Planning to host a winter dinner party with an Italian twist? Search no more—here are some ideas to inspire you, from menu suggestions (because food is the queen of the party—any season, anywhere) to décor tips.
The Basics: Food
To host an Italian-inspired winter feast, it goes without saying that you’ll first need to plan a winter menu! First of all, in most of Italy, winter is pretty cold—or considered cold, at any rate. (people living in Catania and in Bolzano would probably have a different definition and perception of “cold” weather from the rest of the country.) Given the cold temperatures, winter is generally considered a good stay-at-home season and so, is a perfect time to host an indoor food-based party. So let’s get to this food!
Italian winter food greatly varies from North to South. The one feature that defines winter food, however, is comfort. Winter dishes are rich and warm, like your (perhaps imaginary) grandmother used to make, or still does! Basically, anything that is served warm or hot will do. Take polenta—it’s warm, rich, and tastes like that magical past we never lived in and yet are sometimes nostalgic for—in other words, the perfect match! It can be eaten as soon as it is cooked or it can be enjoyed fried in the following days or, more commonly, warmed in the oven (it’s then called polenta abbrustolita). It can be a vegetarian dish when served with mushrooms or seasoned cheeses, or it can accompany very traditional dishes like spezzatino, a stew made from low-grade cuts of veal, beef, lamb, or pork, usually with a regional twist.
Listing all the winter desserts could take forever, so let’s sample one for each macro-Italian region (North, Center, South) and beg for pardon in advance for all the ones we are neglecting.
Let’s start with a Northern classic that went viral (no fear of overstating here): tiramisù. No explanation needed. And no twist needed, so go ahead and look for la vera ricetta del tiramisù, the one Le Beccherie restaurant in Treviso registered at the Accademia Italiana della Cucina. But we cannot leave Northern Italy without a mention of the two defining Christmas/winter desserts: pandoro and panettone.
Next up: Central Italy and Tuscany. This region—and the city of Siena in particular—tempts with its panforte, rich with fruit and nuts. Some people in Siena swear that panforte should contain seventeen different ingredients (like the seventeen contrade [wards] within the city walls), but we won’t tell anyone if you skip one or two.
Finally, in the South in Campania, the winter champs are struffoli, also known as Honey Balls—or scalilli in Calabria, favette in Basilicata, cicerchiata in Abruzzo. Whatever they are called, these deep-fried balls of sweet dough will make everyone happy.
Décor & Tips
Unless you’re hosting something really formal, there are no special rules as far as winter décor goes. Pines, snowflakes, string lights, candles, green and red accent touches; there are no significant differences between Italy and the US on this front. Italians pay special attention to table etiquette. If you’d like to stick to tradition, have everyone seated and serve a multi-course meal. But parties with people standing, roaming around mingling and eating finger foods, are more and more common (read: smaller apartments, less time). The above-mentioned grandmother would absolutely disapprove (Eating while standing? Unacceptable!), but no one would bat an eye in 2024 Italy, unless it’s the holidays, of course. In that case, everyone MUST be seated, for hours.
Whatever you’re planning to serve, and however you’re planning to consume it, rule number one for every Italian party that involves food is: Do not plan an ending time for your party! You know when people will arrive, but you will never ever know when you and your guests will be ready to part. Buon divertimento!
By Claudia Quesito
Also read:
Top 8 Christmas Dishes in Italy
How to Make Panettone: Recipe and Traditions
