
    • Career
    • Get It Done
  • Health

    Health

    See All Health
    Feel Like You Don't Enjoy Anything Anymore? There's a Name for That—Here Are 8 Ways You Can Break Through It

    Feel Like You Don't Enjoy Anything Anymore? There's a Name for That—Here Are 8 Ways You Can Break Through It

    Mental health experts explain anhedonia and how you can bounce back from this joyless state of mind.
    • Preventive Health
    • Mental Health
    • Health Coach
    • Crisis Coping
    • Fitness & Exercise
    • Sleep
    • Healthy Eating
    • Well Fed
  • Money

    Money

    See All Money
    Are You Keeping Too Much Money in the Bank? Here's How to Tell

    Are You Keeping Too Much Money in the Bank? Here's How to Tell

    Putting money in the bank is smart, but too much cash savings can actually be a poor use of that money.
    • Money Confidential Podcast
    • Saving Money
    • Money Planning
    • Money Confidential
    • Spending
    • Money Etiquette
    • Invest Better
  • Style and Beauty

    Style and Beauty

    See All Style and Beauty
    How to Measure Your Bra Size at Home

    How to Measure Your Bra Size at Home

    All you need is a tape measure and a little free time.
    • Clothing
    • Skincare
    • Shoes
    • Hair
    • Clothing Care
    • Makeup
    • Hair Body Face
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See All Holidays & Entertaining
    PowerPoint Parties Are the Party Trend You Have to Try: Here's How to Host One

    PowerPoint Parties Are the Party Trend You Have to Try: Here's How to Host One

    PowerPoint nights are the new fun way to party together—even when you're far apart.
    • All Holidays
    • Gifts
    • Father's Day
    • Passover
    • Entertaining
    • Home for the Holidays
    • Come Together
    • Hanukkah
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • Valentine's Day
    • Easter
    • Mother's Day
  • News
  • Shopping
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • My Account
  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Free Organizing App this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Real Simple
  2. Food
  3. Holiday Dinner Party Made Easy

Holiday Dinner Party Made Easy

Real Simple Author
By Real Simple Editors Updated November 06, 2017
Skip gallery slides
FB Tweet
Purse with invitation
Credit: Maura McEvoy
Host a stress-free affair with a do-ahead menu and simple, festive decorations.
Start Slideshow

1 of 3

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The Invitation

Purse with invitation
Credit: Maura McEvoy

A snippet of evergreen or holly makes this invitation to a sit-down dinner stand out from a pile of one-dimensional holiday cards. To replicate this invite, open the link below to get the template, then print it out on card stock, and cut along the dotted lines. Using a hole punch, make two side-by-side holes at the top of each card. Thread a small length of ribbon from back to front, tie it to a twig, and knot.

Open Holiday Dinner Party Invite here.

1 of 3

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 3

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The Menu

Dinner party
Credit: Maura McEvoy

No, you don't have to make everything from scratch. Your guests will never notice if you cut a few corners and take advantage of packaged ingredients. You can save more than an hour of prep time by relying on frozen pearl onions (no peeling!), presliced mushrooms, precut stew meat and carrots, and pre-bagged lettuce.

Menu

Shopping List

  • 3 1/2 to 4 pounds stew or chuck meat
  • 1 bottle dry red wine
  • 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
  • 2 14.5-ounce cans low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 whole carrot
  • 1 head garlic
  • 1 1-pound bag baby carrots
  • 2 sticks unsalted butter
  • 1 pound fresh or frozen pearl onions
  • 1 pound sliced button mushrooms
  • 8 russet potatoes
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 quart whole milk
  • 3 bunches (about 3 pounds) broccoli rabe
  • 1 12-ounce jar red currant jelly
  • 1 1.5-ounce jar red pepper flakes
  • 1 8-ounce jar Dijon mustard
  • 3 heads Bibb or Boston lettuce
  • 2 navel oranges
  • 3 ounces pecan halves
  • 4 ounces goat cheese (optional)
  • 1 shallot
  • 1 8-ounce carton orange juice
  • 1 12.7-ounce bottle white wine vinegar
  • 2 pints vanilla ice cream
  • 2 pints chocolate ice cream
  • 1 7.5-ounce bag hard peppermint candies

What to Sip

Tradition holds that whatever wine goes in the stew should go in the glass. That's fine, but wine expert Andrea Robinson suggests matching rich beef stew and bitter broccoli rabe with an assertive Rioja (such as Bodegas Montecillo Rioja Reserva, $16) or a Petite Syrah (like Bogle, $10).

2 of 3

3 of 3

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The Timeline

0512Dining-Table
Credit: Maura McEvoy

Two Days Before

  • Make the Ice Cream Bombe.
  • Select the music.

The Day Before

  • Set the table. Holly sprigs or evergreen branches can add seasonal color to the table. Clip cuttings from your yard or your Christmas tree.
  • Clean the living room, dining room, and bathrooms; edit the medicine cabinet, in case of nosy guests.
  • Make the Beef Bourguignonne.

Early in the Day

  • Unmold the Ice Cream Bombe onto a platter and return to freezer.
  • Make the salad and the vinaigrette; refrigerate them separately.

Two Hours Before Guests Arrive

  • Mash the potatoes; transfer to oven.

One Hour Before Guests Arrive

  • Heat the stew.
  • Make sure the dishwasher is empty.
  • Change into your party clothes.

15 Minutes Before Guests Arrive

  • Light the candles and turn on the music.
  • Set out some chilled sparkling water.
  • Uncork the wine.

15 Minutes Before Dinner

  • Toss the salad.

After the First Course

  • Make the broccoli rabe.

After Dinner But Before Dessert

  • Place a load of dishes in the dishwasher.
  • Sprinkle the candy over the Ice Cream Bombe.

After the Last Guest Leaves

  • Clean the dishes before going to bed so you don’t have to face them in the morning.

3 of 3

Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Real Simple Editors

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 3 The Invitation
    2 of 3 The Menu
    3 of 3 The Timeline

    Share & More

    Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print
    Real Simple Logo

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • About Us
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Help
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Sign Up
    MeredithAll products and services featured are selected by our editors. Real Simple may receive compensation for some links to products and services in this email on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Real Simple is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Real Simple. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.realsimple.com

    Sign in

    View image

    Holiday Dinner Party Made Easy
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.