A Cozy French Holiday Menu You Can Make Days Ahead

Individual recipes are linked below. Scroll to the end for a full timeline breakdown.

’Tis the season for crowded tables and even more crowded calendars. When the holiday season hits, even home-cooking fans will find themselves stretched for time when it comes to prepping big meals. This year, I’m planning ahead. 

A make-ahead menu that doesn’t skimp on quality makes a big holiday impression and, most importantly, gives you the best gift of all on the day of the meal: time. 

This French-inspired menu kicks off with a no-recipe-cocktail Kir Royale, a festive and gorgeous start to your meal. The centerpiece of the meal is the impressive but easily-made-ahead cassoulet—a dish layered with both history and flavor. It’s paired with a sharp, crunchy salad that takes all of 15 minutes to make (but could easily be made up to a day ahead) and a simple, light, and airy Fontainebleau for dessert—layers of crème fraîche and whipped cream drizzled with jam. 

This cozy meal serves up to 10 people and is one that I’m keeping in my back pocket for those busy days ahead when the in-laws are coming, the seats are multiplying, and the appetites are growing.

Kir Royale

This easy two-ingredient cocktail is the perfect way to kick off a holiday meal. No need to plan ahead, no measuring required: Simply pick up a bottle of crème de cassis (black currant liqueur) and a few bottles of dry sparkling wine (Champagne if you have it!) and before you know it, there’s a celebratory toast underway! 

One bottle of sparkling wine makes about five cocktails, easily multiplied. 

½ ounce crème de cassis

4½ ounces dry (brut) Champagne or other sparkling wine

In a champagne flute or wine glass, pour the cassis first, then add the wine slowly. The bubbles mix it for you, so there’s no need to stir.

One-Day Cassoulet

Cassoulet is a hearty French stew, born in the south of France and now enjoyed worldwide. It’s a common staple in France—you can find it at bistros, family gatherings, and village feasts. In fact, it’s so commonplace that the French often simply pick up a can of cassoulet at their local grocery store and heat it on the stove for a weeknight meal. 

In the U.K. and the U.S., however, cassoulet has a reputation as full-fledged “project cooking.” Multiple days, multiple ingredients—the authentic ones often hard to find—have made this a dish that many home cooks challenge themselves to make. The heft of the recipe aside, what appeals to me most about this special-occasion recipe is how it only gets better with time. Like any good stew or casserole, it benefits from a day or two in the fridge: The flavors deepen, and everything melds together and gets cozy and delicious.

An added benefit is that you can parcel out the recipe prep in the week before the meal, and wow your friends and family when you only need 90 minutes to get your holiday dinner on the table.

FULL RECIPE HERE

Your Make-Ahead Game Plan

Most of the work happens days before the party. Day-of, it’s mostly oven time.

Up to five days before: Shop and soak

• Buy the duck confit and the dry goods. Ask the deli counter for your 1-inch piece of pancetta.
• The night before you cook the beans, put them in a bowl to soak overnight.

Three to four days before: Cook the beans (about 1 hour)

• Simmer the beans with the pancetta and aromatics.
• Cool them, then refrigerate them in their cooking liquid.

Two to three days before: Make the pork ragu (about 3 hours)

• Braise the pork, then stir in the beans, pancetta, and both sausages.
• Cool and refrigerate. Save any extra bean liquid.

The day before: Assemble the cassoulet (about 45 minutes)

• Shred the duck and toast the breadcrumbs with the parsley.
• Layer the ragu and duck in the Dutch oven, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
• Chop the salad vegetables and olives, cover with a damp towel, and refrigerate.
• Chill the Champagne.

The morning of: Make dessert (20 minutes)

• Whip and fold the Fontainebleau, portion it into cups if you like, and refrigerate.

2½ hours before dinner

• Take the cassoulet out of the fridge to take the chill off.

90 minutes before dinner

• Preheat the oven to 325°F.
• Top the cassoulet with breadcrumbs and bake, pressing the crust down twice, for about one hour total.

As guests arrive

• Pour the Kir Royales.

While the cassoulet rests (15 minutes)

• Dress the salad and slice the bread.

At dessert

• Pass the jams.