When it comes to hosting holiday gatherings, Giada says this one easy thing will make life easier and more fun for everyone at the table.
The most cheerful time of year is filled with tradition and cozy vibes, but the holidays can still be stressful. There are gifts to buy and wrap, menus to plan, parties to attend and piles of cookies to bake. Finding a few shortcuts and hosting hacks is the only way to get through it all with a (genuine) smile and twinkle in your eye. It’s no surprise that Giada De Laurentiis has a few secrets up her sleeve for hosting holiday gatherings. She’s usually the cornerstone of family dinners, which is a big responsibility. But there’s one tip she leans on to keep things running smoothly, and it’s a no-brainer that any host can use.
What is Giada’s top holiday entertaining tip?
One way Giada keeps things simple at her holiday dinners is to ask family members to bring a dish or two. “But be specific,” she recently told me in an interview. “I usually figure out what someone is excited about or what they’re into at the time, what they’ve been making in their own kitchen, and ask them to bring that. For instance, my mom has been baking focaccia for the last six months, perfecting her recipe. So that would be something I’d ask her to bring to the holiday gathering.”
There’s no shame in delegating! If you need an appetizer, side dish or dessert, let someone else make it. Provide them with details, especially if you have a specific request for the table, but give them the freedom to make it their own. And keep it within their wheelhouse. If your new sister-in-law isn’t a baker, don’t ask her to create a three-tiered decorated cake.
Give guests something to bring that they can be proud of. No need to make it a potluck dinner, but a few extra dishes will take the responsibility off of you while you prepare everything else for the meal.
At her Christmas table, Giada says she always makes a pasta for the main course—something like spaghetti with fresh mussels and clams in a lemony, white wine cream sauce (very similar to her famous lemon spaghetti). I imagine she’ll have a fresh salad or two on the table, along with her easy tiramisu or a light fruit dessert. And her mom’s focaccia sounds like the perfect addition to the menu!
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