Project Food Blog: Challenge 3 “Luxury Dinner Party”
*cue the music* “Celebrate good times come on…”! We’ve crossed another challenge hurdle {thank YOU so much for voting for us. I can’t tell you enough how appreciative we are of your support!}, and now YOU’RE INVITED! That’s right, even if only virtually ; ) The next challenge is to hold a dinner party for friends and family! Not just any dinner party, a “Luxury Dinner Party”. For some that might mean caviar, kobe beef, foie gras {all extremely tasty and things, mind you, I wouldn’t turn down} BUT for ME a luxury dinner party is simply good food, shared with good family/friends! How could that be anything but good fun. Being with the ones you love in our topsy turvy lives is a LUXURY and one that I treasure.
Okay before I get completely sappy ; ) let’s get to it! When planning a party I like to rely on the WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and WHY template.
The first step for me is WHEN. Once you’ve decided WHEN to hold your party you can decide the WHO.
Yes, the WHO would be the GUEST LIST. Once you’ve selected your special guests, it’s time to formally invite them. The type of invitation {be it snail mail with vellum, raised print on linen or online via a cutesy invitation service, or simply a phone call} will depend on how formal or informal your dinner soiree is.
Now it’s time for the WHAT or the MENU! My favorite part! Knowing if your guests have any food restrictions is IMPORTANT so be sure to ask. You don’t want any unnecessary faux pas ; ) When planning my menu I try to keep things simple and use seasonal foods.
When I sat down to contemplate my menu for this particular party I had the additional task of introducing my guests to new flavors. I knew immediately that I wanted to showcase dishes from my beloved Friuli. Everyone is familiar with Italian food but few are familiar with Friulano dishes. Friuli Venezia Giulia is a region in Northern Italy tucked away from the usual tourist destinations. I don’t know why because it’s a region bursting at the seams with unspoiled beauty, amazing cuisine {they have a knack for taking the simplest ingredients and turning them into unforgettable dishes} and wonderful wines! It’s where I spent my formative years and it’s where a large piece of my heart will always be. It’s TRULY a gem that I hope you’ll one day discover for yourself.
Ecco…our Friuliano menu for the evening:
{So that this post isn’t twenty pages long LOL I’ll be sharing the recipes for these dishes in upcoming individual posts to give them each the proper showcase they deserve : ) Patience my pretties! I can’t wait to share them with you!}
The WHERE and the WHY are easy! Where is at my large farm table in our kitchen. The gathering point in our home. And the WHY, well food is meant to be shared and should be shared OFTEN!
Having a dinner party doesn’t have to be stressful. My biggest piece of advice is to:
* Try and do as much prep work ahead of time as possible. If I’m not prepared and rushing it’s not going to turn out well ; )
And one other tid bit, be sure YOU are dressed {take that ponytail down, change your flip flops and take off the apron LOL, well at least that’s what I have to do} and have drinks and appetizers ready to go at least fifteen minutes PRIOR to the start time. That way if one of your guests arrives early {we all know an early bird or two} you won’t be rushed.
There you have it. Just RELAX, keep it simple, seasonal and it will be a satisfying night! You’re sure to be the hostess with the mostess {or the host with the most} After all you’re amongst friends and they LOVE you no matter the outcome.
And psst…don’t forget my invitation next time you’re throwing a to do!
Baci!
Voting will open MONDAY and if you’d like to {wink wink} simply click on the Project Food Blog Widget to VOTE for us to continue on this culinary adventure!
Paula…this luxury dinner party looks amazing!! What a menu!
Beautiful!! I would have loved to be there!!! You know you’ve got my vote!
I’d like to be a guest at your next party, ok? Looks like yours went a lot more smoothly than mine! I’d love to try your torte too… hazelnuts are such a weakness! You’ve got my vote as always!
If Italian is on the menu, I will always enjoy it, but new tastes make it even more exciting. Everything looks great and thanks for the introduction to a part of Italy that I’m not familiar with.
This looks really good. Good luck! Will be voting.
Love, love, love it. And THANK YOU for checking with your guests about dietary restrictions. There are so many people who don’t do that, and it makes it so awkward for those of us who have them. I have gotten to the point where I just bring my own dinner to people’s houses to ensure that I get the food I need.
Oh Paula, what a beautiful menu
I love that you kept it simple but it’s exotic and luxurious all at the same time… Next time, don’t forget my invite huh? Good luck!!!!
I love the menu. Simple and beautiful as always.
Paula, you know this is my kind of dinner party! I love it all…especially the dessert part: APPLES!
in bocca al lupo!
it’s official…i need you to cook for me
What time is dinner???? **wink wink**
Much love and of course I voted for you hunny!!!!!
FABULOUS party!!!
HOW GORGEOUS!!! that look absolutely incredible and I am jealous I wasnt there! voting right now missy!
Beautiful menu that evokes and warm and cozy feel. That apple torte looks amazing! Great job Paula!
Wow Wonderful Menu!!! Good Luck! I just voted! xoxo
Oh my Paula, I think I’ve died and gone to heaven! Your food is just absolutely mouth watering and your pictures are gorgeous. I can’t even begin to tell you how well you did with this challenge. I was waiting to get your entry in my inbox and clicked on it right away! You definitely didn’t disappoint!
Just AMAZING, I’m completely blown away!! 
I seriously could go on and on.
What a delicious and elegant dinner!
What a beautiful post..food..people everything!
Great menu and great advice at the end of your post.
You really choose excellent recipe for a luxury menu and to represent Friuli.
Beautifully done! Now I want to eat. Will you be serving Nonino grappa at the end meal? Of course I’ve voted.
Looks delicious! I voted for you
Just voted! Good luck!
Wonderfully done Paula!! Un beso!!
I always love your recipes and your beautiful photos, another great job on this post! You always have my vote!
Love it! Will be voting!
I love your reminder for the host to get dresses, lol. Reminds me of a certain Thanksgiving where I wore pajama pants the whole time without really realizing it!
Voted for you! This looks so good!
VOTEDDDDDDD! Good luck! Wish you all the best!
jen @ http://www.passion4food.ca
food, like beauty, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder but to me, this is one dinner that will be enjoyed by the eyes and senses of everyone
love it. voted for you 
Hey, what a fantastic menu! Voted & good luck!
Dropping by from http://luxuryhaven.blogspot.com!
This looks like a wonderful dinner party. I agree that if you have good food and good friends, a wonderful evening tends to come about naturally.
It looks absolutely delicious! Invite me next time – okay!
I voted for you – Can’t wait to see your challenge 4 post!
Bellisimo… ma perch? non mi hai invitato?
Looks amazing! And I’ll totally vote for you!!
What an inspirational menu and post! Great job and good luck!
This sounds like pure Italian comfort food, and I drooled just a little when reading your menu. So cool that you could share your childhood culinary memories with friends. You certainly have one of my votes:)
This is exactly the type of thing I hoped to see when I read about this challenge. Everything looks so rich and elegant, I wish I could’ve been there! You’ve got a vote of ours this week, good luck.
Lick My Spoon
Looks wonderful! What a fun entry! Hope we both make it to the next round!
You have my vote!
Wow, the tart looks incredible!
Oh, this is beautiful! I have such dinner party phobia, will you teach me sensei?
And your photos look like they’re straight out of a MAGAZINE. Cheers! You definitely got my vote! http://bit.ly/cNNCrR
I had to laugh when I read “be sure YOU are dressed” because that’s exactly what didn’t happen at my dinner party – I was too frantic in the kitchen to change into party wear. Oh well! Yours seems like an oasis of calm in comparison – well worth voting for
Wow! The food looks great! You have my vote. Good luck!
Great job with this!! I have to admit, I planned mine totally out of order – creating the menu first, and then spir of the moment inviting people and then figuring out the time! You have it right though… so much less stressful if you do When, Who, What! Great job with this!!
I wish I was at your project food blog party – this meal you put together looks gorgeous and of course very tasty. Love that photo of the pie
You have my vote of course.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks
To see what we're cooking up in the Family Kitchen click HERE
Search by Category
Free Updates:
Featured Links
Meta
© 2012 bell'alimento. All Right Reserved.
Elegant Themes | Customized by Christy Broxton
Powered by Wordpress | Hosted by Ek Development