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Party guide

A Relaxed, California-Style Friendsgiving

Big platters, wildflowers, and dinner served straight off the kitchen island. Roast chicken stands in for turkey, the colors are bright, and the whole thing feels like a long lunch that ran late.

Host tip: Buy your flowers and citrus the day before, get more flowers than you think you need, and split them into small jars down the island.

Shop the look on Amazon ↗

The menu

Starter
Crudités with green goddess dipRecipe from Once Upon a Chef ↗
Main
Lemon roast chicken (two, for a crowd)Recipe from Spend With Pennies ↗
Side
Citrus and fennel saladRecipe from A Couple Cooks ↗
Make-ahead mashed potatoesRecipe from Once Upon a Chef ↗
Dessert
Pumpkin cheesecake barsRecipe from Taste of Home ↗

Drinks and ice

  • Rosé, a crisp white and sparkling water with citrus

Flowers frozen in the ice

Use edible flowers only (violas, pansies, small rose petals, from the grocery herb section or online). Fill trays halfway, add the flowers face down, freeze, then top with water and freeze again so they sit in the middle. Thin cucumber ribbons curled into a tall cube are pretty in sparkling water too. How to make floral ice cubes

Make ahead

  1. 2 days before: Make the flower ice cubes and the cheesecake bars.
  2. 1 day before: Make the green goddess dip and the mashed potatoes. Cut the crudités and keep them in water.
  3. Day of, 2 hours out: Chicken in the oven (about 1.5 hours).
  4. 1 hour out: Slice the citrus and fennel; dress at the last minute.
  5. Guests arrive: Everything goes on the island on boards and platters.

The music

Laid-back indie and soft rock

The 25 songs
  1. Dreams, Fleetwood Mac
  2. Slow Burn, Kacey Musgraves
  3. Ventura Highway, America
  4. Electric Feel, MGMT
  5. Lisztomania, Phoenix
  6. Banana Pancakes, Jack Johnson
  7. Island in the Sun, Weezer
  8. The Less I Know the Better, Tame Impala
  9. Sunflower, Vol. 6, Harry Styles
  10. Pink + White, Frank Ocean
  11. Put Your Records On, Corinne Bailey Rae
  12. Steal My Sunshine, Len
  13. Young Folks, Peter Bjorn and John
  14. Rhiannon, Fleetwood Mac
  15. Bloom, The Paper Kites
  16. Sunset Lover, Petit Biscuit
  17. Coffee, Sylvan Esso
  18. Budapest, George Ezra
  19. Tadow, Masego & FKJ
  20. Space Song, Beach House
  21. Heat Waves, Glass Animals
  22. Sweet Disposition, The Temper Trap
  23. California Dreamin', The Mamas & the Papas
  24. Free Fallin', Tom Petty
  25. Malibu, Miley Cyrus

Little touches

  • A gift for the host

    What guests can bring.

    Flowers, a good olive oil, or a bottle of rosé

  • To take home

    A little something at the door.

    A mini bouquet tied with twine

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